Reasons behind T.N. Governor’s refusal to read customary address absurd: CM Stalin

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday (January 11, 2025) said Governor R.N. Ravi had refused to read his customary address in the Assembly because he was “not able to stomach the progress made by the State.”

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday (January 11, 2025) said Governor R.N. Ravi had refused to read his customary address in the Assembly because he was “not able to stomach the progress made by the State.”

In his reply to the Governor’s address, Mr. Stalin said everyone knew about the “absurd reasons” behind the Governor’s decision to avoid reading his address. “That is why I said his act was childish,” he added.

The Chief Minister said as per established convention, the Tamil Thai Vazhthu was played at the beginning and the national anthem at the end of the address. But the Governor refused to accept this clarification, he added.

Recalling late DMK leader M. Karunanidhi’s dialogue in the film Parasakthi, that “the court had witnessed a lot of strange cases,” the Chief Minister said the Assembly had also seen a lot of “strange incidents” as far as Governor Ravi was concerned.

“As per section 176 of the Constitution, the Governor should read the address prepared by the government. But he deliberately violated the rule,” Mr. Stalin said.

Mr. Stalin said he could be an ordinary person though he was holding the post of Chief Minister. “The Assembly has already celebrated its centenary and is made up of the feelings of crores of people. By daring not to respect the dignity of the House and the feelings of the people and insulting the Tamil Thai Vazhthu, he (the Governor) has sought to denigrate the post he is holding with political motives. The Assembly has not witnessed it in the past and should not witness it in the future,” he said.

The Chief Minister said politically speaking, the DMK would not mind the Governor’s act because the party had emerged “despite neglects, humiliations, and oppressions.”