Disturbance in J&K assembly: Time to re-write rules

13 March, 2013

Disturbing scenes in J&K Assembly on 12 March are nothing but repeat of similar such incidents going unchecked earlier also in some state-assemblies. Day may not be far when Parliament and/or state-assemblies may also witness frequent blood-baths.

Wastage of tax-payers’ hard-earned money by disturbance of costly proceedings in legislative-bodies is crime against people which should be decided by courts, because presiding officers or committees in legislative bodies are often extra soft in punishing the guilty members.

For example, a Parliamentarian found guilty of impersonating a girlfriend as his wife for going on a foreign trip was awarded most simple punishment of being debarred for 30 days of Parliamentary proceedings; that too after the accused filed a false affidavit to prove no-guilty.

Rules for proceedings of Parliament and state-assemblies should be re-written to make them stringent leaving no discretionary power with chairpersons for undignified activities of members. Often misused immunity available to Parliamentarians and legislators from normal law of land should be abolished. Such a step will automatically take care of incidents like JMM bribery episode where bribed JMM Parliamentarians were acquitted by the Apex Court because their bribed act of voting for Narsimha Rao government in the Lok Sabha was immunised from normal law of land!