The Delhi Assembly witnessed some light moments over the weekend when a debate on a private member’s resolution on the “emergency-like situation” in the country was adroitly used to make a point that an emergency was prevailing inside the House too.
BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta, speaking on the resolution moved by AAP MLA Jarnail Singh (Rajouri Garden), said the three BJP MLAs in the 70-member House were facing an emergency as they were never allowed to speak freely.
“Whenever we want to say something, we are shouted down. Every time we want to make a valid point, a ruckus is created and everyone starts screaming, making us wonder if this is an emergency,” said Mr. Gupta. Members of the House, which has an overwhelming majority of AAP, broke into a peal of laughter.
The resolution, which was later adopted with a voice vote, called upon the Union Government to take appropriate steps for strengthening the federal structure and democratic set-up in the country.
Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel has come under repeated attacks for what the Opposition BJP describes as his “biased approach” while dealing with the way the issues are raised in the House. The ruling AAP MLAs get full liberty to take up the matters under different rules, but the three BJP members feel they are denied the opportunity when they wish to criticise the Government.
In the ongoing Budget session of the Assembly, there were at least three occasions last week when the BJP MLAs were marshalled out as they wanted to draw the Chair’s attention to some crucial issues of governance. One of the matters was tabling of the Fourth Finance Commission report to help the cash-strapped Municipal Corporations.
Mr. Gupta told mediapersons outside the House that the Opposition’s voice was being stifled in the Assembly. “We are treated as strangers in the House. We expect the Speaker to not promote undemocratic and unhealthy traditions and give respect to the Opposition.”
BJP MLA Om Prakash Sharma said the Opposition members were not getting the papers on time, making it difficult for them to come prepared to the House.
Not a single day in the Delhi Assembly session has gone by without the three BJP MLAs protesting. On day 2 of the session, Vijender Gupta, leader of Opposition shouted slogans continuously in the first half of the session.
Speaker, Ram Niwas Goel, amazed with the consistency of the slogans said “we will be needing lots of Vicks tablets in the session for Guptaji or else his throat will go sore.” The only time the BJP MLAs didn’t protest was when the budget was presented by the deputy chief minister, Manish Sisodia.
Ever since two Home Secretaries have been appointed in the Delhi government, Dharampal — Lieutenant Governor appointee — is seeking police protection. With four police officials stationed outside his room, Mr Dharampal is accompanied by cops everywhere. Be it going to the chief secretary’s office, which is hardly 10 steps away from his room, or to any other official’s room. On one occasion, a cop even accompanied him when he went to a public toilet.
Last week, a disgruntled Congress councillor surprised everyone at a meeting of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation by handing out a press release accusing his party’s leader of working with the BJP to hold up work. The councillor said the senior Congress and BJP leaders of the Corporation had conspired to leave him out of the Standing Committee. The Congress had nominated him as a member of the committee, but he lost the election. As per sources, he blamed the Congress leader of working against him and supporting another party candidate.
The councillor said the ‘Mama-Bhanja’ — a senior leader of the BJP is fondly addressed as Mama (maternal uncle) by the Congress leader — team of the BJP and Congress office-bearers ran the corporation and were responsible for making it a “temple of corruption”.
He said the two leaders had stopped work in his ward and that nothing happened in SDMC without their approval.
The councillor said the leaders had prevented markets from being converted into freehold, sanctioned plans from being cleared and new sanitation workers from being hired, among other things. Congress sources, however, dismissed the claims.
Mohammed Iqbal, Maria Akram and Damini Nath
