CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Wednesday adjourned to August 17 the hearing of petitions challenging Speaker JCD Prabhakar's decision to accept the resignations of four AIADMK members who had contested the Assembly elections as AIADMK candidates and subsequently joined the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).
Former AIADMK Minister and party whip Agri SS Krishnamurthy has moved the Madras High Court challenging the Speaker's decision to accept the resignations of S Jayakumar, P Sathyabama, Maragatham Kumaravel and Esakki Subaya.
During the hearing, Senior Advocate V Giri, appearing for party whip Agri SS Krishnamurthi, argued that the court could not accept the counter affidavit filed by the Assembly Secretary on behalf of the Speaker unless the Speaker submitted himself to the court's jurisdiction. He said the questions raised in the petitions had to be answered by the Speaker himself.
He further argued that under Article 190 (3) of the Constitution, the Speaker was required to enquire whether a member's resignation was voluntary and genuine. In the present case, there was nothing to show that such an inquiry had been conducted. He also pointed out that the members were admitted into the ruling party within a few hours of resigning, making the acceptance of their resignations questionable.
After hearing the matter, the court posted the case for further hearing on August 17, 2026.