Rana KP Singh elected Speaker amid protests by AAP MLAs
Rana KP Singh after being elected as Speaker for the 15th Punjab Vidhan Sabha on Monday. A Tribune photo
Chandigarh, March 27
Congress MLA Rana Kanwar Pal Singh was on Monday elected unopposed as Speaker of the Punjab Assembly amid a walkout by the members of main opposition Aam Aadmi Party and its ally Lok Insaaf Party. On the second day of 15th Punjab Vidhan Sabha here, Leader of the House and Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh proposed the name of Rana, Congress MLA from Anandpur Sahib Assembly constituency, for the post of Speaker and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Brahm Mohindra seconded it.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)Amarinder said Rana is connected to people at grassroots level. “He always smiles…works with a calm mind. I have full faith that you will turn out to be a successful Speaker,” the Chief Minister said.As the process to elect Speaker started, members of the AAP and the LIP intervened, demanding a debate on the governor’s address.Leader of Opposition HS Phoolka said a discussion on governor’s address should be held “as per the Constitution”.He was supported by LIP MLA Simrajeet Singh Bains.Rana asked the AAP MLAs to go by the rules and give some time to the new government. Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said the Congress was not denying a debate on the governor’s address, but “let the government to start its work first”.At this, the AAP and LIP members raised slogans and trooped out of the Assembly.On being elected as Speaker, Rana (59), a three-time legislator, said: “As the House has reposed faith in me, I am committed to serving the House with dedication as per rules of the Assembly and seeking full cooperation of opposition benches.”Noting that MLAs are criticised often for their un- parliamentary behaviour these days, Rana said “gentleness will make us ornamental to the legislature.”He assured the members of upholding the sanctity and principles of the House and thanked Amarinder Singh, AICC chairperson (Sonia Gandhi) and party vice president (Rahul Gandhi) for reposing faith in him.”Amarinder is a charismatic leader for whom the party is not above the interest of the people of Punjab. It is a huge responsibility that has been given to me by the entire House,” he said. — PTI
What transpired in the House*New seating arrangement in place in Vidhan Sabha
*Congress ministers sit seniority wise in first row of treasury benches
*Three rows for AAP and three rows for SAD-BJP members in opposition benches
*Lok Insaf Party members allowed to sit with AAP MLAs
*Bikram Majithia sits in the second row on the seats reserved for SAD-BJP MLAs
*AAP MLAs and Bains brothers object to not being allowed debate on Governor’s address.
*Speaker asks opposition to give time to govt to function
*Navjot Singh Sidhu defends govt, takes on Bains brothers
*Bains brothers raise slogans against the Speaker
*Capt Amarinder Singh proposes name of Rana KP Singh as Speaker
*Election held amid din by AAP MLAs
*AAP members walk out of the House
*Phoolka says walkout for not giving time for opposition to speak in the Assembly
*SAD-BJP members sit silent in the House
*Sidhu makes sarcastic comments against AAP MLAs
*Capt Amarinder Singh, Ajit Singh Kohar, Brahm Mohindra and Dinesh Babbu congratulate Rana KP Singh for being elected Speaker
*AAP chief whip Sukhpal Khaira says the pre-poll ‘friendship’ between Akalis and Congress continues as Akalis did not object to denial of time to the opposition to speak
*Manpreet Badal says the level of debate in the House has gone down over the years
*AAP walks out of Assembly
*AAP accepts new office given to them in the Vidhan Sabha; HS Phoolka holds first meeting there
Badal, Sukhbir take oath; to oppose proposed CPS bill
Parkash Singh Badal. File photo
Ruchika Khanna
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
Former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and former deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Monday took oath as MLAs in the Speaker’s chamber.The two said they would oppose the proposed bill on appointment of Chief Parliamentary Secretaries, if and when it was brought in the House by the Congress government.
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Badal said he had fractured a rib after he slipped and fell and sought Speaker Rana KP’s permission to remain absent from the House for the remaining session. Sukhbir said he would attend the session.
Punjab to pursue cash credit limit issue with Centre, RBI
Cabinet approves supplementary grants, vote-on-account for presentation before Assembly
The Punjab cabinet meeting. PTI file
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
The Punjab cabinet on Monday decided to take up the matter of settlement of the legacy accounts regarding the pending Cash Credit Limit (CCL) with the Centre, RBI and SBI, on priority basis.A decision to this effect was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh here.
