SHILLONG, Nov 22: Meghalaya Assembly Speaker Metbah Lyngdoh has stated that decency and decorum is always maintained in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly, even as he pointed out that it is the duty of presiding officers to ensure propriety in the House and be firm in ruling on any incident of disrespect to the chair and the House.
Metbah said this while addressing the 82nd All India Presiding Officers’ Conference in Shimla recently.
“Fortunately, we do not witness any disorder or pandemonium in the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly. We only have occasional walk out by the opposition and the House continues with its Business without any disruption. At times, there are heated exchanges in the House, but decency and decorum is always maintained,” the Meghalaya Speaker added.
Stating that the Speaker or Presiding Officers occupy a pre-eminent position in a parliamentary polity and are the symbol of the dignity of the House, Metbah said that the Speaker is the custodian of the rights and privileges of the House, its members and committees.
“The main responsibility of the legislature or the House is to keep a check on the Executive and make efforts for the upliftment of the people. The executive is to be made accountable to the Legislature for all its actions, policies and programmes, which are based on the principle that the House is supreme and it embodies the will of the people,” he said.
He further observed that a responsible opposition performs a critical role for effective working of the legislature, while adding that the Speaker has a duty to ensure the confidence of the opposition by protecting their legitimate rights and privileges.
According to him, members should raise issues on the floor of the House within the ambit of rules, practices and procedures, and must respect the chair.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the 82nd All India Presiding Officers’ Conference. The conference was held to commemorate the centennial year of the conference, which started in Shimla in 1921.