Assembly session begins today, eyes on Jan Lokpal

Delhi govt likely to raise issue of full statehood too

The first two-day session of the new Delhi Assembly begins on Monday amid expectations of the Arvind Kejriwal government raising the issues of Jan Lokpal and full statehood for the city and sending proposals on these matters to the central government.

The issue of women safety, in the backdrop of the rape of a woman from an African nation, and the registration of police cases against two AAP legislators over alleged rioting are also expected to rock the proceedings of the 70-member House – which has just three BJP legislators in the opposition.

AAP legislator Choudhury Fateh Singh will first be administered the oath of pro-tem speaker of the sixth Delhi Legislative Assembly by Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung. He will later take up the process of oath-taking by the legislators.

On the second day, the legislators are likely to elect AAP’s Shahdara MLA Ram Niwas as the Speaker. Shalimar Bagh MLA Bandana Kumari it tipped to be the Deputy Speaker.

Besides the reading of an address by Jung to the House, there are chances of the Kejriwal government trying to raise the issue of a Jan Lokpal bill and a full statehood bill in the first sitting itself.

Sources in the AAP said Kejriwal wants to send a strong message that his government is serious about bringing in the anti-corruption law which was drafted during the Anna Hazare agitation in the city in 2011.

“Jan Lokpal Bill is an important issue over which Kejriwal quit the last time,” said an AAP leader.
This is the reason that the passing of the anti-corruption law is listed as the first item on the list of 70 poll promises made by the AAP.

A leader said the draft of the statehood Bill is also ready and Kejriwal will try to introduce it in the two-day session itself.

The draft proposal talks about handing over some parts of the police functions, like traffic police, to the state government, said an AAP leader.

Floor management in the House may not be a big concern for the AAP which has 67 legislators.
The Kejriwal government is non-committal on whether it intends to give the leader of opposition position to one of the three BJP legislators.

It at all this happens, BJP legislator from Rohini Vijender Gupta, who has been elected the leader of the legislature party, is likely to get the post.

It remains to be seen if the ministers in the second government of the AAP in Delhi will repeat their decision of coming to the Assembly in public transport like the last time.

In 2014, many AAP legislators, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, had travelled to the Assembly in Metro and e-rickshaws.

Initially, there was a suggestion that the first session would be a four-day affair. But Kejriwal has now insisted on a two-day first session so that the first-time legislators could undergo some training for participating in the proceedings.

The start of the Assembly session coincides with the start of the Budget session of Parliament. It is expected that the Kejriwal government may push some financial matter, including a vote-on-account, in the first two-day sitting.
DH News Service