Chandigarh, December 29
Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Partap Singh Bajwa, has written a strongly worded letter to Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan, expressing grave concern over what he described as the systematic undermining of the Vidhan Sabha through the substitution of regular legislative sessions with selectively curated Special Sessions.
In his letter, Bajwa said he had repeatedly drawn attention to the alarming reduction in the number of sittings of the House, but these warnings had been met with indifference. He cautioned that what was unfolding was not a minor procedural lapse, but a serious constitutional distortion that strikes at the very core of legislative democracy.
Emphasising that the Vidhan Sabha exists to deliberate, question, scrutinise and hold the Executive accountable, Bajwa said the calculated replacement of regular Autumn and Winter Sessions with Special Sessions was hollowing out the Legislature. Legislative time is shrinking, scrutiny is being evaded, and the House is increasingly being reduced to a stage-managed spectacle rather than a genuine forum of democratic accountability, he noted.
Bajwa said it was particularly disturbing that this erosion was being carried out by a government whose leadership, especially the AAP leadership, had long claimed the moral high ground on constitutional values, separation of powers and institutional integrity. “Those who once lectured the nation on constitutional morality are today presiding over a model that weakens the Legislature and concentrates power in the Executive,” he stated.
Recalling that the demand for a minimum of 40 sittings annually, as mandated under the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business, was once forcefully raised by the very forces now in power, Bajwa said that principle had been quietly abandoned. He warned that the growing reliance on Special Sessions—often devoid of meaningful Question Hour, Zero Hour and substantive debate—has turned the Assembly into a controlled messaging platform driven by optics rather than accountability.
“At a time when Punjab faces serious challenges including deteriorating law and order, the drug menace, stress on public health, groundwater contamination and rising debt”, said Bajwa, while adding that the House should be in continuous and serious session, not reduced to political theatrics. Urging Speaker Sandhwan to act as the constitutional custodian of the House, Bajwa called for convening full Autumn and Winter Sessions, ensuring at least 40 sittings annually, and protecting Question Hour and Zero Hour from dilution. “Only by restoring the primacy of the Legislature can the Vidhan Sabha remain the true forum of the people’s will,” he asserted.
