Thaindian News

New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) A code of conduct should be formulated to improve standards of behaviour in the Lok Sabha, a committee inquiring into the misconduct of parliamentarians has said in its report. The 11-member committee, headed by V. Kishore Chandra S. Deo, has in its report tabled in the Lok Sabha Wednesday also drawn a broad definition of what constitutes misconduct.

“Misconduct…may include acts of misuse and abuse by members of powers and immunities or rights and facilities enjoyed by being a member or of their status and position, … either in discharge or their parliamentary duties or in discharge of their public duties,” the committee’s report stated.

The committee has kept the misconduct of MPs in their private life out of the purview of the code of conduct. It recommends that whenever a matter relating to misconduct by a member comes to light, the house should take cognizance of the matter and investigate it.

The report has, however, kept misuse of privileges by the members out of the ambit of misconduct.

The committee report comes in the aftermath of sting operations exposing the cash-for-query scam in 2005, where 11 MPs were secretly caught on camera while taking bribes to ask questions in parliament, and the misuse of the MP Local Area Development funds.

The report suggests that a member found guilty of misconduct should be either admonished, reprimanded, suspended from the house and the committees he/she is a part of for a specific period or expelled from the house. The punishment would be meted out following the adoption of a motion to this effect by the house.