Order, order, in the house!

A visit to the Lok Sabha's (the lower house's) live telecast is uplifting, to me at least. I was surfing channels at home as I am between jobs - I change them once in a while, you see, for a change. The cable operators – damn their lot – were on strike, post police raids for showing movies with explicit content. Their contention is that the channels should be raided and not the cable operators. This, when they are the ones showing adult movies in the late night segment.

I wouldn’t comment on the goings on witnessed in the lower house of the Parliament for fear of “lowering the dignity of the house.” But I will venture to mention this. Our representatives need a crash course in deportment and gentlemanly behavior. Why do they all have to stand up and speak at the same time?

Somnath Chatterjee the speaker was saying, “Nothing will be recorded,” again and again and was seen trying to pacify the unruly elements who kept walking around as if it was their own private room. Through all this Sonia Gandhi sat stoically silent.

I have seen the British Parliament in action and there is a line marked on the floor in between the ruling and opposition benches. And, these benches are close together, and not very far apart. Imagine! No matter how much they heatedly debate issues, if they cross that line marked on the floor they are punished by being banned from the house – I don’t know for how long.

Considering the mayhem I have seen in our houses (they uproot mikes and fling them at the opposition), I dread to think what would have happened if the British form of seating and debating was adopted here. The nearest hospitals would have had steady stream of VIP visitors every day.
Tags: Lok Sabha, Sonia Gandhi, Somnath Chatterjee, lower house, Parliament, VIP