CHENNAI: The Assembly is set to provide cars to 125 sitting MLAs who have expressed willingness to receive government vehicles for travel within their constituencies.

Of the 234 MLAs in the Assembly, including the Chief Minister, Ministers, and members of opposition parties such as the DMK and Left parties, some have opted not to accept the cars. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay had announced the scheme in the Assembly.

The Speaker, Chief Minister, Ministers, Deputy Speaker and Government Whip already have government vehicles by virtue of their official positions. Hence, they are excluded from the list of MLAs eligible to receive cars. The principal opposition party, the DMK, has already announced that it will not accept the vehicles offered by the government. Leader of Opposition and DMK youth wing leader Udhayanidhi Stalin announced the decision in the Assembly.

Apart from the DMK, members of the Left parties and two PMK MLAs have also opted out of the scheme. AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami is also among those who have declined the offer.

Except for seven vacant Assembly constituencies, the remaining AIADMK MLAs have expressed their willingness to receive the cars. As of now, 125 MLAs are eligible beneficiaries under the scheme.

During an Assembly discussion, VCK MLA Jothimani demanded that the government provide vehicles to all MLAs. Accepting the demand, Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay announced that the government would provide a vehicle to every MLA.

Along with the announcement, the Chief Minister also declared a monthly allowance of Rs 75,000 towards drivers' salaries, fuel expenses and vehicle maintenance. The government also announced a monthly personal assistance allowance of Rs 25,000 for all MLAs.

Following the announcement, the government issued an order to implement the scheme. It has decided to purchase Mahindra Scorpio SUVs for the MLAs, with the on-road price of each vehicle reportedly capped at Rs 15 lakh.