Union Minister M.K. Alagiri is yet to respond to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar’s invitation to meet her on his plea to allow him to speak in Tamil in Parliament.
“I have been requesting him to come and meet me so that all his problems are resolved. I am here to resolve all problems,” Ms. Kumar told reporters when asked about Mr. Alagiri’s response to her invitation.
Mr. Alagiri, who is the Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers, was asked by the Speaker over two months ago to meet her to discuss his request to allow him to speak in Tamil as he was not fluent in Hindi or English.
The Speaker said there were 14 languages in which interpretation facilities were available in Parliament. To avail of this facility, members have to give advance notice and get the Speaker’s permission.
Due to the language barrier, Mr. Alagiri has reportedly authorised his junior Srikant Jena to answer questions in Parliament.
