Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday said that no political party has written to him about boycotting the joint committee of Parliament to examine the three Bills that seek the removal of top Government functionaries arrested for 30 consecutive days on serious charges. At least four parties -- the Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Aam Aadmi Party -- have declared that they will not be part of the committee, while the Congress is yet to open its cards on the issue.
“On the issue of JPC, no political party has communicated to me in writing on this subject,” Birla told reporters in response to a question on Opposition parties boycotting the joint committee of Parliament on the three Bills. On the last day of the Monsoon Session, Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the three Bills in the Lok Sabha - the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill; the Constitution (One Hundred And Thirtieth Amendment) Bill and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill.
The proposed laws call for the removal of the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, and Ministers under arrest for 30 consecutive days on serious charges. The Lok Sabha Speaker said that he has sought the names of MPs from political parties for being part of the joint committee of Parliament. “The JPC will be constituted once I receive the names of MPs from political parties,” Birla said. Birla was speaking at the valedictory session of 11th CPA India Region Conference. He said increasing trend of disruptions in the houses is a serious concern for all of us.
To put an end to this trend, a broad dialogue with all political parties and people’s representatives is nec-essary.It’s natural to have differences of opinion in politics, as it’s the soul of democracy. But despite these differences, discussions and dialogue should never cease, said the Speaker.
“To fulfil the aspirations of the people, our legislative institutions need to be more transparent, accountable, and responsive, and for this, we should utilize technical tools positively and to the maximum extent. In democracy, dissent is also a fundamental value. Therefore, dissent should be accepted with maturity and tolerance, and debates should be limited to issues, not personal attacks,” said Birla.
