The first session of the Himachal Pradesh’s new-elected Vidhan Sabha started on a stormy note with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday staging a walk-out over the Congress led State Government’s decision to denotify no less than 900 offices and institutions.
The Leader of Opposition in the Assembly and former Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur attacked the Congress Government over the de-notification of institutions opened by the previous BJP dispensation. The protesting BJP members disrupted proceedings even before the newly-elected members took oath and later staged a walk out.
Before the oath-taking by MLAs, Thakur raised the issue of de-notification of institutions and alleged that the attitude of the Congress Government was “vengeful”. He demanded that it should immediately revoke the orders of de-notifying the institutions opened by the previous BJP government.
“The orders are illegal as the right to de-notify institutions rests with the Cabinet which is yet to be formed,” he claimed. Thakur demanded that the de-notified institutions should be opened and a review conducted if they should run or not. The opposition MLAs also raised slogans against de-notification.
Intervening in the matter, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that the newly-elected MLAs should be administered the oath after which other issues could be discussed.
Protem Speaker Chander Kumar administered oath to the Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, Leader of the Opposition Jai Ram Thakur, former Deputy Speaker Hans Raj, and other newly-elected MLAs. As many as 11 MLAs took oath in English.
After the oath ceremony, the BJP again raised the issue and walked out of the House.
Chief Minister Sukhu said that the Government would think about opening the de-notified institutions as per requirement after reviewing and providing a budget and adequate staff.
He said that the previous BJP government opened over 900 institutions in the last nine months of their tenure, including 386 educational institutions and 584 other institutions, and running them would require Rs 5000 crore.
Sukhhu alleged that community health centres have been opened with the deployment of compounders and schools with peons.
Later, interacting with reporters, Thakur said that the Congress government, by allowing a large number of supporters to sit in the visitors' gallery inside the Vidhan Sabha, had turned it into a public rally.
The former Chief Minister claimed that the new government has also de-notified a police post opened in 1952. He alleged that the State Government was insensitive as it went ahead with the Abhar rally on Tuesday even after the death of an IPC officer on duty.
Five-Time MLA Pathania Likely To Be Speaker
Congress’ Bhatiyat legislator Kuldeep Singh Pathania is likely to be the next Speaker of the Assembly. He filed his nomination papers, the lone candidate for the post, on Wednesday for the post in the presence of Chief Minister Sukhu, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, state Congress president and MP Pratibha Singh, and the Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur.
The name of five-time legislator Pathania, 65, for the post will be finalized on Thursday.