New TN assembly to meet on May 17

Chennai, May 14 (UNI) The newly constituted 13th Tamil Nadu assembly will meet on May 17 at 0930 hrs, when all the newly elected members would take oath.

Senior Congress member D Sudharsanam, elected from Poonamallee assembly constituency, has been appointed by the state Governor S S Barnala as Pro Term speaker and he would administer oath to the new members on May 17.

The Governor would administer oath to Mr Sudharsanam at 1700 hrs on May 16 at Raj Bhavan, a release from Assembly secretariat said.

After a day's break, the House would meet again on May 19 at 0930 hrs to elect the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House and would meet again on May 24 for the Governor's address.

Incidentally, this will be the second time, during this year, the Governor would deliver his address. Earlier the Governor gave his customary address to the House on January 13, when the AIADMK was in power and the House had passed a motion, thanking the Governor for his address.

Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, who had been staying away from the for the past five years, when the AIADMK was in power, would be coming to the House as Chief Minister for the fifth time, heading a 31-member ministry.

Meanwhile, speculations were rife that the DMK might give the Deputy Speakership to the Congress, though sources in the DMK said that it was unlikely.

When the DMK was in power in 1996, senior leader P T R Palanivel Rajan had served as the Speaker and Mr Parithi Ilamvazhuthi as his deputy, but now both of them have been given berths in the cabinet.

UNI WS AJ-VV VD HS1350