New Delhi: In the customary ‘motion of thanks to the governor’s address’ tabled before the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly on Wednesday, January 11, the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) highlighted that governor R.N. Ravi chose to deviate from the text prepared by the state government.
“This House records its agony for the act of Hon. Governor omitting and including some portions in his address which was sent by the Tamil Nadu Government, approved by the Hon. Governor and circulated in the assembly,” said the motion moved by DMK member N. Eramakrishnan.
Even on the ‘Motion of Thanks to The Governor’s Address’, DMK led TN Govt underlines “This House records its agony for the act of Governor omitting & including some portions in his address which was sent by the TN Govt, approved by the Governor and circulated in the assembly” pic.twitter.com/1CraSQ9aOH
— Arvind Gunasekar (@arvindgunasekar) January 11, 2023
On Wednesday, the Assembly session commenced with a debate on the motion. The debate will continue for two days – January 11 and January 12. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin will address the House on Friday, January 13.
Ravi’s address to Assembly on Monday, January 9, kicked up a storm after he had decided to pick and choose words, deviating from the approved text. As per the convention, governors are expected to read the text prepared and approved by the government of the day.
The portions he had skipped included the term “Dravidian model” of governance and references to stalwarts held in great esteem in the state, including E.V. Ramaswamy (Periyar), Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and former chief ministers, Kamraj, C. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi. He had also included, of his volition, from outside the text provided by the state government, remarks on Swami Vivekananda and the Union government’s actions on issues concerning Tamil Nadu’s fishermen.
Soon after his speech, objecting to the omissions and additions, Speaker M. Appavu read out the Tamil translation of the governor’s address which had been tabled already. Stalin then moved a resolution to retain only the printed and approved speech copy on the Assembly records. At this stage, the governor walked out of the Assembly in a huff, without waiting for the National Anthem.
Furthering widening the gulf between him and the state government, Ravi sparked yet another controversy on Tuesday, January 10, when he sent out invitations for the Pongal festival that carried the Union government’s logo rather than the state government’s. He also referred to himself as Tamizhaga Aalunar (the governor of Tamizhagam), according to Indian Express.
The governor’s suggestion to rename the state from ‘Tamil Nadu’ to ‘Tamizhagam’ last week also resulted in backlash from both the ruling DMK and the opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).