New Delhi: Amid continuous disruptions between both houses of the Parliament, Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday said that both Government and the Opposition have the collective responsibility for the smooth and effective functioning of the House.
Expressing concern over the overshadowing of debates and discussions by rising disruption and confrontation in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Naidu stated that people, especially the youth, are justifiably getting impatient and disillusioned with the way democratic institutions are functioning.
“Members should put an end to such unpleasant situations in the House in order to sustain the credibility of the parliamentary institutions in public esteem. Discipline, dignity and decorum in the House are the sine qua non of parliamentary institutions,” said Naidu while addressing the two-day-long orientation camp of the newly elected members of the Parliament.
Naidu stressed that adversarial politics should not be allowed to adversely affect the functioning of the Parliament and State Legislatures and differences should be resolved through debate and discussions by cultivating the ability to understand the other's point of view and not necessarily to agree with it.
While urging the members to make significant and meaningful contributions to enrich the proceedings of the House, Naidu stated that while the informed critique of the Government is always welcome, “protracted disruption as a parliamentary strategy should be avoided.”
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"Let the Government propose, let the Opposition oppose and let the House dispose-is the only way forward in a democracy. The Members should resort to the three-D mantra of 'discuss, debate and decide' and avoid the other 'D' - 'disruption'," he said.
He further said that due to several efforts made earlier, the functioning of the House has resulted in almost doubling of the productivity of the House in the last eight sessions. Naidu said that Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committees of Rajya Sabha are effective instruments of Parliament to ensure executive accountability, especially during the inter-session periods underscoring the fact that Parliament functions not only during the session but around the year.
While urging the members to speak in their native language, Naidu said that initiative has been taken to make the simultaneous interpretation facility available in all the twenty-two scheduled languages which has increased the use of mother tongue in the proceedings of the House. "The privilege of freedom of speech enjoyed by members in Parliament does not give unrestricted freedom to say anything against any individual or to use defamatory or indecent or undignified or unparliamentary words. Members should conduct themselves in a decent and dignified manner in the House or outside it and set an example to others by maintaining high standards of conduct," said Naidu.
He advised the members to be regular in attending the Parliament and keenly watch the way senior parliamentarians articulate themselves and put their views in a very organized manner.
