Tamil Nadu Swears in Pro-tem Speaker Ahead of Permanent Speaker Election

Tamil Nadu got a new Pro-tem Speaker on May 10, 2026, with Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam MLA Karuppiah M.V. being sworn in by Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar. This came shortly after the swearing-in of C. Joseph Vijay as the Chief Minister of the State at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium.

The role of the Pro-tem Speaker is to administer the oath of office to all newly elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) and preside over the matters of the House until a permanent Speaker and Deputy Speaker are elected. The Pro-tem Speaker is appointed by the Governor and serves for a short duration, ceasing to exist once a permanent Speaker is elected.

The elections for the permanent Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Assembly are scheduled to be held on May 12. The Pro-tem Speaker's responsibilities include administering the oath of office to MLAs and conducting the election for the permanent Speaker and Deputy Speaker.

The Governor of the State appoints the Pro-tem Speaker, and the duration of their service is extremely short. The roles and responsibilities of the temporary Speaker remain the same in the State Legislative Assemblies and the Lok Sabha.

The court will not be involved in this process, but the Assembly will resume proceedings with the election of the permanent Speaker on May 12, marking the next step in the formation of the new government.