Amid Storm in Tamil Nadu Assembly, E Palanisamy Clears Trust Vote

Saturday’s Trust Vote comes as a major setback to O Panneerselvam’s CM Bid.

In the Trust Vote, E Palanisamy was voted by 122 MLAs. (Photo: PTI)

Taking advantage of the opposition’s absence, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palanisamy bowled out rival O Panneerselvam as he sailed through the floor test on Saturday. After moving a confidence motion in the State Assembly, Palanisamy received 122 votes in his favour, while 11 AIADMK legislators from the OPS Camp voted against the motion. 88 Members of the DMK could not vote, as they were evicted by the Speaker for unruly conduct inside the house.

Earlier in the day, chaos unfolded in the assembly, as DMK legislators flung papers while raising slogans inside the assembly. As Speaker P Dhanapal made a hasty exit, a DMK MLA could be seen sitting on the Speaker's chair. They also manhandled Dhanapal, who later said he was “hurt and humiliated” over the incident.

Meanwhile, DMK interim Chief Stalin gained centre stage, as he emerged out of the assembly, with his shirt unbuttoned. He later met Governor C Vidyasagar Rao over the incident. Denying that his lawmakers had assaulted Dhanapal, Stalin alleged that the Speaker had torn his own shirt to stir a political controversy. He was later detained by the police along with other DMK leaders who had taken to a dharna.

Video Editor: Sunil Goswami