Chandigarh, March 14: Unhappy over a shorter budget session of the Punjab Assembly that is slated to start from March 20, the Aam Aadmi Party has asked the Speaker to extend it to at least 15 sittings.
In a letter to the Speaker, AAP leader Kanwar Sandhu has pointed out that usually the State budget sessions have between nine and 15 sittings.
Endorsed by Mr. Khaira
“The session falls woefully short of even the earlier sessions,” said Mr. Sandhu in the letter, which has been endorsed by the Leader of the Opposition, Sukhpal Singh Khaira.
Pressing to extend the session to the second week of April, Mr. Sandhu said, “As the Speaker, you are the House custodian and the duration of the session is your, and not the government’s, prerogative. The Government could give you a list of the business that it seeks to bring forward. As the Speaker, you could ask each of the Opposition parties for their list of the business before taking the final call on the number of sittings the House would have.”
Pointing out that Punjab was today facing a severe crisis forcing the people to head for foreign countries, Mr. Sandhu said, “Future generations would not forgive us for neglecting the vital issues plaguing the State. These can be addressed only through discussion and debate and not by pushing them under the carpet. Punjab has not only been let down by its bureaucracy but also looted by its political masters. The only hope lies in the parliamentary institutions like the Vidhan Sabha, which needs to debate the vital issues plaguing the State.”
Source The Hindu
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