By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, August 24, 2018: The Cabinet headed by Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday endorsed a proposal for setting up a Legislative Council in the state.

A proposal in this regard was approved at the Cabinet meeting here presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Parliamentary Affairs Minister B K Aarukha told reporters.

“It was a long-standing demand to have an upper house in Odisha. The state government has constituted a committee in January 2015 that visited four states to examine style of functioning of the council. The committee submitted its report recently which the cabinet accepted,” parliamentary affairs minister Bikram Keshari Arukh told reporters.

A resolution will be brought in the monsoon session of the Odisha Legislative Assembly beginning from September 4 for formation of Odisha Legislative Council, he added.

The proposed Legislative Council will have 49 members, the minister said adding that the state will have to spend Rs 35 crore annually for creation of the Vidhan Parishad. The members of the proposed council will get salary and allowance as given to the members of the legislative assembly.

As per article 171 clause (1) of the Indian Constitution, the total number of members in the Legislative Council of a state shall not exceed one third of the total number of the members in the Legislative Assembly of that state and the total number of members in the Legislative Council of a state shall in no case be less than 40.

As the total number of members in Odisha Assembly is 147, the total number of members in the Legislative Council will be 49, he said.

The proposed Vidhan Parishad will have 49 members (one-third size of the assembly); while it will have an additional financial burden of Rs 35 crore every year towards salary and establishment expenses of members.

The BJD government’s move, months before the general and assembly elections, faced protests from the opposition Congress and BJP.
The BJD government’s move, months before the general and assembly elections, faced protests from the opposition Congress and BJP.

Leader of opposition Narasingha Mishra said Congress party would oppose the resolution in the assembly like it had boycotted the committee to examine function of upper house.

“What is the need of another house when the assembly could not function properly for full 60 days every year. It will lead to unnecessary financial burden. It will be only used to rehabilitate disgruntled leaders of the ruling party or those who could not make it to the state assembly,” said Mishra.

BJP legislator Pradip Purohit also slammed the state government for going ahead with the proposal despite the state has a debt burden of more than Rs 90,000 crore. Regarding his party’s stand over the proposal, Purohit said it will be decided at the legislature party meeting before the session.