Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe told parliament yesterday (22) that its members should not be attending sittings to read novels or newspapers or to engage in telephone conversations.
He said both ruling and opposition benches have members who ignore the rules, noting that they have a responsibility to maintain a minimum of decorum in the House.
Nishantha gets two-week suspension
Meanwhile, the speaker announced that state minister Sanath Nishantha has been suspended from parliament for two weeks over his unruly behaviour.
Nishantha was seen disrupting opposition leader Sajith Premadasa in his speech and snatching a file from which he had been reading.
