MLAs short shrift constituents

The sixth session of the 15th Punjab Vidhan Sabha was scheduled for three days. It was cut to two, out of which one was lost when the legislators rose after the obituary references, instead of reconvening to discuss the business of the House. Earlier, the tone was set by the Business Advisory Council, and the ruling party which had curtailed the session. The Opposition made customary noises, but that was it. One of the few meetings of the Punjab Legislative Assembly held this year too turned out to be a damp squib. 

What a tragedy that the forum where the affairs of the state ought to be discussed and debated before working out solutions has now been reduced to even less than a pro-forma arrangement. Unfortunately, this is hardly new. While the actors change, the script remains the same as it has been for decades. SAD and Congress governments have both been complicit in undercutting the importance of deliberations in the House. Such is the fear of facing a debate that this insidious practice has found favour among many state governments, and even at the Centre. 

Punjab faces a crisis in education and health, the two primary markers of human development. Acts of terror have shaken up citizens, cross-border interference is on the increase, agrarian distress is leading to suicides—solutions to such issues need dialogue, bipartisan agreements and action. The elected representatives of the people of the state do a great disservice to the electorate when they fail to raise issues of concern, discuss them and find solutions in the Assembly. By pushing its agenda using the strength of its majority, the Congress government showed itself in poor light and failed in its responsibility towards a democratic polity. AAP raised its voice ineffectually, and the SAD too did not highlight issues of concern to the common man. He was given short shrift,  yet again.