For God’s sake, do your job: President admonishes MPs

As the logjam in Parliament continued into the third week of the Winter Session, President Pranab Mukherjee -- a seven-time parliamentarian himself — came down heavily on members in both Houses and said “for God’s sake, do your job.”

His admonition came even as both Houses adjourned for the day again on Thursday amidst the Government-Opposition face off on demonetization. The Supplementary Demands for Grants, discussed for less than an hour in Lok Sabha, was passed in the din by a voice vote. 

Mukherjee, who was delivering the Defence Estate Day Lecture on “Reforms for a stronger Democracy”, used the opportunity to take on parliamentarians over both Houses being stalled ever since the session began on November 16. He expressed concern that disruption had become a “practice”.

“Disruption means you are gagging majority. Majority never participates in this disruption. Only minority comes to the well, shouts slogans, stops proceedings and creates a situation in which the Chair has no option For but to adjourn the House. This is totally unacceptable,” he said. There are just four sittings left of the session, which ends on December 16.

“For God’s sake, do your job. You are meant to transact business in Parliament. Disruption of Parliament is not acceptable at all,” the President said. Asking MPs to debate issues of public importance in Parliament, he said dharnas can be organised anywhere else.

With demonetization completing a month, the Opposition had organised a “black day” and held a protest at the Gandhi statue. His remarks came a day after senior BJP leader LK Advani’s outburst before parliamentary affairs minister  Ananth Kumar saying neither he nor the Speaker were running the House and that the House was running on its own.

On Thursday, Advani had a five minute meeting with Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. Sources said Advani conveyed to her that his anger was not directed at her but over the way Parliament was stalled. The Speaker, according to sources, told him that she understood his anguish. 

Advani had also spoken to Kumar on Wednesday night and told him that it was not his intention to undermine him and that he was concerned about the way things were in Parliament with a few members holding it to ransom, the sources said.

The veteran leader was also seen talking to Kumar after the House adjourned for the day on Thursday and asked if the supplementary demands for grants had been passed. 

After Advani, who is understood to have told union minister Venkaiah Naidu that if MPs did not do work, they should not draw salaries.  

Now, another BJP veteran Shanta Kumar has expressed a similar sentiment in a letter to the Speaker.  Shanta Kumar asked the Speaker to take stern disciplinary measures like suspending their salaries and allowances and even go to the extent of expelling members for the session.  He said some members were “crossing all limits”.

He said the kind of sloganeering in the well of the House was shameful and it diluted the dignity of democracy. “The entire country is concerned. Sometimes, the school children in the visitors gallery look at us and smile. What example are we setting,” he said.

The leader from Himachal Pradesh told the Speaker that she had shown a lot of patience but it was time for her to take action against members who went into the well of the house and shouted slogans despite her instructions.