AIADMK member thanks 'Ettappadiyar'

CHENNAI: A pronunciation goof-up by an AIADMK member made the party's general secretary, Edappadi K Palaniswami, sound like 'Ettappadiyar,' prompting laughter in the House.

AIADMK member L Jayasudha's mispronunciation triggered repeated laughter in the Assembly on Tuesday, with members across party lines joining in during the debate.

Participating in the discussion on the Handlooms, Textiles and Khadi and MSME Departments, the Arani MLA began her speech by thanking Palaniswami, as AIADMK members customarily do before addressing the issues related to the departments under discussion.

However, Jayasudha, instead of sounding "Edappadiyaar", was seen pronouncing it as "Ettappadiyaar," prompting laughter from the Treasury and Opposition benches. Each time she used the pronunciation, members exchanged smiles and laughed, turning the proceedings into a brief, light-hearted episode.

During her speech, Jayasudha described Health and Family Welfare Minister KG Arunraj as a "well-mannered and cultured person". She referred to Revenue Minister KA Sengottaiyan as a close associate and also thanked Handlooms Minister M Vijay Balaji.

Taking the exchange in good humour, Vijay Balaji remarked: "Goodness… your party chief is not present here (in the Assembly)."