Venkaiah Naidu suggests code of conduct for MPs, MLAs

To make Parliament function more effectively, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu has suggested that all political parties should think of having a “code of conduct” for their MPs and MLAs to ensure they don’t disrupt the House or resort to unruly behaviour.

Naidu will complete two years in his current office on August 11. While the Rajya Sabha, which he chairs, has seen frequent disruptions in the past two years, it recorded its best performance in 17 years in the recently concluded budget session. Naidu, however, wants to see a far better performance in the Upper House.

In the last two years, Naidu faced a tough challenge to run the House as Opposition members frequently came to the well, raised slogans and banners and frequently disrupted the functioning. “There is no place for disruption. In the House, there should be debate and discussion before disposing of an issue. And no, I am not saying that the matter should be disposed in favour of the government,” he said.

This is the first time that the chairman of a House has suggested a code of conduct — which, otherwise, comes into force when the Election Commission of India declares a poll schedule — for political parties.

According to Naidu, the code of conduct should have stipulations that members will not enter the well of the house or resort to sloganeering, disruptions or any other unruly behaviour such as tearing paper and throwing them in the House.

In an informal interaction, people close to Naidu revealed how he had prepared to face disruptions during the passage of the Kashmir reorganization bill and the resolution to nullify Article 370. “Naidu’s wife took him to perform puja and a doctor was also called to check Naidu’s health parameters. Naidu knew that he might face stiff resistance but was prepared to sit through the day till the matters are cleared in the House,” one person said, asking not to be named.

With three years left in office, Naidu is keen to see that the Rajya Sabha’s performance improves significantly. While he deftly handled initial protests by the Opposition, he also asked home minister Amit Shah to introduce the resolutions and the bifurcation bill later after the opposition leaders pointed out that the government tried to take up the matter even before the revised list of business — containing Kashmir issues — were circulated in the House.

Naidu also underlined that the Rajya Sabha made history of sorts in the number of questions raised and answered, special mentions and zero hour mentions during the session. “With 32 bills passed during the 35 sittings of the recently concluded Rajya Sabha session, this has been the best in the last 17 years in terms of legislative output,” he said.

The Vice President also wants the leadership and MPs of all political parties to appreciate the significance of a functional Parliament and maintain the positive momentum of the just-concluded session.

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First Published: Aug 09, 2019 23:32 IST