Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta expressed regret over Leader of the Opposition Atishi’s absence from the legislative proceedings. Gupta condemned Atishi’s party MLAs for speaking ill of the Chair following the suspension of four AAP MLAs by the House. In response to Atishi’s email requesting the revocation of the suspension, Gupta highlighted that as the Leader of the Opposition, it was inappropriate for her to blame the Chair and the House for her party members’ actions.
Gupta emphasized that the suspended Members should apologize for their actions and repent. He refuted Atishi’s allegations of authoritarian conduct, stating that the current House under his Chairmanship has been more tolerant towards the Opposition compared to previous years. However, he stressed that tolerance should not impede the smooth functioning of House proceedings.
The Speaker recounted the events leading to the suspension of the four AAP MLAs, noting that the decision was made by the House and could only be reversed by the House. Despite his advice for Atishi to attend the sittings, she chose to abstain and blame the House and the Speaker. Gupta also referenced a past incident where Atishi had made objectionable remarks and left the House, failing to attend subsequent sittings despite requests from the Chair.
