Sixty-Seventh CPC & Tenth CPA

The Sixty-Seventh Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference was held in Sydney, Australia on November 03-08, 2024. The conference was hosted by the Parliament of New South Wales and Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) New South Wales Branch. It was attended by more than 700 Parliamentarians and parliamentary officials from across the Commonwealth.

Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha was represented by Honourable Speaker, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, Honourable Deputy Speaker, Vinay Kumar, and Secretary, Vidhan Sabha, Yash Paul Sharma.

Addressing the delegates, Kuldeep Singh Pathania highlighted the importance of strengthening parliamentary institutions through benchmarking, standards, and best practices. He also stressed on the need for legislative effectiveness, transparency, and public engagement to uphold democratic governance.

Pathania stated that the role of the Speaker or Chairman carries significant power and responsibility, critical in ensuring accountability and representation within the parliamentary system. He pointed to the Indian Parliament as a cornerstone of democracy, reflecting the country’s diverse cultures, languages, and regional interests, which necessitates coalition-building and compromise for stable governance.

To meet the evolving demands of constituents, parliaments must adopt global best practices, Pathania said. He added that this includes establishing benchmarking standards that guide public representatives in responsibly voicing their views. Pathania stated that while legislators are free to express their opinions within the House, such freedom must align with the principles of integrity and accountability essential to parliamentary democracy.

The Speaker, HP Vidhan Sabha, attended the 10th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) India Regional Conference in Delhi, from 23 to 24 September, 2024. The theme of the conference was “The Role of Legislative Bodies in the Attainment of Sustainable and Inclusive Development.”

Forty-six Presiding Officers attended the conference, including twenty-five Speakers, fourteen Deputy Speakers, four Chairpersons, and three Deputy Chairpersons.

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Union India Region was divided into nine zones, with Himachal Pradesh being placed in Zone 2 along with Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, and Jammu and Kashmir. Kuldeep Pathania was given the responsibility of convener of these states.

Before the Regional Conference, a meeting of the Executive Committee of the CPA India Region was also organised. Addressing the executive meeting, Kuldeep Singh Pathania raised the issues of change in functioning and financial autonomy of Legislative Assembly Secretariats. Pathania said that since a Vidhan Sabha Secretariat is independent, it should have its own financial autonomy. According to Pathania, a Legislative Assembly’s work must reach the wider public, whether it is by organising seminars or conferences. These events educate citizens about the work of Assemblies, and they strengthen democracy and the parliamentary system. Pathania said that money is required for these events, and they cannot be organised without the cooperation of the government.

Further, Pathania said that every Vidhan Sabha has its own rules of functioning and its way of conducting the session. He added that fruitful discussions can only happen if all the members and parties are given a chance to speak. Pathania’s effort has been that all the MLAs get a chance to speak, whether they are senior or junior or from any party. He said this brings efficiency and everyone gets a chance to contribute. Pathania said that some complex issues can be resolved by direct communication with the MLAs, and efforts can also be made to resolve issues with the intervention of the Parliamentary Affairs Minister.

Pathania also informed those present that he has allowed school students to watch the proceedings of the House. If children are watching, Pathania added, the members also behave responsibly in the House, because they know that the future generation is observing their conduct.

The two-day CPA India Regional Conference was held at the Parliament House, New Delhi.

Speaking at the convention, the Speaker of HP Legislative Assembly, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, said that both sustainable and inclusive development are important for the development of the country. He said that sustainable and inclusive development are one of the most important global priorities in the present time. He added that the objective of sustainable development is to ensure a long-term and balanced development by eliminating environmental, social, and economic imbalances, while inclusive development focuses specifically on providing opportunities for all sections of the society and promoting social equality.

Inclusive development is an essential foundation for sustainable development, Pathania said, during his address. Inclusive development aims to equally distribute economic benefits among all sections of society, while sustainable development will have to keep in mind the needs of future generations while meeting the needs of the present, he added.

Pathania said that the concept of inclusive development is not new in our country. If we peruse the ancient texts, they also contain the spirit of taking everyone along. The quote “” encapsulates this idea.

The role of the legislature is important in sustainable and inclusive development, Pathania said, and for this the Presiding Officers will have to maintain their commitment and become a fearless, impartial and duty-bound public representative to achieve objectives by abandoning greed.

He further stated that schemes should be made from the Centre for sustainable and inclusive development, because the Union also has rights over the resources of the state. The schemes should be development oriented and the states should get the benefits according to their rights.

Pathania also said that the schemes of the union should be unbiased and the states should get maximum benefits. The allocation of funds to the states should be according to their needs and goals and not on a political basis, only then sustainable and inclusive development can be ensured.

Pathania said that the ministers of the government give assurances inside the house after questions and discussions, but a review system must be implemented to see if these assurances have been fruitful or not. This will maintain the credibility of our democratic system and the dignity and supremacy of the House will remain intact, Pathania stated.

The closing of the session was presided over by Om Birla, Chairman of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association of India Region and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Dr Harivansh, also addressed the conference Legislative Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania also addressed this session and his address focused on giving appropriate financial benefits to the states in return for generous assistance and resources by the Center. Pathania requested the Association to consider the demands of the State and take necessary steps to fulfil its needs.

After the conference, Kuldeep Singh Pathania attended the National MLA Conference program which was organized by Rahul Karad, Convenor, NLC.