Modifications before session, new rules later
Deptts not to be debated in House to be mentioned
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Jan 7: A high-level Committee set up to frame Business Rules for the Legislative Assembly has agreed to a proposal by Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather, who is ex-officio chairman of the Panel, that a draft carrying certain necessary modifications in the rules will be circulated among members by the Assembly Secretariat which will be adopted based on consensus to run budget session pending complete set of new rules.
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A decision to this effect was taken in second meeting of the Rules Committee held here today under the chairmanship of Rather and attended by total eight members with Independent MLA from Thannamandi Muzaffar Iqbal Khan, a retired Judge, the lone absentee. Khan extended support to National Conference after his election.
Chaired by Rather, the meeting was attended by Mubarak Gul, former Speaker, Saifullah Mir, ex Law Minister and Hasnain Masoodi, former Lok Sabha member and Retired Judge (all from National Conference), Pawan Gupta, former Minister and Ranbir Singh Pathania (both BJP), MY Tarigami (CPM) and Nizam-ud-Din Bhat (Congress). CPM and Congress are also part of NC-led alliance.
Insiders told the Excelsior that a proposal was mooted in the meeting by Speaker and ex-officio Chairman of the Committee Abdul Rahim Rather, a record seventh time MLA in the House, that the Assembly Secretariat will prepare draft rules after carrying out necessary modifications in existing set of rules which will be circulated among the members of the Panel for study and suggestions. Subject to consensus, the draft rules will be finalized and sent to the Lieutenant Governor for approval for running budget session of the House pending finalization of new rules.
“Some modifications have become necessary to run the House like removal of words like Legislative Council, Joint Select Committee, Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir and State of Jammu and Kashmir. Legislative Council has been dissolved and, therefore only Select Committee can be set up and not Joint Select Committee. Constitution of J&K has also ended,” they said.
Further, they said, the questions, Call Attention Notices etc pertaining to law and order, public order and All India Services can’t be raised in the House as these subjects are now held by the Lieutenant Governor and this has to be made clear in the rules to ensure that the legislators don’t list the questions pertaining to these departments.
One of the NC MLAs pointed out that the legislators have liberty to speak which can’t be snatched. There was a view that they can raise the point during debate on Motion of Thanks to the Lieutenant Governor’s Address but questions pertaining to the subjects which are not with the Union Territory Government can’t be allowed to be listed as the House will run strictly as per the rules.
Sources said modifications in rules if approved by the Committee will be sent to the Lieutenant Governor for approval, as per the procedure.
Complete set of new rules will be drafted after budget session of the Legislature.
There has been a provision in the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019 that the Legislature can run as per existing rules till new rules are framed and adopted.
The Rules Committee had held its first sitting on January 1 but out of nine, only five members made it to the meeting. Budget session of the Legislature is proposed to be held in the middle of February as the budget has to be approved by the House before March 31. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union budget in the Parliament on February 1 which would give the UT Government some indications about the share of Jammu and Kashmir UT.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah holds the Finance Department and will present first budget of Jammu and Kashmir as the Union Territory.
The framing of ‘Business Rules’ for the House were necessitated after erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir was divested of its special status under Article 370 and was divided into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.
Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019 was passed on August 5, 2019 by the Parliament in which among other subjects the Legislative Assembly was allowed to function on existing Rules till new ‘Business Rules’ are framed for running the House after the State was converted into the UT.
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