Chennai, Jan 20 (NationPress) The Tamil Nadu Assembly was the scene of significant turmoil on Tuesday as the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) orchestrated a mass walkout by the Opposition, alleging that the ruling DMK was obstructing debate and calling for the resignation of Chief Minister M K Stalin due to an alleged breakdown of law and order.

This walkout was prompted by the Speaker's refusal to entertain a discussion regarding the law and order issues in the state, which was requested by the Leader of the Opposition, Edappadi K Palaniswami. AIADMK legislators, joined by members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), left the House while chanting slogans against the government, protesting what they viewed as an effort to silence important public issues.

The opposition's demonstration unfolded during a chaotic inaugural session of the 2026 Assembly session, which had already been disrupted by the Governor’s earlier walkout. Governor R. N. Ravi exited without delivering the customary address, after insisting on the playing of the National Anthem following Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu—a request the government rebuffed, citing long-standing Assembly practices.

In the absence of the Governor, the House passed a resolution initiated by the Chief Minister to accept the English version of the undelivered address as the official statement. Outside the Assembly, Palaniswami spoke to the media, sharply criticizing the DMK government and referencing claims made in the Governor’s address document.

He accused the government of failing to convert memoranda of understanding worth Rs 12 lakh crore into actual investments, which led to Tamil Nadu's industrial investment ranking dropping from fourth to sixth place. He cited what he claimed were official statistics indicating a 33 percent rise in sexual harassment cases, with minors constituting 55 percent of POCSO cases, alongside nearly 2,000 suicides linked to drug abuse and increased atrocities against Scheduled Castes.

Palaniswami further asserted that approximately 20,000 suicides in a single year had earned the state the unfortunate title of the suicide capital of India. He highlighted significant vacancies in educational institutions and ongoing protests by government employees, maintaining that law and order had “completely collapsed” under the DMK.

“During AIADMK governance, law and order was effectively upheld,” he stated, concluding that the alleged governance failures deprived the Chief Minister of the moral authority to remain in office and necessitated his resignation.