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The meeting decided to take up the CCL issue with the Centre as well as the Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of India, in larger public interest and in view of the state’s financial situation.Disclosing this after the meeting, an official spokesperson said the Punjab government, which had inherited a huge debt legacy from the previous Akali government, would actively pursue the issue with the Centre.The Chief Minister last week had met Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely to seek immediate authorisation and release of the Rs 20,683-crore CCL from the Centre for smooth and timely wheat procurement in the state. The procurement of wheat in the state is slated to begin on April 1.At its meeting, the cabinet also approved supplementary grants for 2016-17 to be presented before the state Assembly during the ongoing session. The cabinet also cleared the proposal for seeking Vote-on-Account for 2017-18 in the Vidhan Sabha.The supplementary grants and Vote-on-Account are scheduled to be presented before the House on March 29.
Punjab nod to draft law officers’ bill for transparency in AG functioning
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
As part of the Capt Amarinder Singh government’s administrative reforms agenda, the Punjab Cabinet on Monday approved the introduction of a draft bill to streamline appointments and bring transparency in the functioning of the office of the Advocate General.A Cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, also approved key amendments in the qualifications and experience for the post of the Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) in the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to strengthen the organisation and make it more effective.The Punjab Law Officers (Engagement) Act, 2017, Bill will be tabled for enactment in the current session of the Vidhan Sabha, an official spokesperson said after the second meeting of the state cabinet, held at the CMO here at the Punjab Civil Secretariat.Giving details of the proposed legislation, the spokesperson said it was aimed at putting in place an efficacious mechanism for the engagement of law officers in the Advocate General’s office purely on merit, as per the directions of the Supreme Court and High Court.The enactment of the legislation will bring in greater transparency, fairness and objectivity in the appointment of senior additional advocate general, additional advocate general, senior deputy advocate general, deputy advocate general, assistant advocate general and advocate on record, the spokesperson added.As per the Cabinet decision, the PSPCL CMD would now be an IAS officer, in the rank of Principal Secretary or above, having experience of working in the power sector.Concurrently, the cabinet has also amended the terms and conditions with respect to qualifications and experience for the said post, adding the streams of civil engineering, electronics and communication engineering, instrumentation engineering and information technology to the existing basic qualifications. In addition, the experience of Central Electricity Authority (CEA) would also be considered for the post of CMD.In another decision, the Cabinet decided to engage the services of Inspector General of Police Khubi Ram (retd) as security adviser to the Chief Minister in the rank of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), with entitlement to equivalent status, pay, perks, privileges and allowances, as admissible in such case.
PSPCL to see shift of power
IAS officer to replace Chaudhri
Punjab Cabinet decisions
- Bill on engaging law officers in Advocate General’s office to be placed in House
- To approach Centre on legacy accounts regarding pending Cash Credit Limit (CCL)
- To take up CCL issue also with the RBI and the SBI, in the larger public interest
- To appoint retired IGP Khubi Ram as Security Adviser to CM in the rank of ADGP
Restore ‘glory’ of House, pleads Manpreet
Sanjeev Singh Bariana
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
Finance Minister Manpreet Badal today said the Vidhan Sabha needed to restore the “glory” of the House in the decision-making process that was largely being handled by the ‘Executive’ (Cabinet and Chief Minister’s office) these days. He was speaking in the Punjab Assembly here today.He said, “Principally speaking, the executive is answerable to the legislature. However, for the past 30-40 years, the legislature slowly weaned away from playing its expected role. With no active MLA participation in the work of assigned committees and later scrutiny of the AG reports, the MLAs have become mere signatories to the prepared proceedings.”Manpreet said, “I have sought from the Speaker that majority participation be ensured, particularly the Opposition’s, for a collective decision-making process. The functioning of the committees need to be made more accountable. Action on the AG audit reports needs to be ensured by the concerned MLAs, seeking explanation from the names associated with loopholes in the reports.”Agreeing to the opinion of the Finance Minister, BJP MLA Som Paraksh said, “The issue of involving the entire House in decision-making was very valid because the Cabinet, more often than not, took decisions which demanded a fair discussion in the House. It is the House that represents the voice of people and not the office of the CM and the Cabinet alone.”He said, “The Congress government will have to be careful in distinguishing the subjects that merited only a Cabinet discussion and those which needed a discussion in the House. For example, the Cabinet last week decided that MLAs will be not be made any payments for foreign trips. Such issues, by merit, were required to be tabled in the House before any decision”.Speaking in context of the AAP staging a walkout even before the election of the Speaker, Amritsar MLA Navjot Sidhu said “At least let the government begin its innings. We will all work together for the welfare of Punjab.”
