New Delhi, Aug 31 The Vice President of India, M. Venkiah Naidu, on Tuesday delivered the inaugural Pranab Mukherjee Memorial Lecture.
During his speech, Naidu crtiicised the disruptions in the Parliament and said that dysfunctional legislatures disrupt the lives of the people and dreams of the nation, as he called for people's campaign to influence the conduct of 5,000 elected representatives in different legislatures.
Naidu said that protests in the legislative chambers should not breach the dignity and decorum of the House, adding that Constitutionalism checks the arbitrariness of the governments by ensuring wider stakeholder consultations.
"Dysfunctional legislatures prevent the much-desired wider consultations before making of laws and framing of policies. Such disruptions negate the principle of accountability of the executive to the legislature, thereby promoting the tendency of arbitrariness, which Constitutionalism seeks to checkmate," he said.
"Protesting against the omissions and commissions of the governments on the floor of the legislatures is the the right of the legislators. But the emotional underpinnings of such protests should not cross the limits of decency and decorum that mark parliamentary democracy. To ensure this, I have been advocating that 'let the government propose, the opposition oppose and the House dispose'," Naidu said.
Referring to the over 50 years of active public life of Pranab Mukherjee and his contributions in various capacities, including as a Union minister for 21 years, and his meteoric rise from being an upper division clerk to becoming the President of India, Naidu described the late leader as 'the envy of every aspiring politician, but the pride of the nation'.
Describing the Constitution of India as a profound statement of socio-economic objectives to be realised pursuing the path of participatory democracy, the Vice President stressed that "it is necessary to give voice to every citizen in governance which is democracy all about, and to ensure the benefits of development for all, which is inclusive growth all about. Only strict adherence to Constitutionalism can ensure real democracy and inclusive growth".
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