The ruling DMK government in Tamil Nadu, which had previously engaged in expunging criticism against government from the assembly minutes, has once again sparked controversy by not airing the live telecast of opposition MLAs questioning the government during the 2025 Assembly session. This move has been widely condemned as a blatant attempt to suppress opposition voices and has been described as an extreme form of political fascism.
The controversy arises amid the Anna University sexual harassment case and other ongoing issues. In protest, opposition party AIADMK members, the main opposition party entered the legislative assembly wearing black shirts with badges reading “Who is that sir?” to highlight that another individual linked to the harassment case has not yet been arrested. In this context, the DMK government has adopted a controversial tactic of only broadcasting speeches from DMK and its allied members during the 2025 Assembly session. For the rest of the proceedings, the live telecast displayed a blank screen with the message “Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Session 2025,” accompanied by the government logo and an image of the assembly building. The broadcast resumed only when DMK and alliance MLAs spoke, effectively excluding the voices of opposition members. In previous session, instead of focusing the live camera on the speaking opposition MLA, the camera was directed towards DMK MLAs and ministers, which sparked widespread controversy and criticism in social media.
கருப்பு சட்டை, யார் அந்த சார் ? பேட்ஜ்
டங்ஸ்டன் தடுப்போம் முக கவசம்
அணிந்து அதிமுக உறுப்பினர்கள் அவையில் பங்கேற்றுள்ள நிலையில், கேள்வி நேரத்தில் அதிமுக உறுப்பினர்கள் கேள்விகள் எழுப்பும் போதும் பதில் அளித்து பேசும் போதும் அவர்களின் காட்சிகள் காட்டப்படவில்லை.வழக்கமாக கேள்வி… pic.twitter.com/s48WMfpyRB
— Stalin SP (@Stalin__SP) January 8, 2025
This is not the first time such actions have occurred. In the past, the live telecast of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has been abruptly cut off during opposition protests, such as when opposition MLAs demanded time to discuss the Kallakurichi issue.
Tamilnadu Legislative Assembly live telecast has been severed abruptly as opposition MLA’s protest demanding time to discuss Kallakurichi issue.
byu/vignesh_kannan inTamilNadu
Similarly, during the 2023-24 budget session, AIADMK members staged a walkout, accusing the ruling DMK government of only airing the speeches of ministers while excluding the opposition’s addresses on issues affecting the public. They also claimed they were not given adequate time to speak in the House.
At that time, opposition leader Edappadi Palaniswami requested the Assembly Speaker, Appavu, to at least air his speech, but the Speaker insisted that Palaniswami must provide details of his speech in advance for consideration, raising concerns about the state’s commitment to freedom of speech and expression.
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