'No plan to change form of govt'
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Dec 8 — The Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee today categorically stated that government had no intention of switching over to the Presidential form of government.

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, the Prime Minister dismissed as "too far-fetched" the allegations of Mr Gurudas Dasgupta (CPI) that the government was trying to amend the Constitution for this purpose. Mr Vajpayee said the member might have made such allegations under political compulsions but the government had no intention to switch over to the Presidential form. He also refuted the Opposition charge that Parliament sittings were also being curtailed.

Mr Vajpayee did not agree with Mr Dasgupta’s observation that the Centre was trying to switch over to the Presidential form of government under the garb of reviewing the Constitution.

Intervening in an hour-long discussion on curtailment of Parliament sittings, he said "We are not afraid of facing Parliament and do not intend to reduce the number of days of the session."

If the House agrees we can sit on Saturdays or even extend the winter session beyond Christmas holidays to complete business," he said.

The issue was raised by Mr Das Gupta through a special mention on delay in calling of winter session and reduction in the number of days for the session. Several members, cutting across party lines expressed concern over gradual reduction of the sittings and demanded immediate steps to reverse the trend.

Sharing the members' concern, the House Chairman, Mr Krishan Kant, said the general purposes committee would meet tomorrow when the issues raised by them would be deliberated upon.

Agreeing that the number of sittings should not be reduced, Mr Vajpayee said "our intentions are very clear" and attributed the present situation to a number of factors, particularly November 25 assembly elections in four states.

He said his government would like Parliament to sit for 120 days a year and added that if the Business Advisory Committee recommended that both Houses should sit beyond Christmas, we are ready."

The Prime Minister said it was not proper for Parliament’s Standing Committees to take longer time in finalising their recommendations. "In such a case, a situation arises when there is no work before Parliament," he said and added that if the committees worked fast, Parliament would have a lot of business before it.

When a member complained that even if the committees submitted their recommendations in time, the government delayed filing of the action taken report (ATR), Mr Vajpayee assured the House that his government would expedite the ATR.

Earlier, raising the issue, Mr Dasgupta said the current session had commenced 15 days after the normal schedule. While 35 Bills were pending in the Rajya Sabha, 11 of them were before the Lower House, he said and expressed concern over the rise in the number of ordinances.