Law Kumar Mishra
Patna, March 14
During question hour in Bihar Assembly, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar lost his cool and angrily charged the Speaker, Vijay Kumar Sinha with violating Constitution and Speaker reciprocated by alleging Chief Minister was attempting to demoralise the Chair.
The verbal clash between the leader of the House and the Speaker took place when the latter expressed his dissatisfaction over the reply of the Energy Minister, Bijendra Prasad Yadav on behalf of the Chief Minister on a question put by BJP’s Sanjay Sarogi who wanted to know whether property of two accused in a case at Lakhisarai have been attached or not. Speaker told the House the question would be taken up again on Wednesday as Minister’s reply was unsatisfactory.
This agitated the Chief Minister who told the Speaker, “You cannot do this. You have no authority. Reports of any investigation are sent to the Court and not to you.”
Chief Minister regretted the Lakhisarai was not an issue to be raised in the House. Speaker represents Lakhisarai and had been minister in Nitish led cabinet earlier. During Saraswati Puja, police had arrested two BJP workers who were witnessing a cultural programme and charged them with violation of COVID 19 guidelines. They were in prison for 19 days, according to the Speaker who claimed while visitors were jailed, the organisers and the leader who inaugurated it were not taken to task. This further enraged Nitish who challenged Speaker, “Who are you to direct the government. This is the for the first time, I am fourth term Chief Minister and was MLA earlier too.”
Speaker repeatedly tried to persuade Chief Minister to listen to him, but Nitish was visibly angry with him and said, “I had authorised the Minister to reply on my behalf. Why did you postpone the question again. You have got no right to interfere in the working of the police. They will submit the investigation report to the Court, not you.”
When Speaker pleaded the CM to listen to him,Nitish Kumar said, “House can not be run like the way you decide. Issues of your constituency can not be a subject matter of discussion in the House.”
Speaker reacted by saying, “Your anger is justified. But, I am also a representative from my constitutency. We have learnt lesson in parliamentary practices from you. Since the issue was raised in the House earlier too and members of both opposition and treasury benches were agitated, I took up the question and inquired about the attachment of property of accused, but the minister could not reply.”
Speaker said Chief Minister was attempting to demoralise the Speaker and weaken legislature. House will be run according to his wishes.
When Speaker was speaking, Chief Minister took objection and said: “If you speak again, I will not speak now and described the controversy over Lakhisarai “Uncalled for” and declared the way House was being conducted was unacceptable. Who are you to direct us?”
Speaker said the powers and duties of legislature and executive were well defined. There should be no breach,
JDU national president Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lallan Singh is member of Lok Sabha from Munger of which Lakhisarai is a part. The two leaders (Speaker and JDU President) have fair from cordial relations.
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