News Analysis India

Tag: Bihar Legislative Assembly

  • Bihar Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha appeals to people to help tackle Covid crisis

    Express News Service
    PATNA: Speaker of Bihar Legislative Assembly Vijay Kumar Sinha expressed his deep concern over the rising infection of Corona and appealed to the state’s private hospital managements, doctors, nurses, drug agencies, drugstore oxygen service providers, and other service providers to work for tackling the crisis together as service to humanity. 

    “Now is not the time to earn wealth and fame but to serve humanity and human. It is time to save mankind from the worldwide crisis. My appeal to all is to render their services to tackle the pandemic crisis”, Sinha said through a statement released by the deputy director of the press of assembly Sanjay Kumar Singh on Thursday. 

    He further called upon people to create together a mutually positive environment in the society to fight the epidemic with a humanistic zeal taking the legacy of the ancestors forward in which people were helping each other in times of calamity. 

    “ By doing this, not only we will be able to keep our life safe, but we will also be able to give a message of safe life to the coming generations”, the speaker said. 

  • Bihar Assembly building completes 100 years; Nitish Kumar tells ruling members they are ‘sevaks’ and not ‘maalik’

    By PTI
    PATNA: Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday highlighted the glorious past of the Bihar Legislative Assembly on completion of 100 years of its building and told those sitting in the government not to confuse themselves as the “masters” as in the democracy people are the “maalik” and we are their “sevaks” (servants).

    Inaugurating the year-long centenary celebrations of the sprawling assembly building, Kumar stressed on healthy debate and discussions in the house to serve the masses together in a more better manner.

    Kumar said he was in favour of holding longer session of the state legislature to give ample time to every member to ask questions and raise issues of their areas.

    It was on this day when the first session of the Bihar and Odisha provincial legislative council was formally inaugurated by Lord Satyendra Prassana Sinha,Governor of the erstwhile province.

    Though the building was ready by the end of 1920, the inaugural session was held on February 7, 1921.

    Besides Kumar, Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Sinha, Legislative Council Acting Chairman Awadhesh Narayan Singh, Deputy Chief Ministers- Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi- former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi, Parliamentary Affairs minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary and a host of ministers, legislators and other dignitaries attended the inaugural function.

    “We should not confuse ourselves as masters as in democracy janata (people) are the maalik while legislators are their representatives and people sitting in the government are their ‘sevaks’ (servants),” Kumar said in his speech.

    “We normally have longer Budget session which runs for a month. But, other sessions (monsoon and winter) run for 7,8 or 10 days.

    “If you wish, we will extend it further so that members, who are also considered part of the government, get a fair amount of time to express their views and opinion on various matters besides raising issues of their areas as it is their duty to do so,” Kumar said.

    Kumar said this while responding to several previous speakers who expressed their grievance on the session being short one which denied them opportunity to put their views or raise issues.

    He, however, said that so far as duration of the session is concerned, it has to be collectively decided by the Assembly Speaker and the Council Chairman.

    The CM assured the members that the government would certainly accept their suggestions/views if they were “genuine” and “correct”.

    Stating that he was quite hopeful of getting over with the COVID pandemic in the next few months, Kumar said that the number of coronavirus cases has been quite low in Bihar and the government has done a plenty of work including carrying out inoculation drive.

    The manner in which coronavirus spread and continued for quite longer period of time affecting huge number of people, it seems that it did not come in a “natural way” rather it appears to be some kind of “mischief” or may have come from different parts of the world especially in China where different types of “artificial work” take place, the CM said.

    “There are chances that such things could recur again in future. In these circumstances, we need to remain alert and cautious,” Kumar said.

    Kumar thanked Assembly Speaker for organising centenary year function and asked him to organise such programmes in future too on different topics/subjects and their experts as participants besides the members of the legislature.

    Speaking on the occasion, the Speaker said the faith of democracy lies in legislature.

    “We should create an atmosphere that would deepen people’s faith in state legislature….Opposition’s cooperation is needed for smooth functioning of the assembly,” the Speaker said.

    Other leaders who spoke on the occasion included RJD’s Awadh Bihari Choudhary, Congress’ Vijay Shankar Dubey and Ajit Sharma, CPI(ML)’s Mahboob Alam, AIMIM’s Akhtarul Iman, CPI’s Ram Ratan Singh and CPI(M)’s Ajay Kumar.

    The function saw an unpleasant moment when Alam raised objection to display of BJP flags at the roundabout near the entrance of the legislative premises inviting jeer from the saffron party legislators.