Parliamentary Information

The Journal of Parliamentary Information VOLUME XLVII NO.4 DECEMBER 2001 , LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT NEW DELHI CBS Publishers & Distributors 11. Darya Ganj. New Delhi-2 EDITORIAL BOARD Editor G. C. Malhotra Secretary-General Lok Sabha Associate Editors M Rajagopalan Nair Joint Secretary Lok Sabha Secretariat R.C. Ahuja Director Lok Sabha Secretariat Assistant Editors K. Vljayakrishnan Joint Director Lok Sabha Secretariat 8mt. Kalpana Sharma Deputy Director Lok Sabha Secretariat <0 Lok Sabha Secretariat, New Delhi OUR CONTRIBUTOR Shri C. Venkatesan is Former Special Secretary, Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly THE JOURNAL OF PARLIAMENTARY INFORMATION VOL. XLVII NO.4 DECEMBER 2001 CONTENTS PAGE EDITORIAL NOTE 377 ADDRESSES Addresses at the All India Conference of Presiding Officers of Legislative Bodies, Chief Ministers, Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs, and Leaders and Whips of Parties 379 ARTICLE Is Parliamentary Democracy in Peril? -C. Venkatesan 395 PARLIAMENTARY EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES Conferences and Symposia 400 Birth Anniversaries of National Leaders 404 Parliamentary Delegation visiting India 405 Indian Parliamentary Delegation going Abroad 405 Bureau of Parliamentary Studies and Training 406 PROCEDURAL MATTERS 408 PARLIAMENTARY AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENTS 416 DOCUMENTS OF CONSTITUTIONAL AND PARLIAMENTARY INTEREST 422 SESSIONAL REVIEW Lok Sabha 431 Rajya Sabha 443 I State Legislatures 461 RECENT LITERATURE OF PARLIAMENTARY INTEREST 467 (ii) ApPENDICES I. Sta!ement showing the work transacted during the Seventh Session of the Thirteenth Lok Sabha 472 II. Statement showing the work transacted during the One Hundred and Ninety-third Session of the Aajya Sabha 476 III. Statement showing the activities of the Legislatures of the States and Union territories during the period 1 July to 30 September 2001 481 IV. List of Bills passed by the Houses of Parliament and assented to by the President during the period 1 July to 30 September 2001 487 V. List of Bills passed by the Legislatures of the States and the Union territories during the period 1 July to 30 September 2001 481 VI. Ordinances promulgated by the Union and State Governments during the period 1 July to 30 September 2001 495 VII. Party Position in the Lok Sabha, the Aajya Sabha and the Legislatures of the States and the Union territories 501 INDEX TO VOL. XLVII 509 EDITORIAL NOTE Legislatures are the temples of democracy. Being the supreme representative institutions of the people. they are expected to function as role models for other institutions and organisations in the country and maintain high standards of work, discipline and decorum. Keeping in mind the imperative of smooth and orderly conduct of the proceedings of our legislative bodies, an All-India Conference of Presiding Officers of Legislative Bodies, Chief Ministers, Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs and Leaders and Whips of Parties was convened in the Central Hall of Parliament House on 25 November 2001 to discuss 'Discipline and Decorum in Parliament and Legislatures of States and Union Territories in India'. The Conference was inaugurated by the Vice- President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Krishan Kant. The Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Speaker, Lok Sabha, Shri G.M.C. Balayogi also addressed the Conference. The Leaders of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Presiding Officers of State Legislatures and Chief Ministers were among the dignitaries who attended the Conference and shared their views on this issue of vital concern to our polity. On this occasion, the Hindi version of the Fifth revised English edition of Kaul and Shakdher's "Practice and Procedure of Parliamenr, brought out by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, was released by the Vice-President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Krishan Kant. At the end, the Conference adopted a Resolution encompassing a Code of Conduct for members of all our legislative bodies. We include the texts of the addresses delivered by the dignataries at the inaugural function of the Conference in this issue of the Journal. As mentioned earlier, it is essential that our Parliament and State Legislatures function in a smooth and orderly manner. However, on several occasions, our legislative bodies could not transact the listed business because of continued interruptions resulting in frequent adjournments. This has been a matter of concern for all right thinking people. In his article titled, 'Is Parliamentary Democracy in Peril?', Shri C. Verykatesan, former Special Secretary, Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, discusses the unfortunate consequences o~ disorderliness in the Legislatures. The author observes that such unparliamentary atmosphere casts doubts in some minds about