MLAs to get preference for rooms at Punjab Bhawan

Rajmeet Singh

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 12

The state government has decided to revise the order of precedence to allot rooms to VIPs in A block at Punjab Bhawan, Delhi.

Legislators of both the ruling and Opposition parties had raised the matter during recently concluded Budget session of the Vidhan Sabha. Terming it disrespect to the lawmakers, MLAs Gurkirat Singh Kotli, GP Singh, Parminder Singh Pinki and Barindermeet Singh Pahra had written to the Speaker to refer the matter to the Privileges Committee. They maintained that as per the protocol, the MLAs were above the chief secretary, but the staff at the Punjab Bhawan seemed to be ignorant of the fact.

Chief Secretary Karan Avtar Singh and Secretary, General Administration Alok Sekhar, who met Speaker Rana KP Singh on Thursday, are learnt to have assured the latter of doing the needful.

As per the August 1, 2007, orders, MLAs were placed last in the order of precedent and were eligible for rooms in A block only in case of vacancies. The state police chief, vigilance chief and intelligence chief were placed above the MLAs in this order.

Sources said the government had been asked to take up the pending project of constructing block C and block D, to increase the number of rooms by 20. The problem of shortage of rooms had aggravated during the recently held Delhi Assembly elections, when MLAs of the Congress and AAP were camping in the National Capital.