Tamil Nadu witnessed a fresh constitutional flashpoint on Tuesday after Governor RN Ravi walked out of the Legislative Assembly without delivering his customary address on the first day of the year’s opening session. The incident once again furthered rifts between Raj Bhavan and the State government.
Dispute over customary address
When the session began, Speaker M Appavu asked the Governor to follow long-standing convention and confine himself to the address cleared by the state government. Stepping in as objections rose from the treasury benches, the Speaker stressed the importance of legislative norms, remarking that “Only MLAs can express opinion in the House, no one else.”
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Speaking from the assembly floor, Governor Ravi said that it was “unfortunate” that his speech was interrupted. He voiced dissatisfaction with the conduct of the proceedings and said, “I am disappointed. The National Anthem was not given due respect.” Soon after, he left the assembly floor without delivering the address.
The Governor further alleged that his microphone had been switched off several times throughout the discussion.
Raj Bhavan’s explanation
Later in the day, Lok Bhavan released a statement explaining the reason behind the walkout. The statement said that the Governor did not get a chance to speak, and his microphone kept being cut off. The statement further said that the Governor's speech was full of “numerous unsubstantiated claims and misleading statements" and that some points that he had flagged were omitted from the final text.
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The Lok Bhavan questioned the Tamil Nadu government’s assertion and said that the “claim that the state attracted huge investments to the tune of over (Rs) 12 lakh crores is far from the truth.”
“Many of the MOUs with prospective investors remain only on paper. Actual investment is hardly a fraction of it. Investment data show that Tamil Nadu is becoming less attractive for investors. Until four years ago, Tamil Nadu, among the states, was the fourth largest recipient of foreign direct investment. Today it is struggling to remain at the sixth”, the statement stated, adding further that the “National Anthem is yet again insulted and the fundamental Constitutional duty disregarded.”
