TN Assembly witness heated clash over law and order

The Tamil Nadu Assembly witnessed nearly two hours of heated exchanges on Thursday (September 3, 2026) after Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin accused the ruling TVK-led government of presiding over a deteriorating law-and-order situation since assuming office in May.

Initiating the debate on the demand for grants for the Police and Fire and Rescue Departments, the DMK leader claimed no action had been taken against TVK functionaries involved in criminal cases. His remarks drew sharp interventions from Ministers N. Anand, Aadhav Arjuna, Raj Mohan, and C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar, prompting DMK legislators to protest the interruptions.

Resuming his speech, Mr. Udhayanidhi cited figures of "around 550 criminal incidents" in the past 116 days, including 200 murders, over 300 sexual assault cases, eight custodial deaths, and ten "honour" killings. He said the government's argument that it had not completed six months in office might apply to electoral promises, but not to the law-and-order situation.

The DMK leader also accused the government of scrapping or renaming projects launched by the previous DMK regime rather than introducing new schemes. He alleged Tamil Nadu was "moving in reverse gear" and that the government seemed more focused on social media reels than on delivering schemes to beneficiaries.

On the Fifth Police Commission's nearly 800 recommendations, Mr. Udhayanidhi noted that 86 had been progressively implemented during the DMK administration and urged the government to implement the remaining long-term recommendations in phases.

The confrontation escalated around 1.15 pm when Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay rose and said he would answer all questions on Monday, but asked the Opposition to promise they would not "run away." He then left the Assembly. Mr. Udhayanidhi later retorted that the Chief Minister himself had "run away" from the House.