The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : MLCs seek 5 p.c. ministerial quota

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Friday, Jul 27, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

MLCs seek 5 p.c. ministerial quota

Special Correspondent

V.R. Sudarshan

Bangalore: Several MLCs on Thursday demanded that five per cent of ministerial berths should be reserved for members of the Upper House.

Participating in a discussion on Governor T. N. Chaturvedi’s address to the Legislative Council on the occasion of its centenary, V.R. Sudarshan (Congress) suggested the idea, which was endorsed by several others.

He said the delimitation process should be extended to Council constituencies also. Some districts had two members in the Council, while some others were left with no representation. All districts should get representation in the Council, he said.

He expressed dissatisfaction over the delay in filling vacancies of nominated members of the House.

Leader of the House D.H. Shankaramurthy suggested that it would be better to have a law to prevent nominations from being delayed.

Chandrashekar Kambar (nominated) suggested that an exclusive television channel should be set up for the live telecast of the proceedings of the House. He cautioned against entrusting the telecast to private TV channels and said “the electronic media as such is mischievous. They will show some member who is taking a nap in the House instead of focussing on a member who is presenting important views on a subject of public importance,” he said.

‘Mukhyamantri’ Chandru (BJP) countered this view by saying that there was nothing wrong in showing someone sleeping as it would goad members to stay alert.

Dr. Kambar expressed concern over the plight of university education in the State and remarked that “we are pushing our universities backward. Students will be in a better position to face global competition if they are made to appear for the Postgraduate Common Entrance Test for admission to postgraduate courses,” he said in an obvious reference to the decision to suspend the PGCET.

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