Former Chief Minister Rajendra Rai attempted to throw the microphone at the Speaker Ambar Bahadur Bista after he tried to conduct the meeting amid obstruction from opposition parties.
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The controversy over the process of passing the government's policies and programs in the Koshi Provincial Assembly intensified on Wednesday. Former Chief Minister Rajendra Rai climbed the rostrum and tried to throw the microphone after Speaker Amber Bahadur Bista tried to conduct the meeting amid opposition parties' obstruction.
Rai, who had risen from the opposition MP's seat and reached the rostrum, tried to pull the microphone and throw it away when the dignity guards stopped him. The dignity guards then took him down from the rostrum. After the incident, Speaker Bista had urged the MPs to behave with dignity.
Opposition parties have been protesting that the policy and program was passed without giving time to register amendments in the meeting on Tuesday. After they continued their protest on Wednesday, the Speaker adjourned the meeting for half an hour.
In the previous meeting of the Provincial Assembly held on Tuesday, the government was unable to present the principles and priorities of the budget due to opposition obstruction. At the center of the controversy is the process of passing the government's annual policy and program.
According to the agenda of the sixth meeting of the ninth session of the Provincial Assembly, Chief Minister Hikmat Kumar Karki was scheduled to answer questions raised on the policy and program, and then the Speaker would present it for decision. After Chief Minister Karki answered for almost an hour, Speaker Bista presented the policy and program for decision. After the House voted 'yes', he announced that the policy and program had been passed.
However, immediately after the announcement, NCP parliamentary party leader Indra Bahadur Angbo and former Chief Minister Rai protested. They objected that the policy and program was passed without giving them an opportunity to register an amendment proposal.
Under Chapter-8 of the Provincial Assembly Rules, Rule 37 provides for the submission of an amendment proposal on the policy and program. Similarly, Rule 38(3) states that the main proposal should be presented for decision only after deciding on the amendments after the Chief Minister or Minister's response.
The opposition argues that passing policies and programs without completing the process of registering amendment proposals and making decisions is against parliamentary practice and regulations. Former Chief Minister Rai said that it has been a practice to give time for amendments since the past, and this time the Speaker has broken the established tradition.
However, even though the opposition should immediately express disagreement by saying 'no' when there is a voice vote in the parliamentary process, the opposition seemed to be silent until the approval was announced. Responding to this, Angbo said that they expected to be given time for amendments, but the approval was suddenly announced.
In political and parliamentary circles, this incident has raised questions about the role of both the ruling and opposition parties. On the one hand, the Speaker has been accused of moving forward with the process against the spirit of the regulations, while on the other hand, the opposition is being criticized for not raising 'objections' in time. The opposition party, on the other hand, has claimed that the parliamentary process has been violated and has indicated that its opposition will continue in the coming days.
