List of speakers of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly

Speaker of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Emblem of Tamil Nadu
Incumbent M. Appavu since 12 May 2021
Member of	Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Appointer	Members of the assembly
Term length	Term of the assembly (five years maximum)
Inaugural holder	J. Shivashanmugam Pillai [a] Pulavar K. Govindan
Deputy	K. Pitchandi

The Speaker is the presiding officer of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, the main law-making body for the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The speaker is elected by the members of the assembly, from amongst them.

President of the Madras Legislative Council

Madras Legislative Council, the first representative legislature for the Madras Presidency was established in December 1920. The presiding officer of the council was known as the president. P. Rajagopalachari was nominated as the first president and took office on 17 December 1920.

No.	Name	Image	Assumed office	Left office
1	P. Rajagopalachari		December 1920	February 1925
2	L. D. Swamikannu Pillai		February 1925	September 1925
3	M. Ratnaswami		September 1925	1926
4	C. V. S. Narasimha Raju		1926	1930
5	B. Ramachandra Reddi		1930	1937

Chairman of Madras Legislative Council

The Government of India Act 1935 enabled the introduction of provincial autonomy in 1937, and the [ Madras Legislative Council]] became the upper chamber of a bicameral legislature. The presiding officer of the council was called as the chairman of the council. This agreement continued after Indian Independence till the abolition of the council in 1986.

No.	Name	Image	Took office	Left office	Political party
1	U. Rama Rao		1937	1945	INC
2	R. B. Ramakrishna Raju		1946	1952
3	P. V. Cherian		1952	20 April 1964
4	M. A. Manickavelu Naicker		1964	1970
5	C. P. Chitrarasu		1970	1976	DMK
6	M. P. Sivagnanam		1976	1986	TAK

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Madras Presidency

The Madras Legislative Assembly was established as a part of the bicameral legislature in 1937. The presiding officer of the assembly was known as the speaker.

No.	Name	Image	Took office	Left office	Political Party		Deputy Speaker
1	Bulusu Sambamurti		1937	1942	INC		Rukmini Lakshmipathi [1]
–	Vacant [b]		1942	1946
2	J. Shivashanmugam Pillai		1946	1952	INC		Ammanna Raja [2]

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Madras State

Madras State, the precursor to the present day state of Tamil Nadu, was created after India became a republic on 26 January 1950. ^[3] It comprised present-day Tamil Nadu and parts of present-day Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. The first legislature of the Madras State to be elected on the basis of universal suffrage was constituted on 1 March 1952, after the general elections held in January 1952. ^[4]

No.	Name	Image	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Political party		Deputy Speaker
1	J. Shivashanmugam Pillai [5]		6 May 1952	16 August 1955	3 years, 102 days	INC		B. Baktavatsalu Naidu
2	N. Gopala Menon [6]		27 September 1955	1 November 1956	1 year, 35 days
3	U. Krishna Rao [7]		30 April 1957	3 August 1961	4 years, 95 days
4	S. Chellapandian [8]		31 March 1962	14 March 1967	4 years, 348 days			K. Parthasarathi
5	S. P. Adithanar [9]		17 March 1967	12 August 1968	1 year, 148 days	DMK		Pulavar K. Govindan
Source: [10] [11]

Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly

Madras State was renamed as Tamil Nadu in January 1969. ^[12]

No.	Name	Image	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Political party		Deputy Speaker
1	Pulavar K. Govindan		22 February 1969	14 March 1971	2 years, 20 days	DMK		G. R. Edmund
2	K. A. Mathiazagan		24 March 1971	2 December 1972	1 year, 253 days			P. Seenivasan
–	P. Seenivasan (acting)		2 December 1972	3 August 1973	244 days
(1)	Pulavar K. Govindan		3 August 1973	3 July 1977	3 years, 334 days			N. Ganapathy
4	Munu Adhi		6 July 1977	18 June 1980	2 years, 348 days	AIADMK		S. Thirunavukkarasu
5	K. Rajaram		21 June 1980	24 February 1985	4 years, 248 days			P. H. Pandian
6	P. H. Pandian		27 February 1985	5 February 1989	3 years, 344 days			V. P. Balasubramanian
7	M. Tamilkudimagan		8 February 1989	30 June 1991	2 years, 142 days	DMK		V. P. Duraisamy
8	Sedapatti R. Muthiah		3 July 1991	21 May 1996	4 years, 323 days	AIADMK		K. Ponnuswamy (1991-1993)
								S. Gandhirajan (1993-1996)
9	P. T. R. Palanivel Rajan		23 May 1996	21 May 2001	4 years, 363 days	DMK		Parithi Ilamvazhuthi
10	K. Kalimuthu		24 May 2001	1 February 2006	4 years, 253 days	AIADMK		A. Arunachalam
–	A. Arunachalam (acting)		1 February 2006	12 May 2006	100 days
11	R. Avudaiappan		19 May 2006	15 May 2011	4 years, 361 days	DMK		V. P. Duraisamy
12	D. Jayakumar		27 May 2011	29 September 2012	6 years, 125 days	AIADMK		P. Dhanapal
13	P. Dhanapal		10 October 2012	3 May 2021	8 years, 205 days			V. Jayaraman
14	M. Appavu		12 May 2021	Incumbent	4 years, 175 days	DMK		K. Pitchandi
Source: [13] [14]

Notes

1. As speaker of the Madras Legislative Assembly. Madras state was renamed as Tamil Nadu in 1969.
2. Elections were not held in 1942 and no assembly was constituted during 1942-46

References

1. "Historic moments, historic personalities". The Hindu . 13 March 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
2. "Jayakumar, Dhanapal set to become Speaker, Deputy Speaker". The Hindu . 26 May 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
3. "Indian states since 1947". World Statesmen. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
4. "Government of Tamil Nadu — The State Legislature — Origin and Evolution". Tamil Nadu assembly. Archived from the original on 13 April 2010.
5. Rāmacandra Kshīrasāgara (1994). Dalit movement in India and its leaders, 1857-1956. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. p. 294. ISBN   978-81-85880-43-3.
6. "dated September 28, 1955: Madras Assembly Speaker". The Hindu . 28 September 2005. Archived from the original on 12 September 2011.
7. "New Speaker of Madras". The Hindu . 1 May 2007. Archived from the original on 2 May 2007.
8. "Statistical report on General Election 1962 to the Legislative Assembly of Madras" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2009.
9. "Statistical report on General Election 1967 to the Legislative Assembly of Madras" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2009.
10. "Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly: Details of terms of successive Legislative Assemblies constituted under the Constitution of India". Government of India. Archived from the original on 9 April 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2009.
11. "Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly: Details of terms of successive Legislative Assemblies constituted under the Constitution of India". Government of Tamil Nadu. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
12. "Tracing the demand to rename Madras State as Tamil Nadu". The Hindu . 6 July 2023. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
13. "Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly: Details of terms of successive Legislative Assemblies constituted under the Constitution of India". Government of India. Archived from the original on 9 April 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2009.
14. "Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly: Details of terms of successive Legislative Assemblies constituted under the Constitution of India". Government of Tamil Nadu. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.