Assembly not for posturing

Senior BJP leader Vijender Gupta bagged a third-time victory in the Delhi Assembly polls with the highest margin. Known for having braved the brute majority of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) during the past 10 years in the Delhi Assembly as Leader of the Opposition, Gupta is now the Speaker of the Delhi assembly and says that he will bring things back to order, claiming that the assembly was not being run earlier as per democratic processes.

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Senior BJP leader Vijender Gupta bagged a third-time victory in the Delhi Assembly polls with the highest margin. Known for having braved the brute majority of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) during the past 10 years in the Delhi Assembly as Leader of the Opposition, Gupta is now the Speaker of the Delhi assembly and says that he will bring things back to order, claiming that the assembly was not being run earlier as per democratic processes. In an exclusive interview with The Statesman's Agraj Pratap Singh and Nikhil Vyas, he throws light on his plans for transforming the Delhi Assembly in terms of technology and sustainability. He also shares his views on the conduct of the opposition during recent sessions of the House.

Q: You were the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the past decade, and now the tables have turned. How will you run the House differently from your predecessors?

A: What happened during the past was not good for democracy. There used to be one-sided action, and lack of debate and discussion. The House was run in a manner that was far from democratic practices, and more driven on vested interests.

But now I am setting things right and have made it clear that the House will run as per the rulebook with zero compromise on democratic values. Accordingly, now we have started the question hour. Several such things that had been curtailed in the past 10 years are now being diligently incorporated.

Q. How do you look at the conduct of the opposition AAP in the Delhi Assembly?

A: I have made it clear that I will not treat the opposition members the way they treated me because this (Delhi) assembly is like a temple, and people have elected and sent us here with lots of hopes that we will resolve their issues.