Assam Assembly Abolishes 2-Hour Jumma Break After 87 Years

The Assam government has now announced a ban on the 2-hour break on Jumma. On Friday, the state's Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said in his tweet, “By doing away with the 2-hour Jumma break, at Assam Legislative Assembly has prioritised productivity and shed another vestige of colonial baggage. This practice was introduced by Muslim League’s Syed Saadulla in 1937. My gratitude to Hon’ble Speaker Shri Biswajit Daimary and our legislators for this historical decision.” 

Earlier during the proceedings of the Assam Assembly, a 2-hour break was given for Jumma Namaz (every Friday), which has now been abolished by the Himanta Biswa government.

While one side is praising the Assam government for abolishing the Jumma break, the other side is also condemning it. Assam Minister Piyush Hazarika called this decision a milestone and wrote in the tweet, 'This decision will prove to be a milestone in regaining true secularism in Assam. The Assam Assembly today ended the practice of a 2-hour break for Jumma ki Namaz every Friday.

This practice was started by Syed Muhammad Saadulla's Muslim League government in colonial Assam. There is no provision for a Jumma break in the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and other state assemblies, which is why the Assam Assembly also decided to end this 87-year-old practice.

It is worth noting that every week from Monday to Thursday, the Assam Assembly starts at 9.30 am, but on Friday, the assembly is started at 9 am for the Jumma break. But now after the Jumma break is over, the proceedings of the assembly will start at 9.30 am on Friday as well. Earlier, Muslim MLAs were given a break for Jumma ki Namaz from 12 noon to 2 pm every Friday, but now they will not get any other break except the lunch break. This decision was taken unanimously in the Assam Assembly. This decision received the support of all the MLAs in a meeting chaired by Speaker Biswajit Daimary.