SHILLONG, FEB 19: Assembly Speaker Thomas A. Sangma on Thursday declined to admit a personal explanation by opposition Voice of the People Party (VPP) legislator from Mawlai Brightstarwell Marbaniang in regards to the Mynsngat-Thangsko coal mine explosion saying the matter was sub judice and barred from discussion in the House.
The Speaker told the Assembly that the matter had been flagged by the department and that the Advocate General had offered an opinion, making it inadmissible.
“The subject matter is sub judice as informed by the department and therefore it was not admitted. Moreover, the Advocate General has also given his opinion on the matter and therefore it was barred for discussion in the House,” he said.
Earlier, Marbaniang rose under Rule 282 to clarify his position after his notice for a short-duration discussion under Rule 50 was disallowed. His motion sought to raise the February 6 coal-mine explosion in East Jaintia Hills, reported in the media as having killed 18 people.
“My notice was not a mere political exercise. It was a response to a tragedy where initially 18 persons, mostly breadwinners, lost their lives in an illegal mine. When such a loss occurs, the public looks to this House for answers,” Marbaniang said.
“My effort was rooted in my duty to ensure that the Anch incident and especially the enforcement failures that led to the explosion are scrutinised and that the victims’ families are not forgotten.”
He challenged the use of sub judice as grounds for blocking debate. “A court of law determines individual guilt or legal damages. This Assembly, however, is the only forum to discuss state-level policy failures. The question of how illegal mining persists despite judicial bans is an administrative issue, not a judicial one.”
Citing parliamentary precedent, he argued the doctrine should apply only if discussion posed “a real and substantial danger of influencing a trial,” adding: “Discussing the government’s failure to prevent illegal mining and transportation or provide safety oversight does not interfere with the independence of the courts.”
“If every administrative lapse that results in a police case or PIL is deemed sub judice, this House will be effectively silenced on every major crisis in the state,” he warned. “We must not allow legal technicalities to become a shield for executive accountability.”
Concluding, Marbaniang said: “More than 28 families are mourning, and the state’s silence in this House is perceived as indifference. To treat the lives of those who tragically died as a mere legal technicality is a disservice to the mandate given to us by the people of the state.”
