73 per cent first-time MLAs in Punjab to be given training in nuances of Assembly's working

Ruchika M Khanna

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Chandigarh, May 12

A generational shift in Punjab’s polity was witnessed in the recently held Punjab Assembly elections, when 85 first-timers entered the Punjab Vidhan Sabha. But two sessions of the 16th Punjab Vidhan Sabha later, the immediate need to train the first-time MLAs in the nuances of the House has been felt.

For this purpose, the Punjab Vidhan Sabha has now tied up with Parliamentary Research and Training Institute for Democracies (PRIDE), Lok Sabha Secretariat, to impart training to 73 per cent of newly elected MLAs, from across all parties.

The training will be imparted for two days by a team of experts from PRIDE, tentatively between May 31 and June 1, while a one-day training will also be held by former MLAs and MPs for the first-timers.

Of the 85 first-time MLAs, 82 are from the ruling Aam Aadmi Party, while one each is from the Congress, SAD and BJP.

Talking to The Tribune, Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan said all first-time MLAs would be asked to come for the training, so that they learned how to raise issues in the House, the rules of Vidhan Sabha; raising questions and seeking replies; learning how to maintain the dignity of the House, besides learning how to address the members by taking permission of the chair and participate in House debates.

“I would like the members to have the training before the Budget session. A team of seven to eight different subject experts from PRIDE will be conducting the three-day training module,” he said.

Though Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and his eight cabinet colleagues (who are first-time MLAs), barring Finance Minister Harpal Cheema and Education Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, will also be asked to come for the training, sources say it would not be mandatory for them.