MAPUSA
The Goa Legislative Assembly faced significant disruptions for the second consecutive day as the treasury benches and the Opposition clashed over the alleged disrespect to the Speaker’s chair.
The entire Question Hour session was disrupted, but both sides eventually decided to bury the hatchet for the sake of governance and respect for the Speaker’s position.
When the House reconvened for Zero Hour, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced that the government would close the matter to prioritise the interests of the people, while emphasising the Speaker's authority.
"The Speaker of the House is supreme, and no one should question his authority," Sawant stated.
He clarified that disrupting the Question Hour was not the government’s intention.
"Considering the sentiments of the Leader of the Opposition and member Vijai Sardesai, we are closing this chapter here," he said.
Earlier, Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao appealed to the Speaker and the House, asserting that Congress MLA Altone D’Costa had the highest regard for the Speaker’s chair.
"In the interest of the people, we should put an end to this disruption of Question Hour and move forward," Alemao urged.
Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai supported this sentiment, highlighting the need to prevent setting a negative precedent.
"We have lost two days of Question Hour. With a large heart, you should forget the issue. We should not set a wrong precedent in the House," Sardesai appealed.
The confrontation began at the start of day two of the Assembly session when Sawant demanded clarification from Congress MLA Altone D’Costa for allegedly insulting the Speaker.
Sawant stressed the importance of respecting the Speaker’s chair, stating, "It is the question of respect for the Speaker’s chair. We do not want to take the matter to the Privilege Committee because he (Altone) is a member of the House. The House is supreme. We respect all the members of the House. The MLA concerned should apologise to the Speaker."
In response, D’Costa clarified that he had not insulted Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar or the chair.
"A ruling MLA has moved a resolution against me. Send it to the Privilege Committee. I will reply to the chairman and if I am found guilty, I am ready to face any consequences," D’Costa asserted.
Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar emphasised the responsibility of every member to uphold the sanctity of the House.
"It is not an issue related to Ramesh Tawadkar but of the chair. The MLA should hold back his ego," Tawadkar stated.
Sardesai compared the treasury benches' demand to mob justice, questioning the fairness of the majority’s pressure on the opposition.
"It is like a majority of over 30 MLAs asking seven MLAs in the opposition to kneel down. Why don’t you follow the procedure instead of setting a wrong precedent?" Sardesai asked.
The session descended into chaos with both sides maintaining their hard stances.
Speaker adjourned the House for half an hour amidst the commotion.
When the House reconvened, the situation remained unchanged, leading to another adjournment and the washing away of the entire Question Hour for the second consecutive day.