On a three-day visit to Himachal Pradesh, President Pranab Mukherjee expressed his concern over repeated disruption of the functioning of Parliament and state legislatures, in his address to the members of 12th Vidhan Sabha on Friday on the occasion of its golden jubilee celebrations.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said every legislator has got his job after begging to people for their votes and gaining their trust.
It would not be fair if he or she does not discharge the responsibilities. He said nowadays “we find surreptitiously a new ‘D’ inserted along with debate, dissent and decision and the ‘D’ is disruption.
“Disruption has no role in Parliamentary democracy. It is a small minority forcing their will on all others. Neither are they doing their job nor letting others do their job,” he said. He requested leaders of political parties to discuss and find a solution to this problem. He expressed confidence that the Indian political system is capable of finding a solution. He complimented the Assembly for holding disruption-free sessions and said it speaks well about our democratic system.
He expressed hope that the Assembly would lead and continue to maintain the highest standards of democratic practice and parliamentary traditions.
He said elected representatives have exclusive control over money and finance.
No expenditure can be incurred by the executive without approval of the legislature, no tax can be levied except by a law passed by the legislature and no money can be withdrawn from the consolidated fund of the state without the approval of the legislature.
Therefore, legislators must ensure adequate discussion and scrutiny before passing laws. Pranab also attended the convocation of the Himachal Pradesh University and said the rising incidents of crime against women and children call for effective measures to ensure their safety.
It also underlines an immediate need to arrest the moral decline in our society, he said. He also inaugurated the Tagore Centre for the Study of the Culture and Civilisation and delivered the first Rabindranath Tagore memorial lecture at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study.