CHENNAI: Even before settling into office, the TVK government led by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay is set to face its first major political and legislative test — the election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly.
With no single party enjoying a clear majority in the House, the Speaker’s election, scheduled for May 12, is expected to hinge on negotiations, consensus-building among post-poll allies — Congress, Left, VCK and IUML.
However, the Left parties and IUML continue to maintain ties with the DMK, giving the principal opposition party an indirect role in the developments surrounding the Speaker’s post. If a section of AIADMK MLAs decides to back TVK in the Speaker’s election, the ruling party may have its choice as the Speaker.
The Speaker’s post is important since he plays a crucial constitutional role, including conducting Assembly proceedings, deciding on disqualification petitions under the anti-defection law, and determining whether a government enjoys a majority during crucial situations. Due to this, the ruling party always wish to keep a senior functionary from it as the Speaker. In Tamil Nadu, on most of the occasions, since the ruling party had a majority, both posts went to them easily.
Speaking to TNIE, political analyst Tharasu Shyam said coalition governments require consensus on major decisions and that the Speaker’s election would be the first indicator of how effectively the new government manages its alliances. In 1967, Rajaji attempted to make Congress leader PG Karuthiruman the Speaker, and since DMK had a majority, the then Chief Minister CN Annadurai did not accept this.
Subsequently, SP Adithanar, who belonged to the Naam Tamilar Katchi but elected on DMK symbol, was elected Speaker. He also cited the example of Somnath Chatterjee, consensus candidate, who was elected Speaker of the 14th Lok Sabha in 2004.
Meanwhile, Governor Rajendra Arlekar on Sunday, administered the oath of office to MV Karuppaiah, a TVK functionary, as the Pro-Tem Speaker, in the presence of Chief Minister Vijay at the Lok Bhavan. Karuppaiah will administer the oath to newly elected members of the Assembly on Monday. Karuppaiah, a former AIADMK MLA, switched to TVK and has now been elected from the Sholavandan (SC) seat.