Mumbai, Jul 8: Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Wednesday pulled up the state government over the absence of ministers and senior officials during House proceedings and directed Chief Secretary Rajesh Kumar to appear in the legislature within 30 minutes.
He asserted the Assembly will not function according to the convenience of officials and warned future violations would invite adjournment of the House for the entire day.
After being summoned by the Speaker, Chief Secretary Kumar, the state’s top bureaucrat, came to the Assembly’s officers’ gallery.
Narwekar’s warning came during a discussion in the Assembly when Opposition members complained that ministers concerned and senior departmental officials were not present in the officers’ gallery.
Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Vijay Wadettiwar termed the absence of ministers and secretaries an insult to the legislature, the Speaker’s chair and the people of Maharashtra, and demanded proceedings be adjourned until they were present.
Amid the uproar, Narwekar expressed serious concern and said repeated complaints had been received from Opposition members that ministers concerned were not present to respond to discussions and that senior officials were also absent.
He directed the chief secretary to remain present in the Assembly within half an hour and said ministers must ensure their presence whenever matters relating to their departments are taken up for discussion.
The House was adjourned for around 10 minutes following protests by Opposition members. After proceedings resumed, the chief secretary came to the Assembly.
Replying on behalf of the government, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandrakant Patil said some ministers and senior bureaucrats were attending other official engagements, including government meetings, which led to their absence from the House.
Narwekar, however, cautioned the government against any recurrence of such instances and said the presence of ministers and senior officials during legislative proceedings must be ensured.
“There are 110 secretaries who take salaries from the government and even four are not present. There can be nothing (more) important than legislature proceedings,” he insisted.
The Speaker warned that if ministers were absent from the House and officials from the officers’ gallery during debates in the future, the Assembly could be adjourned for the entire day.
The warning came after Opposition members objected to the absence of ministers and senior bureaucrats during a discussion under Rule 293 in the Assembly. Under the rule, lawmakers can raise critical matters for a comprehensive debate.
Congress MLA Wadettiwar raised the issue, saying after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis replied to an earlier debate, treasury benches had thinned out and several ministers left the House.
He pointed out that only Water Resources Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and his cabinet colleague Chhagan Bhujbal (Food and Civil Supplies) were present, while debates related to energy and urban development departments were held without the respective ministers in attendance.
Nana Patole (Congress) and Randhir Savarkar (BJP) also objected to the absence of the ministers concerned and sought adjournment of the House.
Wadettiwar argued that the absence of ministers in the House and secretaries in the officers’ gallery amounted to disrespect not only to the legislature, but also to the Speaker’s chair, and demanded that proceedings be suspended until they were present.
Minister Vikhe Patil also expressed displeasure over the absence of officials and urged the Chair to ensure compliance with its directions.
Amid continued protests by Opposition members, the House was adjourned for 10 minutes by Presiding Officer Sameer Kunawar.
When proceedings resumed, Speaker Narwekar reprimanded the government and directed Chief Secretary Kumar to ensure that senior officials remained present in the officers’ gallery.
Responding to the issue, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Patil said ministers and senior officials, including the chief secretary, were attending important meetings, including a cabinet meeting.
Narwekar, however, said nothing could take precedence over the proceedings of the legislature and observed that with more than 110 secretary-rank officers in the state administration, the government could ensure the presence of at least a few officials in the Assembly.
“The House will not function according to the convenience of officials,” the Speaker said, warning that future violations would invite adjournment of the House for the entire day.(PTI)
