Assam legislators going mum in House

BY Our Staff Reporter

Guwahati, Dec 13: Assam legislators are running short of questions to be raised in the State Assembly, it seems.

A total of 70 questions - 20 starred and 50 unstarred - are allowed per day in the House.

During the five-day winter session of the assembly that concluded on Friday, there were just 209 unstarred questions, 41 less than the permitted limit. On the first day, there were 41 unstarred questions, one the second 47, on the third 44, and 49 and 28 on the fourth and concluding days respectively.

While the MLAs were eager to take potshots at each other, and ever ready to give sound bites before TV cameras --- but once inside the House, a curious diffidence seemed to seize them and they went mum.

When legislators should be taking the government to task with volleys of questions on its functioning, they are found to ask far fewer questions than the rules of the House mandate.