K’taka assembly speaker flags lack of answers to MLAs’ questions, walks out

SJohn orley allen tate legislative assemblage verbaliser UT Khader on mon adjourned the session and walked come out of the House after expressing displeasure over the government’s failure to provide written responses to questions submitted by legislators during the ongoing budget session.The disruption followed complaints from opposition members that a large number of unstarred questions raised by MLAs had not received replies from the concerned departments. When the matter was taken up in the House, state home minister G Parameshwara tabled written responses to 84 questions out of the 230 unstarred questions that had been submitted across departments including revenue, housing, public works and animal husbandry.Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka pointed out that replies had been provided to fewer than half the unstarred questions over the past several days of the session.Khader said he had repeatedly instructed the government to ensure that answers were furnished on time but had seen little improvement. “This session is not meant for ministers. It is meant for legislators who meet once in three months to raise issues concerning their constituencies,” he said. “Only 15 starred questions are taken up during Question Hour. If a majority of unstarred questions go unanswered, why should members come to the House?”He reminded the government that he had issued directions from the Chair multiple times seeking compliance.Stating that the repeated instructions had not resulted in any change, Khader said the ministers and the concerned departmental secretaries would have to explain the lapse. “Until the ministers and the concerned secretaries explain this lapse, I will not run this House,” he said before adjourning the proceedings.Opposition members said the Speaker had cautioned the government on the issue several times earlier in the session. Last week he had warned ministers that his soft tone should not be mistaken for weakness while urging them to ensure that replies were provided promptly.On Friday, only 50 responses were submitted for 133 unstarred questions, prompting criticism from Bharatiya Janata Party members in the House. Ashoka had also mocked the administration, asking whether senior officials were “busy playing golf and spending time in clubs” instead of assisting ministers in preparing replies.Following the adjournment, Khader held a meeting with chief minister Siddaramaiah, senior ministers and officials from various departments to address the issue.When the House reconvened about an hour later, Khader informed members that the government had assured him that replies would be provided within the prescribed time.Later in the day, Parameshwara said the chief minister had instructed principal secretaries of all departments to issue notices to officials responsible for delays and to suspend those who had kept a large number of replies pending. “The government has taken this seriously and will ensure that this is not repeated,” he said.Ashoka, however, said ministers should also be held accountable for the lapses. In a post on X, he described the adjournment as a “murder of democracy,” calling the episode an unprecedented failure of the government to respond to legislators’ questions.Senior BJP legislator S Suresh Kumar said the development appeared to be without precedent in the state’s legislative history. He recalled that a comparable interruption had occurred in 1995, when then- speaker KR Ramesh Kumar adjourned the Assembly during a Janata Dal government after an allegation was made against the chief minister, warning that proceedings would not continue until the matter was substantiated.