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Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 31 (IANS) A procedural row has erupted ahead of the one-day meeting of the fifteenth session of the Kerala Assembly on Saturday, November 1, with Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan objecting that the move violates Rule 13(2) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business.
The special one-day session is to announce the declaration of the state as “free from extreme poverty”, which is the first of its kind in the country and is being held on Kerala Foundation Day as Kerala came into existence on this day in 1956.
In a letter to Speaker AN Shamseer dated October 18, 2025, Congress Parliamentary Party leader AP Anil Kumar said convening the Assembly on Saturday is a violation of established rules and traditions, which require prior approval of the House before holding meetings on weekends or public holidays.
The Speaker, in his reply on October 23, is understood to have said that the House could meet on Saturday after temporarily suspending Rule 13(2) at the beginning of the session, citing the examples of 1957, 1960 and 1987.
However, the opposition argued that the comparison was flawed, given that Rule 13(2) was not in force during the 1957 and 1960 seasons.
The rule was approved by the Assembly on September 19, 1960, and has since become the norm for how sessions are scheduled.
The opposition cited two occasions after its adoption – August 9, 1975, when a special session was called to ratify the 40th Constitutional Amendment Bill, and December 12–13, 1987, when the House was extended over the weekend to complete discussion on the Kerala Public Servants (Inquiries and Investigations) Bill – where the Assembly had for the first time passed a resolution to secure approval under Rule 13(2).
“Since the implementation of the rule, there has never been a sitting on a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday without the prior consent of the Assembly,” Anil Kumar wrote in his letter dated October 31, 2025, urging the Speaker to maintain parliamentary norms.
The letter demands a clear decision from the Speaker, saying the November 1 session called without prior approval was “against both procedure and precedent”.
Opposition leader V.D. Satheesan on Friday said the UDF parliamentary party will meet at 8 am on Saturday to decide the future course of action.
–IANS
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