Summon Assembly to discuss Manipur : Joy
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, December 28 2024: Veteran political figure O Joy and ex-MLA RK Anand have lambasted Law and Legislative Affairs Minister Th Basantakumar for justifying the skipping of the winter session of the Assembly session.

While O Joy said that rules of the Assembly are also based on the Constitution, RK Anand maintained that summoning the Assembly will expose all the misgovernance.

Addressing a press conference at his residence at Kakwa today, O Joy, a former Law Minister, said that whatever Basantakumar has been saying about the summoning and non summoning of the Assembly is only expected from someone who is ignorant of the convention, tradition, culture and practice of the Indian Parliament.

Forget Basantakumar, even the Prime Minister doesn't have the authority to disapprove the rule which states that the Assembly should be summoned thrice a year, he said.

Saying that discussing the convention, tradition, culture and practice of the Indian Parliamentary system by giving reference only to the Constitution would be very wrong, the veteran politician said that all laws are based on the Constitution.

Further stating that the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the State Assembly which are bound by the custom and practice of Parliament were formulated under Rule 208 of Article 174, he added that the Assembly should be summoned at least three times a year as per the established norms.

Seeing the Law Minister so determined to justify the non summoning of the winter session by referring only to Article 174 is unfortunate, the former Minister sighed and maintained that the Government and the Law Minister are not above the Parliament, Assembly and the people.

"There are many people who know the law better than you and I," he said while criticizing Basantakumar for his remark on the Assembly session row.

Continuing that an Assembly session should be convened at least three times a year viz Budget, Autumn and Winter session as per Article 174 of the Indian Constitution (First Amendment Act), 1951, O Joy said that the State can convene only two sessions only when there is no business to discuss.

Saying that Basantakumar is a promising and educated politician, he expressed desire for the Minister to analyse the laws of the land first before passing any comment.

Manipur, however, has been burning since the last 19 months and as such there are so many things to be discussed in the House, he reasoned.

People have been protesting against the killing and arrest of village volunteers but it is the failure of the Government in enforcing law and order which compel them to come out and defend their villages from all possible attacks, O Joy said.

Is the Government going to brush aside the issues arising out of the disappearance of a contract worker from Leimakhong Army camp, the arrest of village volunteers and the frequent attacks by Kuki militants, he asked and maintained that the Government needs to summon the Assembly and debate the matters on the floor of the House.

Manipur is plagued by issues and yet the Government is hellbent on skipping the Assembly session, he charged while stating that the Government should understand the sentiment of the people.

It would be unwise for the Government to skip the Assembly session by arguing that they have already convened two sessions as mandated by the Constitution, O Joy said.

Saying that Manipur has been turned into a graveyard by the double engine BJP Government, the veteran politician asked why the Assembly should not be summoned when Manipur literally is burning.

The Government, especially the Law Minister ought to understand that it is their responsibility to protect the lives and properties of the people, he said.

Ex-MLA RK Anand, meanwhile, stated that the reluctance being shown by the Government on summoning the State Assembly indicates that they don't want to discuss the crisis in Manipur.

RK Anand continued that there has been no comprehensive and effective debate on the crisis besetting Manipur.

He also said the response given by Law and Legislative Affairs Minister Th Basantakumar on the demand to summon the Assembly shows the unwillingness of the Government to discuss Manipur and the crisis besetting the State.

The Government is determined to skip the Assembly session as debate on Manipur issues will expose all their faults and lapses, the ex-MLA added.

Saying that the Government will summon the Assembly if they sincerely want to resolve the crisis, RK Anand added that the fate of Manipur will become uncertain if the crisis persists.

Further stating that the Government doesn't want to resolve the crisis and the same can be seen from their hesitation in summoning the Assembly, he added that law and order have completely collapsed in Manipur.

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