From today, I belong to all, not any political party: Speaker

Srinagar, Nov 4: In his maiden speech as the Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Monday, Abdul Rahim Rather said that he would not represent any political party in the House and that he belongs to all – treasury as well as the opposition benches.

Addressing the House after Lieutenant Governor (LG) Manoj Sinha's address, the Speaker in his first speech after being chosen as the custodian of the house said that he would not play any partisan role and prove through his actions that this house would operate in a fair and unbiased manner.

“From today, I have no political party. I belong to all of you. I will not listen to the dictation from any side. I will be guided solely by the rules,” he said.

Rather said that in his 40 years of parliamentary life, he had never violated rules, nor had any action been taken against him by the Speaker. “Even when I was the Leader of the Opposition, I did not misuse my position,” he said.

Rather assured the house that he would act impartially saying that he had remained associated with the National Conference (NC) for the past 50 years and had been a member of the Central Working Committee for 45 years.

“I will demonstrate through my actions that I am an impartial Speaker,” he said. Rather urged the members to uphold the sanctity and dignity of the house and expressed hope that he would not have to use his powers against legislators to ensure the smooth functioning of the legislature.

The Speaker thanked the leader of the house and all the members of the assembly for electing him unanimously.

“I am sincerely grateful for being chosen for this position. I am aware that a high position comes with great responsibility. I will strive to meet your expectations,” he said.

Rather said that the words coming from the treasury benches and the opposition parties would resonate beyond the house if all the members maintained dignity.

“The time of the house is precious and I urge members to use it wisely. We must exercise restraint in our words and make judicious use of the house’s time. A constructive approach should be adopted in the behaviour and work of this house and its committees,” he said. Rather asked the members that their actions and words should be guided by the impact they have on the common people.

“Members should hold the government accountable, but in doing so, they should avoid unnecessary ridicule of ministers or officials,” he said. Rather said that as Speaker he was the guardian of the house and the rights of the legislators.

“I will support you in holding the government and bureaucracy accountable. I request ministers to come prepared and legislators to be well-prepared too,” the Speaker said.

“If I feel that any member is not doing justice with supplementary questions, I will need to intervene. It has become a trend that a lot of time is wasted on unruly scenes in the house,” he said.

The Speaker warned that he had the power to take action, ranging from suspension to disqualification.

“I hope I won’t have to resort to any such actions,” the Speaker said. He urged the members to rise above the party lines and resolve to build the Jammu and Kashmir of our dreams, where education is universal, no one sheds tears, and communal harmony prevails everywhere.

“Since J&K was downgraded to a union territory by the parliament under the Reorganisation Act, the rules for conducting the business of any assembly are to be made by this assembly,” Rather said. “This cannot be done overnight or in 10 days. It will take time. However, the act has a provision allowing us to use the rules of the previous assembly with some amendments, and the power to make these amendments rests with the Speaker.”

He said that they would soon amend those rules and work on creating new ones.