Budget Debate Turns Personal in Assembly: Panneerselvam-Sengottaiyan Clash Over Alliance Switches; EPS Denies AIADMK-DMK 'Coming Together'

The debate on the TVK government's maiden General and Agriculture budgets in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on August 11 escalated into a personal confrontation between former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, who joined the DMK ahead of this year's Assembly election, and Leader of the House K.A. Sengottaiyan.

Panneerselvam accused the Vijay-led government of failing to implement key election promises, pointing specifically to the pledged enhancement of monthly financial assistance for women and the promise of six free LPG cylinders a year, and said voters who sought a change in government had been let down.

Sengottaiyan rejected the criticism, noting the government had a full five-year term to fulfil its commitments and had been in office only three months. He also took a swipe at Panneerselvam over his switch to the DMK, prompting Panneerselvam to counter that Sengottaiyan himself had switched from the AIADMK to the TVK. School Education Minister A. Rajmohan added that Sengottaiyan still carries a photograph of the late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, while Panneerselvam had changed both his political camp and his loyalties. The Speaker intervened to restore order and had some remarks expunged from the record.

Separately during the debate, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami said reports that his party and the DMK had 'come together' had wounded him, insisting there was no truth to them and reiterating the reasons for which the AIADMK was founded by the late MGR in opposition to the DMK.

DMK whip and former minister E.V. Velu also denied the reports, calling them totally false.