Delay triggers quorum crisis in parliament
The parliament yesterday witnessed an unusual quorum crisis thanks to the delayed arrival of treasury and opposition bench MPs.
The sitting was scheduled to begin at 4:45pm, but it started at 5:09pm following a 24 minute delay.
Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury was in the chair.
The House also witnessed another quorum crisis after Magrib prayer. While the proceedings were supposed to resume at 6:05pm after the prayer break, there was a 26 minute delay.
Sources at the parliament secretariat said there were instances that sittings started five to 15 minutes past the schedule due to quorum crises but it was unusual that delays triggered a quorum crisis.
According to the rules of procedure, presence of at least 60 lawmakers is mandatory for continuing proceedings of the parliament. According to the Parliament Watch report of Transparency International Bangladesh, which came out in October 2015, quorum crises happen due to delays in taking seats by the members. Quoting an estimate, the report said the cost involved in running the parliament session per minute was around Tk 1.11 lakh.
At the beginning of yesterday's proceedings, only Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury and Awami League lawmaker Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim were seen at the front row of the treasury bench.
None from the opposition bench was there at that time.
Yesterday's sitting resumed with only 65 lawmakers.
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