‘Speaker must not act as censor’: Mehbooba hits out at Rather
This comes after the speaker on Saturday asked the members to desist from the “breach of privilege” by publicising the House business notices
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president and former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday said the role of the speaker of an assembly is to safeguard the rights of the members of the House and not act as a censor.
Mehbooba’s criticism came after J&K speaker Abdul Rahim Rather told members that unwarranted publicity of business notices was tantamount to a breach of privilege. “While Rathar Sahab may be concerned with preserving the sanctity of legislative proceedings, as speaker, his primary role is to safeguard the rights of members, not to act as a censor,” Mehbooba posted on X. “It appears that Rathar Sahab, a seasoned politician, is imposing a form of martial law while occupying a constitutional position,” she added.
The Budget Session of the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly is scheduled to begin on March 3.
Earlier, the speaker, taking serious notice of recent unwarranted publicity of the notices given by legislators in connection with the business of the House to be taken up during the ensuing budget session, expressed displeasure over this practice, saying this is against the parliamentary practices, conventions and established rules.
“According to parliamentary practice, usage and established convention, and prevalent rules of this house, it is improper to give unwarranted publicity to the notices of questions, bills, resolutions and other similar matters connected with business of the House,” a spokesperson of the legislative assembly said in a statement.
Mehbooba, however, said: “On the contrary, informing the public about notices, questions and resolutions in advance promotes accountability. Many significant parliamentary bills, such as the recent Waqf Bill, are debated publicly for months.”
Mehbooba said that the PDP has tabled three key bills in the assembly. “We tabled three key bills: regularisation of daily wagers, land rights for long-time residents, and a ban on alcohol in Kashmir. I urge CM Omar Abdullah and the speaker to uphold democratic principles, respect private member bills, and stop silencing voices in the assembly,” she said.
With inputs from HTC Jammu
