BJP leader and former national president of the party's women's wing, Vanathi Srinivasan, has urged legislators to stop using the term 'kanni pechu' (maiden speech) in the state assembly. Her statement follows an incident on August 20, when TVK MLA Dr. Arunkumar, representing the Thiruvallur constituency, used the term during his address.
Srinivasan argued that the word 'kanni' carries connotations related to young women and chastity, making it inappropriate for parliamentary discourse. She recalled that when she was first elected as an MLA in 2021, she had requested the then-Speaker to encourage the use of more civil terms like 'arimuga pechu' (introductory speech) or 'muthal pechu' (first speech) instead.
She has now called upon the current Speaker, J.C.D. Prabhakar, to take note of the issue. Srinivasan emphasized that members should avoid using the term in future sessions to maintain decorum.
