Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Tuesday, 13 May 2025, invoked the history of the British parliamentary system and underscored the importance of democratic traditions while addressing the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly in Chennai, shortly after Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) MLA J.C.D. Prabhakar was elected unopposed as the new Speaker of the House. The occasion also saw party legislator M. Ravi Shankar elected Deputy Speaker without contest.

Vijay's Address to the House

Speaking on the floor of the Assembly, Chief Minister Vijay traced the origins of the Speaker's role in England, recalling how Speakers during the monarchy era served as the critical link between Parliament and the King — often at great personal risk. "The Speaker had the responsibility of informing the King whenever Parliament rejected his proposals. In those days, kings even had the power to order executions, and Speakers sometimes faced severe punishment for conveying Parliament's stand," Vijay said.

He also highlighted the old parliamentary custom in which newly elected Speakers would symbolically hesitate to occupy the chair and would be escorted to the seat by leaders of the House and opposition. "That tradition continues even today as a symbol of democratic values," the Chief Minister remarked, noting that the practice was upheld in the Assembly on Tuesday itself.

Lincoln Quote and Democratic Ideals

Vijay called upon the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly to function as the "heart of democracy" and quoted former US President Abraham Lincoln's celebrated definition of democracy — a government "of the people, by the people and for the people." He stressed that every member of the Assembly holds equal standing, regardless of party size. "Every member in the Assembly is equal. Legislative traditions and democratic values must be protected," he said, adding that even parties with a single member must be accorded due importance in the House.

The Chief Minister also assured full cooperation from all TVK legislators to the newly elected Speaker, and indicated that the government's functioning should ensure wider public benefit through welfare measures and governance initiatives.

Prabhakar and Ravi Shankar Elected Unopposed

J.C.D. Prabhakar, the MLA from Thousand Lights constituency, had filed his nomination for the Speaker's post on Monday on behalf of the ruling TVK. M. Ravi Shankar, representing the Thuraiyur constituency, submitted his nomination for the Deputy Speaker's post. As no opposition party fielded candidates against the TVK nominees, both were declared elected unopposed when the Assembly convened on Tuesday.

Following Assembly tradition, Leader of the House Sengottaiyan and Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin escorted Prabhakar to the Speaker's chair after his election. Members from both the treasury and opposition benches congratulated the newly elected Speaker.

What This Signals

The unopposed election of both the Speaker and Deputy Speaker from the ruling TVK reflects the party's commanding majority in the Assembly. Vijay's deliberate invocation of parliamentary history — from medieval England to Lincoln's America — signals an intent to set a high-water mark for democratic conduct at the outset of the new Assembly's proceedings. How the Speaker's office navigates government-opposition dynamics in the sessions ahead will be closely watched.