The maiden meeting of the Ethics Committee of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was held here on Thursday under the chairmanship of Member of Legislative Assembly, Samba, Surjeet Singh Salathia at the LA Complex, Srinagar.
MLA’s Javaid Iqbal, Sheikh Ahsan Ahmed (Pardesi), Zafar Ali Khatana, Rafiq Ahmad Naik, Dr. Sajjad Shafi, Arvind Gupta, Daleep Singh, Surinder Kumar, Khursheed Ahmad Sheikh and Mehraj Malik attended the meeting.
While chairing the meeting, Slathia emphasized the importance of upholding the highest standards of conduct and integrity among the members of the House. Reiterating the Committee’s commitment towards maintaining the highest standards of credibility, he stated that the integrity of the democratic institutions rests on the ethical behaviour of its members.
“We have to keep in mind that we are the bearers of a tradition and should set an example in the discharge of our legislative responsibilities. Our conduct should serve as a benchmark to ensure accountability, dignity and respect in legislative functioning,” he said.
It was decided that comprehensive guidelines on ethics and standards of behaviour would be framed to guide the conduct of members, both within and outside the House. MLA’s assured the Chairman that they will extend full cooperation to ensure effective functioning of the Committee.
They resolved that they will work together to foster a culture of ethical values and responsible conduct in public life while institutionalizing ethical oversight and promoting integrity in the legislative process.