Hamid Ansari expresses worry over functioning of Parliament

Ruing that not much time is allotted for debates and discussions in Parliament, former vice-president Hamid Ansari Saturday expressed worry over its functioning, terming it "inefficient".

Speaking at the launch of 'Every Vote Counts' by former chief election commissioner Navin Chawla, Ansari said that while during the 1950s and 1970s Parliament would meet 90 to 100 days a year, today it was meeting 60-65 days.

He said the end product of elections is reflected in a set of institutions, which he and many other citizens worried about.

"These institutions are elected bodies...headed by Parliament, state assemblies and down the line village panchayats...are they functioning is the question? My answer is that they are functioning very inefficiently," Ansari said.

"The time available for Parliament of India to do its assigned work has been reduced by 80-90 per cent. The job of Parliament is to hold the executive accountable...on a daily basis," he said.

He said accountability is through questions being asked, discussions on public matter and expressing views on the legislative issues brought by the ruling party.

He said the reason for debating legislation, before approving it, is that people from different walks of life discuss what a particular piece of legislation will do in actual practice.

"Now, if it is not debated or is passed in a hurry as is being happening quite frequently, then where is the scrutiny? Scrutiny is being done partially and sometimes not at all," Ansari said.

He also expressed worry over the loss of the Question Hour in Parliament and said the jury is out if India has the "substance" of a democracy.