Sonia Gandhi at International Parliamentary Conference, 23 Jan 2003

International Parliamentary Conference
Second Session: "Parliamentary Practices and Procedures: Need for Reforms to Secure Greater Executive Accountability Key-note Address by Leader of Opposition (Lok Sabha)
23-01-2003
Hon'ble Speaker, Distinguished Guests Excellencies

Friends,
Although this is the second day of this Conference, let me take the opportunity of once again greeting and welcoming all of you on this historic occasion.

We are meeting against the background of a grave crisis not only in West Asia but also in Northeast Asia. Parliamentarians everywhere have a special responsibility to strengthen the forces of dialogue, peace and amity in these troubled times. The IPU has a crucial role to play at this juncture. The need for multilateralism has never been as great and urgent as it is now.
The distinguished speakers at the inaugural session yesterday spoke extensively on parliamentary democracy in India. This democracy has flowered and flourished. I will not be exaggerating if I say that there are no precedents in history for a democracy of over a billion people living in a society of the greatest diversities and varieties. In a multi-religious, multi-linguistic, multi-ethnic and multi-regional society without a parallel anywhere, parliamentary democracy is an established vehicle not just for representation but also an instrument for empowerment. The record of a relatively young Indian nation-state in managing this bewildering array of diversities, admittedly amidst trials and tribulations, is one of the major achievements of contemporary times that has great lessons for rest of the world as well. The credit for this must inevitably go to the structure of our democratic fabric carefully designed and handed down to us by our founding fathers, individuals of exceptional ability and unusual acumen moulded into a team by Mahatma Gandhi. They drew inspiration from our Freedom Movement, from our unique cultural heritage and the values that put both tolerance and high¬ minded ideals at centre-stage. Today, it is only appropriate to recall their vision and in particular that of India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru whose single greatest contribution was to make that vision a living reality and consolidate the foundations of our parliamentary democracy.
As we all know, there are different models of democracy in general and of parliamentary democracy in particular. India, broadly speaking, opted for the Westminster model. We also drew upon other Constitutions. Over the past five decades, we have made the necessary- adjustments to suit our conditions, changing times, contemporary challenges and bearing in mind the evolution of our pluralistic polity and society. Our written Constitution, the longest and most detailed in the world, put together under the enlightened leadership of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, has proved to be remarkably resilient and flexible. The institutions created by our Constitution have ensured that parliamentary democracy provides the framework within which all our peoples' voices are heard and their aspirations pursued.
Historically, our parliamentary democracy has been viewed largely in terms of a national Parliament and assemblies in the states. Over the past decade, a third layer has re-emerged in India's villages, towns and cities. Elected rural and urban self-government bodies are imparting a whole new dimension to our democratic edifice. You will be interested to know that there is affirmative action in the form of quotas for women in these institutions. This was largely due to the untiring efforts of our late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. As a result, as our Vice President mentioned yesterday, of the approximately 3 million elected representatives that we have at the grassroots, over a million are women. I might add that we, as women have been trying for sometime for Parliament to pass a Legislation giving us 33% seats. We have not succeeded yet. But we shall continue to pursue the matter. The nature and character of our parliamentary democracy is undergoing a significant transformation as local bodies become more vibrant and assertive. How to have a strong Centre, strong states, and strong local self-government institutions deriving strength and sustenance from each other is one of the greatest political challenges that we face as we complete the first half-century of parliamentary democracy in our country.
This morning our session is on reforms in Parliamentary practices and procedures to enforce greater accountability on the executive. Now, it is one of the ironies of parliamentary democracy that where you stand depends on where you sit - a party discovers the need for a strong and effective executive when it is in power and for a strong and effective legislature when it is out of office. How to maintain consistency and yet offer to the people a real choice and alternative is something that all of us have to grapple with.
