New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday said lawmakers should argue with facts and not make baseless allegations, days after an acrimonious first half of the Budget session, marred by noisy protests and repeated adjournments, ended.
Birla also said that one cannot become the “best legislator” by resorting to sloganeering and disrupting the House in a planned manner.
The disruptions were triggered by the Opposition demanding a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to probe allegations of fraud by the Adani Group. The Opposition and the Centre also fought over the decision to expunge parts of some leaders’ speeches.
The Congress has accused the government of “hiding the truth by exerting pressure” on Birla and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi dismissed allegations made against his government in two speeches that targeted the opposition.
In the Upper House, Dhankhar named some MPs who were protesting in the well of the House, but later did not press ahead with action.
“The decline in the level of discussion in the House and the decline in dignity of the House is a matter of concern for us. An excellent legislator is the one who participates in excellent quality discussions and dialogues and enhances prestige of the House. Members should put forth their points with facts as arguments based on baseless allegations only weaken democracy,” Birla said at the inauguration of an orientation programme for Gujarat MLAs in Gandhinagar.
“In order to have a productive discussion in the House, it is necessary that members are aware of rules and procedures. That’s why the House should become an effective centre of discussion and dialogue so that our democracy becomes stronger,” he added.
The Speaker also said the opposition should be “positive, constructive and in the direction of ensuring accountability in governance”.
“But, the way in which the tradition of adjourning the Houses is being created by disrupting the Houses in a planned manner is not appropriate for democracy. There should be discussion, debate, dissent in the House, but there should never be a deadlock in the House,” he said.
Birla urged the members to read the rules and procedures of the House. “No one can be the best legislator by shouting slogans and disrupting Assembly proceedings,” he said.
The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha could utilise 82% and 63% of the allotted time in the first half of the Budget Session, as per the PRS Legislative data.
The Lok Sabha debated the President’s speech and the Budget for 13.44 hours and 14.45 hours, respectively, while the Rajya Sabha spent 13.49 hours and 2.21 hours, respectively, in the two debates.