The council member of Gasa, MP Dorji Khandu will be suspended from the deliberations and adoption of the Pay Structure Reform Bill of Bhutan 2022. This is following an issue that arose in the House between the Chairperson and the MP while deliberating on the Pay Structure Reform Bill. The Chairperson dismissed the MP from the session today.
When discussing the section on the house rent allowance, MP Dorji Khandu proposed to increase the allowance to at least Nu 5,500 from Nu 3,500 for position level S and below. With no member supporting his recommendation, the house adopted the house rent allowance as in the bill.
He again spoke about this when the Chairperson asked for views from the members on the next section. Since the section was on communication allowance, the Chairperson tried to stop the MP. However, the MP argued that the House is the platform where issues like this should be raised. This led to his dismissal halfway through the sitting.
According to the Chairperson, it is the responsibility of the chairperson to maintain order in the House. The chairperson said he had to send out the MP as he was not listening to take his seat when asked to. According to the chairperson, the decisions were taken in line with relevant rules and acts.
Section 42 of the Legislative Rules of Procedure of the National Council states that the Chairperson should preserve the dignity and decorum in the National Council Hall and maintain discipline among members.
The next section says when the chairperson is of the opinion that a member is deliberately contravening the provisions of these Rules, that a member is in contempt of or is disregarding the authority of the chairperson or that a member’s conduct is grossly disorderly, the member shall be made to leave the National Council Hall, immediately.
Meanwhile, the MP said he was trying to link the two sections to get his message through to other members.
“I was trying to say that no one is supporting the poor by increasing the HR allowance whereas they are supporting the committee’s recommendation to provide a communication allowance. But before I could complete my sentence, I was asked to sit down. I also did not know what to do. I might have acted not in line with the legislative rules of procedure. If so, it is also my fault. If I was permitted to speak, the issue would not have arisen. We have the tendency to answer and react before listening to the other person and understanding them,” he said.
According to sources, the Council notified the MP of his suspension. Tomorrow, the council will deliberate on a few sections before the adoption of the Bill. A few sections were given back to the committee today for review.
Kinley Dem
Edited by Sonam
