HC closes Stalin's petition seeking direction to constitute 12

The Madras High Court today closed a petition filed by M K Stalin, Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu assembly, seeking a direction to the state government to constitute 12 committees to the Assembly on various issues.
Justice B Rajendran, before whom the petition came up for hearing today, recorded the Advocate General's submission that the Business Advisory Committee had already been constituted and was functioning and a resolution for election of four of the 11 committees would be moved in the assembly.
Thereafter, other committees were being nominated or appointed by the Speaker, which is a routine procedure, he said.

Stalin's counsel said the 12 panels sought to be constituted are committees on Estimates, Public Accounts, Public Undertakings, Privileges, Business Advisory, Delegated Legislation, Government Assurances, House, Rules, Petitions, Library and committee on Papers Laid on the Table.
He said the committees, which act as a watchdog of the ruling party in the Legislature and the functioning of the Executive to ensure that their acts are in accordance with the Constitution and the Laws, should have been constituted immediately after the 15th assembly was formed and the members took oath.
"A grace period of 15 days is given. However, even after a lapse of seven months, these panels have not been formed by the Assembly Speaker," he said.

"The DMK, being the largest opposition party with 89 members, has to be necessarily and adequately represented in each of the committees," the counsel said.

He alleged that AIADMK had prevailed on the Speaker not to form the panels as it feared that if they began functioning to their full capacity, the 'misdeeds' and 'mis-governance' of the ruling party would come to light.
When the matter came up today the judge recorded the submission of the Advocate General and closed the petition.
On January 11, the Madras High Court had issued notices to the Assembly Secretary, Leader of the House and the Chief Secretary on the plea by Stalin.