Tamil Nadu Speaker bans pre-admission publicity of assembly notices by legislators

The Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker has ordered legislators and journalists to stop publishing notices of issues members plan to raise in the House before he formally admits them.

J.C.D. Prabhakar issued the directive on Monday after observing that some members were releasing their written notices to the media and posting them on social media platforms immediately after submitting them to the Speaker and Assembly Secretary.

Rule bars pre-admission publicity

The Speaker cited Rule 36(5) of the Assembly Rules, which explicitly states that "a notice shall not be given publicity by any member or any other person until it has been admitted by the Speaker and circulated to the Members". He said members were violating this provision by posting their submissions on X and other social media accounts.

The ban applies to notices submitted under Rule 55, which governs issues raised during legislative business, and motions for adjournment under Rule 56, which allow members to suspend scheduled proceedings to discuss urgent matters of public importance. Both require the Speaker's approval before they can be taken up in the Assembly.

Prabhakar requested the media to refrain from publishing such notices until he has approved them and they have been formally circulated to members. The directive seeks to restore the procedural sequence in which the Speaker first determines whether a notice meets legislative requirements before it enters the public domain.

Source: The Hindu