Public trust in Parliament depends on MP's conduct: Mahajan

The trust of the people in Parliament depends on the responsible conduct of the elected representatives, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said today.
"Public trust in Parliament is rooted in its openness, transparency, accessibility and responsible conduct of the representatives of people," she said.
Mahajan's remarks came a day after Tamil Nadu assembly witnessed chaos over trust vote to the Edappadi K Palaniswami government inthe state.
With its power to make laws, sanction the Budget and keep an oversight over the actions of the Executive, Parliament holds an important position in the development process, she said at the valedictory session of South-Asian Speakers Summit on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Summit, organised jointly by Indian Parliament and Inter-Parliamentary Union, was attended by the Speakers from National Assemblies of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bangladesh.
Mahajan said the Summit has been an effort to synergise the energy and potential of Parliament and Parliamentarians, to achieve the SDGs.

"I am glad that this Summit deliberated threadbare the issue of gender inequality as a barrier in the way of achieving SDGs," she added.
Stating that climate change has emerged as a major challenge, Mahajan said the need of the hour is to look for meticulous, integrated and networked solutions.
She also said that during the two-day Summit many useful suggestions have emerged to deal with the challenge of the climate change and natural disasters.

"I am sure this Summit has been a platform to reinforce our bonding towards making this region move towards our collective goals," she said, adding India will host a regional consultation on SDG indicators and South Asia, later this year.