Brakes on illegal mining send sand prices soaring
Supply takes a hit as cops impound tippers owned by mining mafia
A team of the district administration during a raid to check illegal mining in Ropar district. Tribune photo
Arun Sharma
Tribune News Service
Ropar, March 27
Following a crackdown on the mining mafia by the Congress government, the state is witnessing a steep hike in the prices of sand and gravel.Enquiries reveal that due to acute scarcity of these mining minerals, the retail price of sand has shot up from Rs 16 per cubic ft to Rs 26 per cubic ft and that of gravel has gone up from Rs 20 per cubic ft a couple of days ago to Rs 26 per cubic ft.Officials at Nakkian toll plaza near Kiratpur Sahib said nearly 200 tippers overloaded with sand and gravel used to pass from there every day. But after the district police started issuing challans, the number has decreased substantially in the past few days. Yesterday, only 26 tippers crossed the toll.Similarly at Solakhian toll plaza on the Ropar-Kharar road, officials said the number of loaded tippers was between 400 and 450 against nearly 1,000 a few days ago. Tippers coming from Hoshiarpur, Pathankot, Nalagarh, Una, Nangal and Anandpur Sahib, Kiratpur Sahib and Ropar pass through this route.A sand and gravel dealer in Chandigarh said a tipper with 800 cubic ft sand was available for Rs 8,000 in the wholesale market till last week. The price has jumped to Rs 16,000 and still two tippers could reach him at this price, he said.Yogesh Gulati, another dealer of building material, said following strictness by the police and other enforcement agencies, sand from the Sutlej riverbed, considered to be of best quality, was not available in the market.Last week, Ropar Deputy Commissioner Gurneet Tej had formed 23 teams of officials from different departments to check illegal mining and ordered a fresh demarcation of quarries allotted for mining of sand and gravel in the district. Following this, the lifting of material from allotted quarries was suspended.A strict checking by the police has led to impounding of 57 vehicles illegally loaded with sand and gravel. Ropar SSP Nilambari Vijay Jagdale said in the last week, seven FIRs had been registered against people involved in illegal mining.During a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner, the stone crusher owners confessed that they were forced to pay Rs 3,000 for 1,000 cubic ft material as “gunda tax”. They said nakas put up to collect the illegal tax had vanished.
To hamper construction activity
- Due to acute scarcity of mining minerals, the retail price of sand has shot up from Rs 16 per cubic ft toRs26 per cubic ft and that of gravel has gone up fromRs20 per cubic ft toRs26 per cubic ft.
KP Singh elected Speaker
Speaker Rana KP Singh administers oath to former CM Parkash Singh Badal and SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal in the Assembly on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan
Rajmeet Singh
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
Three-time Congress MLA from Anandpur Sahib Rana Kanwar Pal Singh (59) was unanimously elected the Speaker of the 15th Punjab Vidhan Sabha today.After Parliamentary Affairs Minister Brahm Mohindra, Rana becomes the second most prominent Hindu face in the party to be elected on an important constitutional post.Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh proposed the name of the lawyer-turned-politician for the post of Speaker. Brahm Mohindra seconded him.As soon as the Chief Minister proposed KP Singh’s name, MLAs of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and its ally — the Lok Insaaf Party — started raising slogans and staged a walkout, demanding a debate on the Governor’s Address scheduled for March 28.Akali-BJP MLAs led by SAD Deputy Leader Ajit Singh Kohar and former minister Bikram Singh Majithia, did not join the AAP-led protest.Former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and former Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal were conspicuous by their absence from the House on the second day of the session. They were also absent on the first day on March 24.After KP Singh was elected Speaker, Capt Amarinder, Kohar and BJP MLA Dinesh Singh Babbu congratulated him.Kohar and BJP MLA Som Parkash said KP Singh was aware of the rules of the House. They hoped he would give space to the Opposition during debates.Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal recited Urdu couplets to praise the Speaker. Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu took potshots at AAP’s pre-poll slogan “Kejriwal Kejriwal saara Punjab tere naal”. He gave a new twist to the slogan: “Kejriwal Kejriwal aah ki ho gaye tera naal.”Brahm Mohindra said, “The government has sought time for the debate. It is not denying the Opposition the right to discuss the Governor’s Address. The government is yet to start functioning.”The Chief Minister said, “The government is open to debate on the Governor’s Address. The maiden session is necessarily a short one since the government needs to pass the vote-on-account on March 29.”
