Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Tuesday sought to end the controversy over the non-allocation of a seat in the front row to DMK leader M. K. Stalin during the swearing-in ceremony of her council of Ministers on May 23 by declaring that there was no intent to show disrespect to him or his party. Going a step further, Ms. Jayalalithaa reciprocated Mr. Stalin’s greetings to her, by declaring that she looked forward to working with him and his party “for the betterment of the State.”
Mr. Stalin welcomed her statement and said it would benefit the State if she followed the same approach in the Assembly and allowed the Opposition to discuss issues concerning the people.
“People of Tamil Nadu expect only this. Unlike in the previous Assembly, where the DMK members were not allowed to speak, Ms. Jayalalithaa should ensure that there was space for the Opposition in the House,” Mr. Stalin told The Hindu .
