Enabling transparency in governance and allowing members to voice their concerns about their constituencies, most parliaments around the wo...
Enabling transparency in governance and allowing members to voice their concerns about their constituencies, most parliaments around the world are successfully conducting hybrid sessions– that is, combining virtual and physical. India’s public representatives too need to be able to put their legitimate questions to the government about public health and its management during the pandemic, among other issues, and adequately perform their parliamentary duties of being accountable to the public.
However, the modalities about holding a virtual or hybrid session are still ambiguous. The media is abuzz with speculation various methods that are likely to be adopted in the proposed monsoon session, which should have been convened by now, had the circumstances been different.
The United Kingdom parliament, touted as the mother of all parliaments, has shown the way. MPs can ask questions and hold the government accountable without endangering their health through a hybrid mode. The UK parliament has limited the number of MPs entering the Chambers to 50. The remaining members can be seated elsewhere, even in their own constituency if necessary, and are connected virtually over Zoom.
The UK parliament has exempted members from attending parliament in person in three instances – if the member is Covid-19 positive, if any of their...
