Governor sends Assembly report to President

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palanisamy had won the vote of confidence by a steep margin amid stormy situation in the House. 

The Governor has sent a report to the President and the Centre, official sources said without divulging further details. 

Earlier, the Governor had sought a “factual report” from Assembly Secretary A M P Jamaludeen on the entire proceedings from the time the House assembled at 11 am on February 18 till it was adjourned sine die at 3.27 pm after adoption of the confidence motion. 

Jamaludeen had submitted the report at the Governor’s office on February 20, two days after Palanisamy won the trust vote by a 122-11 margin. 

Palaniswami had won the trust vote after eviction of DMK members and walkout by its allies, amid stormy scenes during which mikes were uprooted, chairs toppled and sheets of paper torn and hurled around. 

DMK Working President M K Stalin and rebel AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam, who had unsuccessfully pleaded for a secret voting on the confidence motion, had on Sunday appealed to the Governor to “nullify” the vote.

Tamil Nadu Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao opened up about recent political upheavals in the state on a website that went viral, raising eyebrows on his decision to talk publicly about sensitive issues pertaining to the state. (Excepts)

In my public life, that has spanned over 45 years, I have swam against the stream on a number of occasions, but my actions were never highlighted so much until the recent political upheavals in Tamil Nadu. 

I feel my stand (not swearing VK Sasikala in as chief minister) has been vindicated by the Supreme Court’s ruling. She was not an elected representative. Moreover, the Supreme Court had announced that it was going to deliver its verdict in the case soon. In that scenario, it was only appropriate for me to wait for the verdict before taking any call. 

I had the opportunity to visit an ailing J Jayalalithaa at Chennai’s Apollo Hospitals on a few occasions. During one such meeting, she had even raised her thumb, signalling that she was on way to recovery. 

As a Governor, it is not proper for me to share these details. I am thankful to the media, the panellists in TV debates and others who supported or opposed my stand.

“Governors have traditionally followed two avenues for sharing of information. They either hold a press conference or speak off-the-record to journalists, who would attribute the news report to “sources.” 

In my opinion, it is alright for a person in such a position to speak if it is in public interest. In this case, social media was full of allegations about why Edappadi Palanisamy was sworn in. Secondly, people have been questioning the circumstances that led to J Jayalalithaa’s death. In fact, in a constitutional crisis, he has to act like a statesman. 

In exceptional circumstances (such as this) a Governor can talk. In the era of RTI, it is okay for a Governor to speak out. However, he or she should be prepared for rejoinders. If you stoke a flame, you have to face the heat.