the efficacy and suitability of the parliamentary system for our country. The author emphasizes that the Indian polity should take concrete 378 The Journal of Parliamentary Information measures to contain this type of indecorous behaviour and to improve the functioning of legislative institutions through effective procedural methods that could be helpful in utilizing the valuable time of the House in a better way. Besides, we carry in this issue our other regular features, viz., Parliamentary Events and Activities, Procedural Matters, Parliamen- tary and Constitutional Developments, Documents of Constitutional and Parliamentary Interest, Sessional Review, Recent Literature of Parliamentary Interest and Appendices. A Comprehensive Index to Vol. XLVII of 2001 °also finds place in this issue. It has been bur constant endeavour to make the Journal more useful and informative. We would greatly welcome suggestions for its further improvement. We also welcome practice and problem-oriented non-partisan articles in the field of parliamentary procedures and institutions from members of Parliament and State Legislatures, scholars' and others interested in the field of parliamentary political science. -G.C. Malhotra Editor 1 ADDRESSES AT THE INAUGURAL FUNCTION OF THE ALL-INDIA CONFERENCE OF PRESIDING OFFICERS, CHIEF MINISTERS, MINISTERS OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS, LEADERS AND WHIPS OF PARTIES ON "DISCIPLINE AND DECORUM IN PARLIAMENT AND LEGISLATURES OF STATE AND UNION TERRITORIES" The All-India Conference of Presiding Officers, Chief Ministers, Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs, Leaders and Whips of Parties on "Discipline and Decorum in Parliament and Legislatures of States and Union Territories· was held in the Central Hall of Parliament House on 25 November 2001. The Conference was inaugurated by the Vice· President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Krishan Kant. The Inaugural function was also addressed by the Prime Minister, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and the Speaker, Lok Sabha, Shri G.M.C. Balayogi. On this occasion the Hindi version of the Fifth revised edition of the book titled ·Practice and Procedure of Parliament" by M.N. Kaul and S.L. Shakdher was released by the Vice-President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri Krishan Kant. The texts of the Addresses delivered by the dignitaries at the function are reproduced below. -Editor ADDRESS BY THE SPEAKER, LOK SABHA, SHRI G.M.C. BALAYOGI Respected Upa-Rashtrapatiji, Respected Pradhan Mantriji, Respected Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Respected Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya SabhR, Respected Presiding Officers, Respected Chief Ministers, Respected Ministers, Respected Leaders of various Parties, Respected Whips, Respected Chairmen of the Committees of Privileges and Ethics, Respected Members of Parliament, Friends from Print and Electronic Media, Distinguished Guest, Ladies and Gentlemen: It is indeed a matter of great pleasure and honour for me to extend a hearty welcome to you all to this Conference. I am grateful to Respected Upa-Rashtrapatiji for accepting our invitation to inaugurate and address this Conference. I am also thankful to Respected Pradhan 380 The Journal of Parliamentary Information Mantriji for keenly associating with this important event. My thanks are also due to the Leaders of the Opposition in Parliament, my fellow Presiding Officers, Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, Ministers of Parliamentary Affairs. Leaders of various Parties and Groups, Whips, Chairmen of the Committees of Privileges and Ethics and Members of Parliament, who have, out of their concern over the issues, made it convenient to attend this day-long Conference to deliberate on a subject which has been agitating the minds of all those who want parliamentary democracy to thrive and flourish in our country. Legislatures are the temples of democracy, through which we seek to serve the public weal. Being the supreme representative institutions of the people, they are expected to function as role models for other institutions and organisations in the country and maintain high standards of work, discipline and decorum. The credibility of a Legislature is intimately related to the role and conduct of its members. As peop're's representatives, they are expected to observe a very high standard of decorum, both inside and outside the Legislature, and help to maintain its sanctity. Unfortunately, in recent times, we have witnessed increas- ing incidents of indecorous behaviour by legislators, which tarnish the image of the institution. The problem of indiscipline in our Legislatures has been a matter of concern for a long time. Over the years, though several guidelines and conventions have been developed to regulate the conduct of legislators, the situation has only worsened with each

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