Hindu card
- After Parliamentary Affairs Minister Brahm Mohindra, Rana KP Singh becomes the second most prominent Hindu face in the party to be elected on an important constitutional post
- SAD Deputy Leader Ajit Singh Kohar and BJP MLA Som Parkash said KP Singh was aware of the rules of the House. They hoped he would give space to the Opposition during debates
Sidhu special
- Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu took potshots at AAP’s pre-poll slogan “Kejriwal Kejriwal saara Punjab tere naal”. He gave a new twist to the slogan: “Kejriwal Kejriwal aah ki ho gaye tera naal.
HC wants state to appoint nodal officers
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 27
The Punjab and Haryana High Court today directed the States of Punjab and Haryana, along with the Chandigarh Administration, to appoint “nodal officers” to report on all orders passed by the Bench from time to time in a drug menace case.The Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Sudip Ahluwalia also made it clear that the officers to be appointed were required to be not below the level of Additional Chief Secretary in Punjab and Haryana, and the seniormost secretary in Chandigarh.The Bench also sought details of the steps initiated for the extradition of accused from foreign lands. During the course of hearing, the Bench made it clear that the drug manufacturing units were required to be proceeded against. Till such units were made non-operational, efforts to curb the menace was a mere eyewash, the Bench was of the opinion.The court, in fact, asked the Union Ministry of External Affairs and the Central Bureau of Investigation to furnish details regarding the action taken against those involved in international drug peddling.The pending “court on its own motion” case has its origin in a plea filed by Tarlochan Singh through counsel Navkiran Singh.
Jhaloor land row: 7 farmer outfits on strike, officers stuck in offices
Farmers stage a protest in front of the DC’s office in Sangrur on Monday. Tribune photo
Parvesh Sharma
Tribune News Service
Sangrur, March27
Demanding the arrest of all accused who attacked Dalit Gurdev Kaur in Jhaloor village and Joginder Singh Ugrahan in Kohriya, Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU-Ugrahan) and six other unions today started an indefinite protest in front of DC office here.Protesters have locked all three gates of the complex and many senior officers, including ADC and SDM, are stuck inside.Fearing some mischief to thwart their protest, groups of farmers have been standing guard with staff’s to prevent the of entry stray animals and outsiders inside.“Many months after the death of Gurdev Kaur, out of total 33 accused, only five have been arrested. The accused tried to attack the BKU chief in Kohriya but action has been taken,” alleged Mukesh Malaud, district chief of Zameen Prapati Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC). The participating outfits are BKU Ekta Ugraha, ZPSC, Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union, Kirti Kisan Union, Krantikari Mazdoor Union, BKU Krantikari and Pendu Mazdoor Union.The protesters alleged that Sangrur police was helping the accused, who are roaming free in villages and threatening Dalits to withdraw their complaints in Jhaloor village incident, registered after a clash between landlords and Dalits on October 05, 2016 over the possession of village common land reserved for Dalits. “We have come prepared and would only lift our protest after all the accused are behind bars,” said Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of the union.Women protesters started preparing food in the evening after creating a temporary oven near the protest site. “We have all the material with us to prepare food for three-four days. Milk too would be supplied in the morning and evenings” said Manjit Kaur, a woman busy in the langar.“I, along with SDM and other officers with staff members are still inside the office and trying to convince protesters to open the gates,” said Poonamdeep Kaur, ADC. SSP Inderbir Singh said that senior police officers were conducting meetings with protesters to resolve the matter.
