CHENNAI: The first council meeting since the formation of the TVK-led government descended into repeated confrontations on Wednesday, with proceedings disrupted first by a clash between DMK and AIADMK councillors and later, by a bitter exchange between DMK and Congress members that culminated in a walkout.
The meeting, held after a gap of nearly four months, was expected to mark the beginning of a new political equation inside the civic body and that equation turned into a battleground as councillors traded political barbs, shouted slogans and repeatedly brought proceedings to a halt.
The first confrontation erupted during Zero Hour when AIADMK floor leader KPK Satheesh Kumar rose to raise civic issues in his ward. However, he also took a swipe at DMK councillors for repeatedly praising former CM Stalin during the proceedings, saying that unlike them, he would speak only about public issues and not party politics.
The remarks immediately drew protests from the DMK benches. As Satheesh repeated the criticism, shouting broke out across the council hall. The situation escalated further after DMK members taunted the AIADMK over its leadership, triggering a heated verbal exchange.
The confrontation soon spilled beyond words. Satheesh rose from his seat and moved towards the DMK benches, prompting several ruling party councillors to get up in protest. Amid the commotion, papers were hurled towards the AIADMK member while his microphone was briefly switched off. DMK councillor Kavi Ganesan also moved towards him before senior members intervened and separated the councillors.
Congress councillors accused the DMK of unnecessarily politicising the proceedings and claimed that much of the discussion revolved around whose photographs should be displayed in civic offices
Though order was eventually restored and Satheesh completed his speech, staged a walkout when Kavi started speaking beyond local issues.
Another tension resurfaced when Congress councillor Samuel Dhiraviam began speaking. Samuel referred to the political change in Tamil Nadu and thanked Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, triggering sharp objections from DMK councillors. What began as interruptions soon escalated into a war of words, with DMK councillors accusing Congress members of being “dhrogis” (traitors).
The exchange continued for several minutes, with neither side willing to back down, Congress councillors eventually staged a walkout from the House.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Congress councillors accused the DMK of unnecessarily politicising the proceedings and claimed that much of the discussion revolved around whose photographs should be displayed in civic offices. They also said they had previously sought separate seating arrangements for alliance parties under the TVK-led government.
Mayor Priya’s repeated attempts to restore order during both confrontations proved unsuccessful as councillors continued to raise slogans and interrupt proceedings, resulting in a disorderly end to what was expected to be the first major council session under the new government.