Seemingly annoyed with the non-execution of his directives and orders in past few months, Jharkhand Assembly Speaker Shashank Shekhar Bhokta said on Friday that the powers of the legislature had been curtailed to a large extent due to administrative apathy of the bureaucrats in the State.
The Speaker while talking to The Pioneer, said that he found himself as helpless and deprived as a common man, who can only think of solutions but cannot make the administrative machinery work in Jharkhand. "People are afraid of the Executive and the Judiciary but not by the legislature… The legislature seem to have lost its sanctity somewhere in the state. And, to the worse its powers have been contained," said the Speaker.
"I had tried my best to streamline things in the limited period of time I had but nothing concrete could take place. Neither I could make an Assembly building nor could I start proper e-governance in the Assembly. If I issue orders they fall in deaf ears. Even if I take action and order on some issue the execution part is not in my hand. It is an irony with a state like Jharkhand where babus make the decisions and prefer not be deterred by the legislature's authority," said Bhokta. During a high-level meeting of Assurance Committee to discuss the pending assurances related to 40 departments of the state government on Friday the Speaker called the work culture of bureaucrats as irresponsible and depressing in the State. He also added that the executives in the state do have respect for the legislature.
"The Speaker was quite upset over the absence of the departmental heads during the meeting," said Assembly Secretary Sushil Kumar Singh.