Improve quality of the debate in Parliament, Assemblies, says Prez
Pranab voices concern over reduced sittings of Houses, quality of discussion
President Pranab Mukherjee asked legislators to improve the quality of debates in legislatures, saying India cannot remain a role model to the world simply because of the size of its electorate.
He said that legislations passed without adequate discussion and scrutiny will not achieve their target. “Legislation is the first and foremost responsibility of a parliamentarian. It is most unfortunate that time devoted towards legislation has been gradually declining in our Parliament,” the President said while delivering the first Bhairon Singh Shekhawat Memorial Lecture in memory of the former chief minister.
He said every issue should be debated and members may express their disagreements but finally a decision has to be taken by the House.
“Once the decision is there, it’s not the decision of the majority party or the ruling party, it's the decision of the House and so the decision of the state or the decision of India,” the President said, adding that this is the tradition of the parliamentary democracy.
He also conferred the Bhairo Singh Shekhawat lifetime achievement award to Sikkim chief minister Pawan Kumar Chamling for his contribution to the society.
He also expressed disappointment at constantly reduced sittings of Parliament and number of legislations passed by it, saying legislations passed without adequate discussion and scrutiny will not achieve their target.
The President said that the first Lok Sabha from 1952-57 had 677 sittings in which 319 bills were passed. In comparison, the 14th Lok Sabha from 20042009 had 332 sittings and passed just 247 bills.