Don’t take up 4G, internet suspension in Kashmir: BJP MP to Shashi Tharoor

BJP MP Nishikant Dubey once again took on Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information and Technology Shashi Tharoor and asked him to cancel a scheduled meeting of the panel on the suspension of 4G and internet services in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it is sub-judice.

Dubey's letter came after Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla issued an advisory to chairmen of all parliamentary panels asking them to strictly adhere to rules and regulations while conducting committee meetings besides avoiding matters that are sub-judice.

Read: Facebook row: BJP MP requests Lok Sabha speaker to replace Shashi Tharoor as head of Parliament panel on IT

The Parliamentary panel has summoned officials of Ministry of Communications (Department of Telecommunications), Ministry of Home Affairs and the representatives of the Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir and Delhi governments on 'Suspension of Telecom Services/Internet and its Impact' on September 1.

"Since this issue is presently pending before the Supreme Court of India, any further deliberations on this would again be a violation of the relevant rules/directions as well as disregarding the recently issued advisory of the Lok Sabha Speaker," Dubey wrote to Tharoor.

Dubey had last week demanded Tharoor's removal as panel chairman after the latter announced that Facebook India officials will be summoned after a report in Wall Street Journal claimed that the social media giant looked the other way when it came to hate posts by BJP supporters, with its policy head in India Ankhi Das saying that taking action against them would impact their business interests.

Read more: Parliamentary panel on IT summons Facebook on September 2

He said the Speaker's advisory has clearly stated that the proceedings of the committee shall be treated as confidential and the panel may not take up those issues for the examination which are pending in courts. "Therefore, (I) appeal to your good-self that the sitting of the committee on information technology convened for the aforementioned purpose may be immediately revoked," he said.

"I also request you to consider not taking up those issues for deliberation in our committee which is of 'national importance' as otherwise, we would again be showing discourtesy to the desire of our Speaker...," Dubey said.

Targeting Tharoor, he said, it has been recently "experienced" that the agenda of the meetings are being decided "in front of media and camera glare/byte".

He said the subjects which have been selected by the committee after intensive deliberations have been "unfortunately put on the back burner and various small issues, which may hit the news headlines for a while and vanish immediately, are being taken up" for discussion.

This gives an impression that the panel is being used for "gaining political mileage and raising baseless controversies, one after the other", he said.

He also requested Tharoor to not take up those issues for deliberation in the committee which are of national importance as otherwise, the panel would again be showing discourtesy to the desire of the Speaker.