Ahead of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly’s monsoon session beginning on July 28, a fresh order issued by the Speaker, Narendra Singh Tomar, has banned all forms of protests and sloganeering by legislators inside the Assembly premises. The directive, passed under Rule 94(2), prohibits MLAs from holding any demonstrations or raising slogans within the Assembly complex.

The Congress party, which had planned to raise several public-centric issues including unemployment, poor law and order, bad road conditions, and corruption during the upcoming session, has strongly opposed the move. With this ban in place, the party’s legislators will no longer be able to protest or raise their voices inside the Assembly.

Reacting to the directive, Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar alleged that the Speaker acted under pressure from the ruling government.

“Today, under pressure from the government, the Speaker has stopped legislators from protesting and raising the voice of the people inside the Assembly premises. In fact, the opposition has been continuously demanding that Assembly proceedings be made live. Instead of allowing transparency, the Speaker, under government pressure, is now preventing MLAs from even raising public issues,” said Singhar.

He also emphasised the constitutional rights of elected representatives. “It is important to remember that Article 194 of the Constitution grants special powers to legislators, which allow them to raise public interest issues in the House, express their views, and demand answers from the government. The government, which often presents false and misleading data in the Assembly, is now trying to avoid being exposed by pressuring the Speaker into issuing such orders and regulations. This is a direct attack on democracy, ” Singhar added.

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