Tamil Nadu’s principal opposition party, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), has alleged that its Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) were denied screentime during the ongoing Tamil Nadu Assembly session. The issue came to light during the question hour sessions on January 8 and 9, when AIADMK MLAs were heard asking questions, but their visuals were not shown on the screen while the proceedings were being streamed live on the Tamil Nadu Assembly’s official YouTube channel.
The AIADMK MLAs attended the sessions on January 8 and 9 wearing badges that read “Yaar andha SIR?” (translated as “Who is that sir?”) pinned to their black shirts, as a show of protest against the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)’s handling of the Anna University sexual assault case. The case pertains to the sexual assault of a student at the university in Chennai, allegedly perpetrated by a man with links to the DMK. The AIADMK has launched a campaign alleging involvement of another person referred to as “sir” by the accused, as mentioned in the complaint filed by the survivor.
TNM reviewed the question hour proceedings of the Tamil Nadu Assembly on both January 8 and 9 to verify the AIADMK’s claims. We found that during the question hour, when the AIADMK MLAs raised questions, the camera focused on Speaker M Appavu or on the treasury bench. When opposition MLAs finished their questions, the camera shifted to the DMK Minister concerned, who answered the respective questions.
On January 8, during the question hour, Speaker Appavu invited DMK MLA Gandhirajan to pose a query to Minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development Udhayanidhi Stalin. While asking the question, the DMK MLA was shown on screen. However, when former minister and AIADMK MLA KA Sengottaiyan was invited to speak, the camera remained focused on the Speaker, with Sengottaiyan’s audio audible in the background. His video feed was completely omitted from the live broadcast.
A similar pattern was followed on both days for all AIADMK MLAs. Even MLAs from the Congress, the DMK’s ally, who were seated next to the AIADMK MLAs, were not shown on screen.
When the AIADMK MLAs raised the issue with Speaker Appavu during the ‘zero hour’ on January 9, the Speaker responded that this might have happened due to a “technical error” and assured the AIADMK MLAs that he would look into the matter. “This government does not intend to hide anyone; the government is common for all,” the Speaker replied.
Calling this alleged censorship the “murder of democracy,” AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palanisamy took to X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Does the Legislative Assembly only entail the ruling party and the Speaker? The cameras in the Legislative Assembly have not turned towards the opposition party even today. Does the opposition line-up threaten you that much, Mr. MK Stalin? Why are you afraid and trembling?”
He added, “I urge the Stalin-model DMK government to broadcast the proceedings of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly completely, without concealing anything, with the views of the opposition party, which is the voice of the people.”
It is worth noting that similar instances were reported in August 2023 at the Parliament of India, when Sansad TV denied screentime to the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A.) during protests. Newslaundry also reported that during Rahul Gandhi’s 37-minute-long speech, the camera stayed on him for only 15 minutes, focusing on Speaker Om Birla for the remainder of the time amid the ruckus.
On Wednesday, January 8, Chief Minister MK Stalin stated that questions should be directed to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the court to probe the case, rather than to the government. He also said that Gnanasekaran was a sympathiser of the party and not a member.
Earlier, on January 6—the first day of the assembly—AIADMK MLAs were removed from the House by the Speaker for raising slogans and holding posters against the DMK’s handling of the sexual assault case. On the same day, other opposition party MLAs, including those from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), staged a walkout demanding answers from the DMK on the issue.
On December 23, a student of Anna University was sexually assaulted, filmed, and allegedly blackmailed by a man named Gnanasekaran, who is believed to have links with the DMK. The survivor filed a police complaint on December 24, and a First Information Report (FIR) was filed. Gnanasekaran has been booked on charges of rape and sexual harassment and detained under the Goondas Act, a stringent law used to detain offenders as a preventive measure to maintain public order.