Madras High Court Upholds Six AIADMK Resignations

The Madras High Court upheld the Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker’s acceptance of six AIADMK legislators’ resignations, while ruling that disqualification proceedings against four of them may continue. The Speaker must conclude those cases within two months, the court directed on October 13. The resignations were submitted between May 26 and June 29, 2026, and the six legislators later joined the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). The court found the resignations genuine and voluntary, and said the Speaker was not required to conduct a detailed inquiry into the legislators’ motives before accepting them. The judges treated resignation and disqualification as separate constitutional processes. As a result, accepting the legislators’ resignations did not end pending proceedings over allegations that four had violated an AIADMK whip during a confidence motion. The Speaker can still decide those cases, and the court said it could intervene if he failed to act within a reasonable period. The legislators facing pending proceedings are S Jayakumar, P Sathyabama, Maragatham Kumaravel and Esakki Subaya. The court’s order leaves open whether any of them will be disqualified.