CHENNAI: After boycotting the session for four days, the DMK MLAs are getting back to the Assembly today (Monday) with ‘new hope’ to reflect the pubic issues in a ‘stubborn’ manner. The principal opposition party, having a strength of 89 in a House of 235, walked out of the Assembly on May 29 when the House resumed for transacting business relating to demand for grants, saying they would boycott the entire session to show their displeasure over the manner in which orders were issued to permanently close down the Sterlite Copper smelting plant in Thoothukudi following the outrageous shootout.
On the following day, they enacted a mock Assembly at their party’s headquarters Anna Arivalayam, with a surprise entrant Karunaas, head of Mukkulathor Pulippadai, elected on an AIADMK ticket.
Later, the party announced that similar mock Assembly sittings would be held in other parts of the State as well.
While DMK stayed away from the proceedings, its allies Congress and IUML did not follow suit; instead they kept themselves involved in the proceedings of the House.
The decision to stay away from the proceedings of the Assembly evoked mixed response from the public with many people criticising the party.
In a sudden move, DMK working president Stalin changed his mind to announce that his party’s legislators would take part in the Assembly session bowing to the sentiments of the public and the views of the opposition parties that were with DMK.
The decision was endorsed at a meeting of DMK legislators and district secretaries on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Stalin in a statement on Sunday said that his party’s legislators were getting back to the Assembly with ‘new hope’ as it had proved that it would always reflect the views of the public in its action.
“Even if we face as many interventions, we will present the public issues in a stubborn manner and take part in the debate to counter the anti-democratic and illegal activities of the AIADMK government,” he said.