The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) MLAs on Monday staged a walkout from the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly after they alleged that they were not allowed to raise issues during zero hour, leading to a brief disruption in the House proceedings.
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said the opposition was denied the opportunity to speak despite repeated requests to highlight public issues.
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He said: “At zero hour today, the Speaker of the House of Representatives did not allow us to speak, so we withdrew. We did not have the opportunity to speak inside the House. We asked the Speaker of the House to give us an opportunity to speak about public issues. We were denied the opportunity to speak.”
Moreover, the DMK and Communist Party of India (Marxist) MLAs also urged the Speaker to take up the ammonia gas leakage incident in Tiruvallur for a detailed discussion during the ongoing session, seeking accountability and a comprehensive report on the security gap.
The protest came amid demands from multiple parties, including DMK and Left legislators, seeking a discussion on the ammonia gas leakage incident reported at a seafood processing unit in Tiruvallur district. The death toll from the ammonia gas leakage accident has risen to five, while 67 people are currently undergoing treatment and are still under medical observation.
When this happened, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly (JCD Prabhakar) responded in the Assembly, assuring that members would be given adequate time to raise the issue.
“Regarding the ammonia gas leakage incident in the seafood processing unit, the DMK, AIADMK and several other members have demanded that the matter be discussed in the Assembly. I will give an opportunity to the opposition members to speak,” he said.
The opposition is pressing for an urgent assembly debate on the accident, citing concerns about worker safety and the environmental impact in the affected area.
