Patna,(BiharTimes): Former deputy chief minister and BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Tuesday questioned the constitutionality of the state Assembly Secretariat forming an all-party House Committee to monitor implementation of Rs 1.25 lakh crore special package for Bihar announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi before the 2015 election.

The Committee was formed by Assembly Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary on April 25. An 11-member committee headed by the Speaker has representatives from JD(U), RJD, BJP, Congress and CPI(ML). The House Committee has been constituted for one year.

According to SuMo forming a committee to monitor special package was beyond the jurisdiction of the Assembly secretariat. He said that the two BJP members, who did not attend its first meeting on Monday, would soon resign.

The two members of the saffron party in the panel are leader of opposition in the state Assembly, Prem Kumar, who represents Gaya and Banka MLA, Ram Narayan Mandal.

SuMo, while referring to Article 246 of the Constitution to substantiate his stand, said that a House Committee of the Assembly has no jurisdiction to monitor schemes/projects of Railways, Civil Aviation, National Highways, Petroleum etc which are part of the special package announced for the state. They all fall in the Central Subjects of the Constitution.

However, the BJP leader clarified that Assembly secretariat committee can be formed for monitoring of centrally sponsored schemes like MGNREGA, IAY, SSA etc in which the Centre and state both have share and is implemented by the state government.

He also said that such a House Committee can monitor the Rs 2.70 lakh crore Seven Resolves announced by chief minister Nitish Kumar as a policy of governance for the next five years.

He said the chief minister can talk to the Prime Minister and Union ministers to take stock of the progress of the package. The PMO and union ministers concerned have been reviewing the progress of the special package on a monthly basis, he said.

The senior BJP leader charged that the House Committee was constituted to achieve political gains.