New Delhi: Congress leader Digvijaya Singh once again raised the issue of his pending substantive motion on the conduct of Goa and Manipur Governors today and sought to know when Leader of the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley will find time to decide on the date of a discussion on the matter.
When the House met for the day, Singh said he has become a “laughing stock” as people and journalists keep asking him about what happened to the substantive motion he gave two weeks ago.
“Till today, Leader of the House (and Finance Minister) Arun Jaitley has not taken any decision,” he said, adding that hardly six sittings of the Rajya Sabha are left of the ongoing Budget Session.
“Please assure that the motion will be taken before the session ends,” he said. “Chairman can call the Leader of the House and me and decide on the time and date.”
Singh has been raising the matter in the House almost on a daily basis.
Originally, Singh had moved a notice under rule 267 seeking suspension of business to discuss conduct of the Goa and Manipur governors in not inviting Congress, which emerged as the single largest party after assembly elections, to form the government.
But Kurien had disallowed a discussion saying conduct of a high office like Governor can be discussed only under a substantive motion. Minister of State for Parliamentary
Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi too had stated that the government will respond to a substantive motion.
He had then moved the substantive motion which was admitted by the Chairman but a time for discussion on it has not yet been allocated.
“If Leader of the House has to violate the Chairman’s decision, it is not acceptable to us,” Singh said.
Kurien said, “we will come back to you.”
Singh said the Chair as well as the Rajya Sabha Secretariat has been kind to him, but not Jaitley.
Tapan Sen (CPI-M) supported Singh saying the government is “dodging” the matter.
Kurien said the Chair has accepted the substantive motion and it is pending business. “Chair will come back to you” on the time of discussion, he said.
PTI