SHORT TITLE AND DEFINITIONS
1. Short title.--
These rules may be called the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Rules.
2. Definitions.--(1) In these rules--
(a) "Assembly" means the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly;
(b) "Committee" means a Committee appointed or elected by the Assembly or nominated by the Speaker under these rules and includes a Select committee;
(c) "Constitution" means the Constitution of India;
(d) "Finance Minister" means the Minister in-charge of Finance and includes any Minister;
(e) "Gazette" means the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette;
(f) "Government" means the Government of Tamil Nadu;
(g) "Governor" means the Governor of Tamil Nadu;
(h) "House" means the Assembly;
(i) "Information" means the Information of the Assembly containing--
(i) "brief" record of the proceedings of the Assembly at each of its sittings;
(ii) Information on any matter relating to or connected with the business of the Assembly or its Committees; or
(iii) any other matter which in the opinion of Speaker may be included therein;
(j) "Leader of the House" means the Minister appointed as Leader of the Assembly;
(k) "Leader of the Opposition" means Leader of a Legislature Party having the largest number of members other than the party which has formed the Government and having more than the quorum strength prescribed and recognised by the Speaker as such:
Provided that if more than one party has got equal number of members competing for recognition, the number of votes polled by the members of each group in the general election shall be calculated and the group which has polled more number of votes shall be recognised as the official opposition and its leader as the Leader of the Opposition:
Provided further that if the total number of votes polled by both the groups is equal, then, the office of the Leader of the Opposition party shall be held alternatively and the order in which they will hold office shall be decided by drawing lots;
(l) "Legislature Group" means a group of members belonging to a Legislature Party which fulfils any one of the conditions, viz.:--
(a) It has a strength of not less than eight members;
(b) that the total number of valid votes polled by all the contesting candidates set up by such Legislature Party at the general election in the State to the Legislative Assembly is not less than four per cent of the total number of valid votes polled by all the contesting candidates at such general election;
(m) "Legislature Party" means any party which has been recognised by the Election Commission for the purpose of contesting election to the Legislative Assembly and allotted a common symbol and has been elected to the House and having not less than the prescribed quorum strength.
(n) "Lobbies" means the covered corridors both on the eastern and western sides of the Assembly Chamber;
(o) "Member" means a member of the Assembly:
Provided that a Minister who is not a member of the Assembly shall be deemed to be a member for the purposes mentioned in Article 177 of the Constitution, but in this context, "Minister" shall not include a Parliamentary Secretary;
(p) "Member in-charge of a Bill" means--
(i) in the case of a Government Bill, any Minister;
(ii) in any other case, the member who has introduced the Bill in the Assembly;
(q) "Minister" includes any Deputy Minister or Parliamentary Secretary;
(r) "Motion" means any subject matter brought before the Assembly for consideration in accordance with these rules;
(s) "Precincts of the House" means--
(i) in the case of members of the Legislative Assembly, the Assembly Chamber, Lobbies and the rooms in which the associated offices are situated, the Ministers rooms, the Library, the Canteen and the Committee room in Secretariat, the Committee room in the MLA's Residential Complex and the Legislature Library in the Government Estate, Anna Salai and such other places or buildings as might be named by the Speaker, from time to time, together with verandahs and steps to these buildings and the pathways leading from the Assembly Chamber to the other aforesaid buildings and shall be applicable only while the Assembly or any of its Committees or Sub-Committees sits and one hour before and after such a sitting;
(ii) in the case of strangers, the Assembly Chamber with the galleries, its verandahs and steps and shall be applicable only to those to whom tickets have been issued by the office for admission to the galleries; and
(iii) in the case of persons summoned by a Committee of the House for any purpose whatsoever, they shall be deemed to be within the "Precincts of the House" so long as they are within the Committee rooms, its verandahs and its steps;
(t) "Private member" means a member other than a Minister;
(u) "Private members' business" means business of which notice is given by private members, but does not include statutory motions made in pursuance of any statute or enactment, or motions for discussion of reports required to be laid on the Table of the House under any law on the motion of thanks for the Governor's address or motions for the amendment of the rules;
(v) "Rules" means the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Rules;
(w) "Secretary" means Secretary to the Assembly and includes any Officer of the Assembly authorized by him with the consent of the Speaker to perform the duties of the Secretary;
(x) "Session" means the period of time between the first meeting of the Assembly upon the summons of the Governor under Article 174(1) of the Constitution and its prorogation or dissolution under clause (2) thereof;
(y) "Sitting" means the meeting of the Member of the House for transaction of business on any day from its commencement till the House rises for the day;
(aa) "Speaker" means Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly;
(bb) "Statutory motion" means a motion made in pursuance of any statute or enactment for the time being in force;
(cc) "Table" means the Table of the House.
(2) Words and expressions used in the Constitution and not defined in these rules shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meanings assigned to them in the Constitution.
