Ministries can’t say no to questions
Directive states that it would be mandatory for ministries to furnish answers
New Delhi: Intending to make ministries and departments more accountable to the Parliament, the Lok Sabha Secretariat has issued a directive suggesting that they cannot deny members a reply on the pretext that their questions do not involve the larger public interest.
The directive states that it would be mandatory for ministries to furnish answers and the Speaker will have the sole right to decide on the issue of public and national interest.
The Lok Sabha Secretariat directive said a question should not be “disallowed on the sole plea” of the ministries or departments that it is not in the “public interest” to give information on the floor of the House.
“It is always open to a minister to state in his reply to a question that he/she is not prepared to disclose the information in public interest and it is for the House to accept it,” the advisory said, adding that the Speaker, “only in rare cases, can disallow a question” in the larger national interest.
The note suggested that the Speaker would take the decision only “if the matter is brought to the notice of the Chair by the minister concerned that the disclosure of information will be prejudicial to safety of the state.”