Unbecoming of MPs A question of authority
With reference to the report, “25 Cong MPs suspended for disorderly conduct” (August 4), it is a pity that our elected representatives indulge in such unruly behaviour in Parliament. The Opposition could have engaged in a debate on the points they had raised and if not satisfied with the outcome, demanded the resignation of the minister in question or boycotted the session. How can they waste public money by not allowing the House to function?
The government could also have taken proactive measures to diffuse the situation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi should make his stand clear. His presence in Parliament and a statement from him would have changed the situation. If the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party thinks that because of its absolute majority in the House, it can bully the Opposition and take things for granted, they are living in a fool’s paradise. Party managers should learn from the mistakes of the Congress when it was in power.
Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan’s action of suspending the Congress MPs smacks of political partisanship. If the members in question were recalcitrant, she could have, after issuing a stern warning, named them and made them ineligible to attend the session. Instead, she suspended 25 MPs belonging to one political party alone, even though members of other parties had indulged in similar behaviour.
It is high time a decision is taken on the payment of allowances to MPs who cause problems in the House. I think dies non should apply to MPs and MLAs.
B C Unnikrishnan Nair Kuthiathode With reference to the editorial “After a hanging” (August 2), the authority to forgive a killer/rapist should be that of the victim, not of the court or the public. The punishment too, must be promulgated by the victim; we have institutions, in between, to ensure proportionality.
Opponents of death penalty would do better to get victims to participate in a referendum on a case-by-case basis. The kin of the 257 people, who were killed in the 1993 Mumbai blasts, are the best judge of whether those who had a role in the attack, should hang or serve jail term. How does one decide whose role in a crime is minor? The steel chain that links two train coaches is minor compared to the whole train, but its importance can hardly be overstated.
Regarding the number of verdicts of capital punishment that were commuted to life term, this reflects the change in the public’s attitude towards the issue of death penalty, not a systemic problem.
Raghu Seshadri Chennai