Accusing the Congress government of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh of making a mockery of democracy by reducing the winter session of Punjab Assembly to a single sitting, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday said the "non-performing government" was shying away from the session.
SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal said: "The Congress has played a cruel joke on the people and made a mockery of democracy by recommending the winter session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha be reduced to a single sitting, something which had happened for the first time in the state."
In a statement here, the SAD President said Congress legislators, who formed a majority in the business advisory committee, had recommended the winter session be curtailed from two days to a single day.
"This is unprecedented and has taken democratic norms to a new low. It also amounts to cheating the people as well as muzzling their voice. The Congress legislators should tell the people why they became party to this anti-people decision," Badal stated.
He said it was shocking that the Congress government was running away from discussion on people's issues by curtailing the winter session.
"As only obituary references were made today, one day is too less to take up people's issues as well as pass bills as scheduled," Badal said.
The Assembly session officially began on Thursday with the sitting ending after obituary references.
"We will take up this issue with the Speaker and demand that the session be extended appropriately," he added.
Badal said: "The government does not want any discussion on farmer issues or promises made to the youth, discrimination being meted out to Dalits and government employees or destruction of peace and communal harmony in Punjab."
The Punjab assembly on Thursday paid homage to 58 people who died in the Amritsar train tragedy on October 19. Tributes were also paid to three people killed in a bomb blast at the Nirankari Bhawan in village Adliwal in Amritsar last month.
--IANS
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