Tamil Nadu CM rejects opposition demand for adjournment of assembly

CHENNAI: The chief minister and opposition members had a wordy duel in the assembly on Friday over why the session was not being adjourned in view of the Covid-19 outbreak. Leader of the opposition M K Stalin raised the issue in zero hour and said state assemblies like Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand had already adjourned and Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself had called for 'Janata curfew' on Sunday."We have been advising people to remain at homes and not gather at any place. A senior minister has kept a board outside his residence asking people not to visit his house. When you have such restrictions on one hand, is it proper to hold the assembly session?" asked Stalin.
He sought to allay fears that adjournment of the House would add to the scare. It would rather help MLAs remain in their own constituencies and create better awareness about preventive measures among the people, he argued. He also raised the issue of small shops and establishments remaining open. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that small shops and establishments must remain closed and the owners must continue to pay wages to the workers. But on Thursday, the chief minister said small shops and establishments would continue to work. The state government must give an assurance on making the owners pay wages to the workers," said Stalin.
He urged the government to provide essential commodities to agricultural workers and daily wage earners at their doorstep as their source of income has taken a serious hit. Similar demands were raised by Congress legislature party chief K R Ramasamy and IUML MLA Mohd Abu Backer. "The virus is likely to affect senior citizens badly. I can see most of us, including the chief minister, deputy chief minister and speaker, are senior citizens. How safe is it to continue with the session?" asked Ramasamy. Rejecting the plea to adjourn the session, Palaniswami said, "Only when the session is on, can the government address the issues being raised by the opposition. While the United States and Italy have failed to take adequate precautions, Tamil Nadu has taken enough precautions. That is why the virus has not affected us badly". As of now, the virus is being transmitted from those who have come from other countries. Noting that local-to-local transmission was not happening, he listed out the measures taken by the government to prevent spread of the virus. "Through the industries and labour departments, we are taking steps to make owners of shops pay salary to their workers. They need not worry," said the chief minister.