Code of conduct for lawmakers in the offing
Presiding officers’ committee being set up, it will submit report at Dehradun meeting in November
LUCKNOW:The committee of presiding officers of legislative assemblies and councils will meet in Dehradun in November to formulate a code of conduct for lawmakers to check unruly scenes and adjournments in legislatures.
“Yes, the committee comprising speakers of state assemblies and chairmen of councils is being set up. The committee will submit its report at a meeting of speakers of assemblies and the chairmen of (legislative) councils in Dehradun in November 2019. We will discuss the report of the committee to formulate a code of conduct for the law makers there,” said Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha speaker Hriday Narayan Dikshit while speaking at the ‘Coffee with HT’ programme organised at the Hindustan Times office in Lucknow on Wednesday.
Dikshit said Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla informed about the move to set up the committee at the executive committee meeting of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) recently.
Dikshit said disturbances in the House caused by personal attacks and counterattacks on members or a sudden provocation were not difficult for the speaker of the assembly or the chairman of the council to control. But, it became difficult when the members came to the House with a strategy to ensure that it did not function. “In my personal opinion, any member who comes with a strategy to cause disturbance and not allow any business should be considered suspended soon after he or she enters the well of the House,” said Dikshit.
On whether the opposition was weak in the state assembly and thus resorted to forcing adjournments, Dikshit said it was not a question of having a strong or weak opposition. He said the opposition was expected to provide alternative ideas and there were instances when there had been just one or two members (in the opposition). He also said there was no opposition in the constituent assembly, yet issues were debated there.
“If the opposition had some alternative ideas, it would not need large numbers or cause disturbance to make any point,” Dikshit said.
About the quality of debate and members coming to the House without having done their homework, Dikshit said the state assembly had taken steps to educate members on different issues.
A workshop was organised to educate the members on the Goods and Services Tax. A question hour session was held there for an hour, he said. “A programme was organised for journalists too. We will continue to hold such programmes,” said the speaker. A cell had been set up in the assembly library with a team of officers to provide the desired material to the members, he added. There had been occasions when the same officer had provided material to the members to speak in favour or against any issue, the speaker said.
Replying to questions, Dikshit said the members were free to express their views in the House. No member of the legislature was liable to any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said in the House, he said. About the provisions of the anti-defection law restricting the freedom of members, Dikshit said objections about these provisions were raised when the law was being enacted. Such provisions were considered as democracy was yet to mature in India, he explained.
About the declining number of sittings of the state legislature, Dikshit said the state legislature was convened on the state cabinet’s recommendations. The number of sittings depended on the business the government may have for the House, he explained. He said efforts were made to seek cooperation of all the parties to ensure that the business was conducted smoothly.
SPEAKER TO HEAR PLEA TO DISQUALIFY SHIVPAL
The speaker said he will hold a hearing on the petition seeking disqualification of Samajwadi Party MLA Shivpal Singh Yadav.
The Samajwadi Party had recently filed the petition seeking Yadav’s disqualification as he had floated the Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia despite having been elected to the assembly on the Samajwadi Party ticket from Jaswant Nagar in 2017. About any move to disqualify Rakesh Singh, the Congress MLA from Harchandpur, he said a hearing would be held on the issue if a petition seeking his disqualification had been filed.
GOOD DEBATERS MAY GET APPRECIATION LETTERS
Dikshit said he would consider giving appreciation letters to the members who came to the House well prepared and who spoke well in debates. “We will consider giving appreciation letters to such members,” said Dikshit. He said he made it a point to congratulate members who spoke well. “I try to call such members at the end of the day and congratulate them,” he said.
MONITORING COMMITTEE PUT IN PLACE
The speaker said a monitoring committee had been set up in the state assembly to consider complaints of violation of protocol by members or even complaints made against the members. “We had no mechanism to monitor such complaints and resolve issues concerning the violation of protocol. A monitoring committee has been now set up and officers of the rank of principal secretary or higher are called to appear before the committee in cases of violation of protocol,” said Dikshit.
He said there were some complaints against the members too. Most such complaints were, however, found to be politically motivated, said Dikshit.
› In my personal opinion, any member who comes with a (premeditated) strategy to cause disturbance and not allow any business to be transacted should be considered suspended soon after he or she enters the well of the House HRIDAY NARAYAN DIKSHIT , Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha speaker