Democracy blossoms if the legislative wing is firm on its footing; democracy flounders of the legislative wing totters. During the discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the address made by the Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, Delhi Minister Ashish Sood had an interesting fact to share. He pointed out that during the past five years of the rule of the Aam Aadmi Party in the national capital, Delhi Assembly remained if not non-functional, it was dysfunctional.
Sood was referring to a data released by a research agency which mentioned, that in the past five years just 74 sitting of Delhi assembly took place. In these sitting deliberations were made for just 215 hours which is just above 11 minutes per day in the past five years. More interestingly just 180 questions were allowed during these five years, and which only 55 were answered on the floor of the house.
These figures indicate that the Arvind Kejriwal government completely demolished the sanctity of the Vidhan Sabha. He kept the assembly floor reserved only for verbal fusillade against his political rivals and the government at the Centre. This he did as the privileges of the house protected him from inviting any contempt from the people he targeted.The general practise of the functioning of the legislative houses is that the government of the day sends a Cabinet note to the head of the state, President at the Centre, Governor in the states and the Lieutenant Governor in the case of a Union Territory like Delhi, to summon the house to deliberate legislative business.
The head of the state on examining the legislative agenda permits the summoning of the house, thereafter the Speaker of the House manages the sittings of the session. At the end of the session, the cabinet again send a note to prorogue the house. Proroguing of the house means end of the session and not the dissolution of the House.
For the next session, again a Cabinet note would have to be sent and process followed. This process in a way monitors the agenda which the government of the day seeks to bring before the House.
The account of legislative business reflects on the ability of the government to initiate new programmes and policies.
Arvind Kejriwal misused this provision to his advantage. His government would never recommend the prorogation of the house. This allowed his to call ‘special sessions’ at his whims and fancies and use it to berate his rivals. This he could do as did not need to go to the head of the state to summon the house as it was Speaker’s prerogative to resume ‘adjourned’ house.
So the majority of the hours spent in the sitting of the 7th Delhi Assembly (2020-25) was used in shooting acerbic missives at the political rivals as a helpless head of the state watched the misuse of the House. That the House transacted no quality business is evident from the fact that in these five years only 15 bills were passed.
Of these bills passed, five Bills amended laws to increase the salaries and allowances of MLAs, Ministers, the Leader of Opposition, the Chief Whip, the Speaker, and the Deputy Speaker. There was no substantial discussion on these bills or forthat matter other bills as the majority of the bills were passed by the House on the very day it was introduced. Even important Budget bill on an average got passed just after two days of discussion.
One of the major challenges before the current assembly (the 8th Vidhan Sabha) is to uphold the dignity of the House and reintroduce the culture of debate. The Aam Aadmi Party must realise that their rabble rousing acts, in which they indulged in the first session of the current assembly, would not take them very far.
They as opposition must participate in the debate and deliberations of the House. The best way for the opposition to lay a siege of the government is to waylay it on the floor of the House through articulate debates.
Given the live streaming of the debates, it would also give them the opportunity to take their views to the people. In their defeat, AAP leadership should now be humble enough to restore the dignity of the House.
Sidharth Mishra
Author and president, Centre for Reforms, Development & Justice