TN CM apologises over Karunanidhi honorific row
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay offered an immediate apology in the Assembly on Monday after a minister referred to former CM M Karunanidhi directly by name, omitting the traditional honorifics.
State Forest Minister RV Ranjith Kumar’s remarks on the DMK stalwart’s name without affixing “Kalaignar” (scholar), as is the tradition in addressing him in the Assembly, drew spontaneous protest by the opposition DMK.
The CM intervened to defuse opposition protest over the breach of decorum, conceding that addressing the late leader in such a manner was wrong and offered an explicit apology on his minister’s behalf. “I apologise on his behalf,” Vijay said in the Assembly.
The trouble began when Ranjith Kumar, during a debate on the demands for grants for the Health and Revenue departments, criticised past cash-for-votes strategies referencing the controversial “Thirumangalam formula” and claimed that up to Rs 1,500 per vote had been distributed in his Kancheepuram constituency in previous elections. Contrasting past elections with the current administration, the Forest Minister stated that the present government came to power without distributing money for votes.
However, while listing election tactics, he directly referred to DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi simply as “Karunanidhi,” omitting customary honorifics such as “Kalaignar” or “former Chief Minister.”
The direct reference violated a long-standing convention followed in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, where revered leaders are traditionally addressed using formal protocol titles. The breach of decorum drew immediate, loud protests from opposition DMK members, led by former minister KKSSR Ramachandran.
Seeking to de-escalate the rising tension, Vijay quickly intervened before the debate could derail. Halting the Forest Minister mid-speech, the Chief Minister acknowledged that referring to the late leader in that manner was inappropriate.
