Gujarat Assembly constitutes financial, house committees for 2026-27
Gandhinagar, May 20
The Gujarat Legislative Assembly on Wednesday announced the constitution of its financial and non-financial committees for the 2026-27 financial year, with four key financial panels declared elected unopposed and several senior legislators appointed as committee chairpersons.
In an official statement issued by the Gujarat Legislative Assembly Secretariat in Gandhinagar, Speaker Shankar Chaudhary said the committees play a significant role in the smooth functioning of the Assembly's financial and administrative responsibilities.
Under Rule 156(1) of the Rules of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly, the Speaker appointed C.J. Chavda as chairman of the Estimates Committee, Pankaj Desai as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Ramanlal Vora as chairman of the Committee on Public Undertakings, and Uday Kangad as chairman of the Panchayati Raj Committee.
The Assembly Secretariat stated that the committees are responsible for oversight of the state's financial management, scrutiny of public expenditure, evaluation of the functioning of public undertakings and monitoring the work of Panchayati Raj institutions.
"The committees hold special importance in the smooth management of the financial and administrative responsibilities of the Legislative Assembly," the statement said.
Apart from the financial committees, the Assembly announced chairpersons for a range of non-financial panels.
Speaker Shankar Chaudhary will head the Rules Committee and the Library Committee, while Deputy Speaker Purnesh Modi has been appointed chairman of the Petitions Committee.
Hardik Patel was appointed chairman of the Subordinate Legislation Committee, Malati Maheshwari will head the Committee for the Welfare of Scheduled Castes, and Amit Shah has been named chairman of the Committee on Government Assurances.
The Assembly also appointed Mohan Dhodiya as chairman of the Committee for the Welfare of Scheduled Tribes, Vinod Mordiya as chairman of the Committee on Absence of Members from the Sittings of the House, and Sangeeta Patil as chairperson of the Members' Residence Committee.
Other appointments included Meghji Chavda as chairman of the Committee on Papers Laid on the Table of the House, Arjunsinh Chauhan as chairman of the Committee on Private Members' Business, Keshu Patel as chairman of the Privileges Committee, Mukesh Patel as chairman of the Committee on Rules Relating to Members' Allowances, and Alpesh Thakor as chairman of the Committee for the Welfare of Socially and Educationally Backward Classes.
Biographical details released by the Assembly Secretariat showed that several committee chairpersons have previously served as ministers, municipal office-bearers, district panchayat members and heads of co-operative institutions.
Speaker Shankar Chaudhary, who has been serving as Speaker since December 2022, earlier held portfolios including health and family welfare, transport, urban housing, medical education, environment and urban development in the state government.
The Secretariat noted that he also headed major co-operative institutions, including Banas Dairy and The Banaskantha District Central Co-operative Bank.
Among other senior appointments, Deputy Speaker Purnesh Modi previously served as state minister for roads and buildings, transport, civil aviation, tourism and pilgrimage development, while Mukesh Patel and Vinod Mordiya have also served as ministers of state in the Gujarat government.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Looks like a lot of familiar faces getting committee chairs. C.J. Chavda heading Estimates Committee is a solid choice given his experience. But I hope the Committee on Public Undertakings actually looks into the performance of state PSUs - many of them could use some serious reforms. Also glad to see Hardik Patel getting a committee role, though wonder what he'll do with Subordinate Legislation.
As a Gujarati, I appreciate that they've included committees for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and OBC welfare. That's important for social justice. But I wish there was more diversity in terms of younger faces. Same old names getting all the top positions. The Panchayati Raj Committee chairmanship to Uday Kangad is interesting - hope he focuses on strengthening local governance at the village level.
Nothing wrong with experienced leadership, but these committees need to actually work. The Public Accounts Committee especially - we need real scrutiny of government spending, not just token meetings. Pankaj Desai has big responsibility there. Also, Speaker Chaudhary heading both Rules and Library Committee seems like too much concentration of power. 😕
Nice to see women like Sangeeta Patil and Malati Maheshwari getting committee roles. The Members' Residence Committee and SC Welfare Committee are important. But only two women out of all these appointments? Gujarat can do better. Also, the Committee on Absence of Members is interesting - will they actually penalize MLAs who skip sessions? That would be a welcome change!
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