M K Stalin, DMK MLAs booked on charges of unlawful assembly

CHENNAI: Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, M K Stalin, and 59 other DMK MLAs were today booked for staging a protest against their suspension from the House, police said.

"IPC sections 143 (unlawful assembly) and 188(disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) have been invoked against Stalin and others," a police official said, adding that they had staged the protest without police permission.

Reacting to the development, Stalin said he had doubts if he could be arrested today.

"I had doubts if I could be arrested while coming here," he said at a marriage function in Nagercoil.

"However, the case has been filed under bailable sections," he added.

On August 17, uproarious scenes were witnessed in the state assembly when DMK MLAs were evicted and suspended en masse by Speaker P Dhanapal for a week for allegedly disrupting the proceedings of the House.

Initially, 80 MLAs were suspended but later the suspension of one legislator was revoked as he was not present in the House during the ruckus, triggered by remarks by a ruling AIADMK MLA ridiculing Stalin.

The next day, Stalin and others had tried to enter their office in the Secretariat premises but were stopped by the Marshals. They subsequently staged a dharna.

Continuing with their protest on Friday, the DMK members staged a 'model Assembly' with DMK Deputy Leader Durai Murugan acting as 'Speaker', even as assembly proceedings were held.

The party has approached the Madras High Court seeking quashing of the suspension of their MLAs.