A statement from the Assembly secretary K Srinivasan said that the Speaker administered the oath in accordance with the Constitution at 10.22 am.
Chennai: The newly elected MLA from Erode East constituency, V C Chandrakumar, was sworn in as a member of the House on Monday by the Speaker M Appavu at his chamber in the Assembly in the presence of Chief Minister M K Stalin, Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, VCK president Thol Thirumavalavan and other State Ministers.
A statement from the Assembly secretary K Srinivasan said that the Speaker administered the oath in accordance with the Constitution at 10.22 am.
Speaking to the media, Chandrakumar said that he would fulfil the promises that he gave to the people in a year’s time and that his victory was a harbinger for a total sweep by the DMK in 2026 Assembly polls. Whether the opponents came to the electoral battle individually or together, they would be defeated, he said.
The election of Chandrakumar has taken the DMK’s strength in the 234-member Assembly to 133, while its major ally the Congress had 18 members. Other allies have a total of 8 members – VCK 4, CPI 2 and CPM 2. In the opposition benches, the AIADMK has 66 members, PMK 5 and the BJP 4. The Speaker, who the election as a DMK candidate, is unattached.
Describing the victory of Chandrakumar was a reaffirmation that the State was a land of social justice, Thirumavalavan said the boycott of the polls by the AIADMK was due to a conspiracy by the Sangh Parivar and proof of the secret deal between the AIADMK and BJP.
Thirumavalavan said that he placed four demands to the Chief Minister, whom he met in the Secretariat, one of them related to the Vengaivayal issue, where the people of the village felt that the victims of the crime had been victimized against as perpetuators of the crime.
The present FIR on the case was not final, he said, adding that the other demands pertained to ensuring the promotion of government officers belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Tribes though Section 164-a of the Constitution, put an end to caste violence against SC/ST people and a commission of enquiry by a retired judge into the Vengaivayal issue.