The link between legislation and executive accountability has been pre¬occupying us for quite some time. Many of our state governments, for example, have passed Freedom of Information Acts, to make the functioning of the administration more transparent and accountable. In some states, civil society organizations are using these legislative provisions to demand answers and responses from the executive.
We have also experimented with the committee system that was first introduced in 1993. Our Parliament, for instance, has 17 specialised committees that meet regularly to review government programmes and policies, to interact with the executive, to get feedback and advice from independent experts and professionals and to serve as a forum to question the government of the day. I hope there will be a discussion on how best the effectiveness of the committee system can be further enhanced.
In any parliamentary democracy, Question Hour is a period when members get the opportunity to question the executive. I am aware that there is a cynical view that Question Hour provides excellent training for civil servants to say a lot without conveying much, to say the truth while being bland with facts. Our experience sometimes does bear this out but that does not mean that we abandon Question Hour. In fact, I myself feel that an hour is insufficient and there is clearly a need for increasing its span.
Then there is Zero Hour, that uniquely Indian parliamentary practice, that comes naturally to us since India invented and gave the world Zero itself! This gives members a chance to raise local and national issues they consider important with the permission of the presiding officers. It is true that very often lung power is in full display between 12 noon and 1 pm that too in an amazing variety of languages. I might tell you that in our Parliament, there are 18 official languages and members can choose to speak in any one of them, of course, with prior permission from the Chair. But again my view is that both Question Hour and Zero Hour, if given proper structure and if managed well, have great potential to keep the executive on its toes.
A certain amount of confrontation and an adversarial relationship between the executive and the Opposition is inevitable in any parliamentary democracy. However, if Parliament is to evolve into a mechanism for sustaining a consensus, then the executive itself has to take its Parliamentary obligations and responsibilities in an accommodating spirit of give and take. Jawaharlal Nehru himself set an example in this regard and no aspect of Parliament's functioning, big or small, escaped his personal attention and involvement. He was responsive not only to members of his own Party but also to the demands of the Opposition believing as he did that the Opposition has as much a role to play in the functioning of parliamentary democracy as the executive. Speaking in the very first session of Parliament, he said and I quote : "Parliamentary democracy demands many virtues. It demands, of course, ability. It demands a certain devotion to work. But it demands also a large measure of cooperation, of self¬discipline and restraint." Unquote.
In recent years, parliaments everywhere have come in for criticism and have, at times, invited certain cynicism, even indifference. It is a phenomenon not peculiar to India only. It cannot be denied that there has been an erosion of Parliamentary authority. Indeed, the larger public image of Parliament has suffered as its deliberations, more often than not, end up generating more heat than light. Increasingly, people themselves are demanding that Parliament becomes not just a forum for discussion but also a force for action. People have come to expect more than stirring and eloquent speeches and sharp interventions. We have to respond effectively to these new demands and heightened expectations. It is true that at times speed is of the essence and there may well be occasions when the executive has to press ahead. But as long as a parliamentary democracy is in place, executive action has to be sensitive to parliamentary imperatives. This calls for both formal and informal channels of consultation and communication between the executive and Parliament at all times.
To enforce greater accountability on the executive, members of parliament have to be fully informed. Research and documentation facilities available to them must be up-to-date. New information and communications technologies make this possible and their widespread use is a pre-requisite for transparency and for making the executive even more alert. Throwing open all Parliamentary proceedings to the electronic media could also enable the system to be more open and ensure better preparedness on the part of all concerned. Ultimately, the manner in which Presiding Officers themselves manage Parliamentary institutions will determine how accountable the executive will be.
Our theme has many dimensions and I have touched upon only a few of them. I am sure that as we proceed this morning, many more ideas would come up.
Finally, I would like to say that the presence of so many of you, particularly from the developing world, is most reassuring and satisfying. India is a country where social diversities are celebrated and where economic development is robust. Both are a consequence of our deep and abiding commitment to parliamentary democracy.

Thank you all once again for joining us in these celebrations.