By IANS,
Chennai : Tamil Nadu’s AIADMK government Tuesday shelved the previous DMK regime’s decision to revive the state legislative council – the upper chamber – and the implementation of a uniform syllabus for school students in the state.
The state assembly passed a resolution against the revival of the legislative council in the absence of the DMK and Congress members, who had earlier walked out of the house protesting the temporary shelving of a uniform syllabus for schools.
Moving the resolution against the revival of the legislative council, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said that the previous DMK government passed a resolution to revive the upper house only to give posts to the family members of former chief minister M. Karunanidhi and his supporters.
She said at that time, Karunanidhi’s son M.K. Stalin was made the deputy chief minister of the state, another son M.K. Alagiri and grand nephew Dayanidhi Maran were made union ministers and daughter Kanimozhi was made a Rajya Sabha member.
Jayalalithaa said the DMK government brought the resolution for the upper house’s revival only in 2010 though it assumed office in 2006.
According to her, only the DMK is interested in reviving the upper house, which was abolished by former chief minister and AIADMK founder M.G. Ramachandran in 1986.
Three PMK members opposed the resolution.
Of the 28 Indian states, only Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir have two houses of the state legislature.
Earlier, the opposition parties DMK and Congress walked out of the assembly condemning the AIADMK government’s decision to temporarily shelve the implementation of a uniform syllabus for school students.
The scheme was an initiative of the previous DMK government.
The DMK, led by its legislature party leader Stalin, objected to it and accused the government of withdrawing welfare schemes of the previous government.
During the discussion, Jayalalithaa recalled PMK leader G.K. Mani’s views in the previous assembly that a uniform syllabus should be implemented only after due consultation and the setting up of an expert committee.
Stalin later told reporters that the government’s decision to temporarily shelve the uniform syllabus and halt the construction of the new assembly and secretariat building are politically motivated.