Published on: 12:09 am, March 30, 2016 Story By: mattersindia.com

Thiruvananthapuram: A Catholic archbishop in Kerala has called for a change in the conduct of the legislative assembly in the southern Indian state.

Chaos during proceedings prevents the house from discussing crucial issues affecting the state and the whole process becomes a waste of public money, bemoaned Archbishop Maria Soosapakiam of Trivandrum.

The archbishop, one of the two top leaders of the Latin Church in Kerala, was talking to media persons on March 29 in the state capital of Thiruvananthapuram.

The prelate’s remarks came as Kerala gears up to elect its 140-member legislative assembly on May 16.

The archbishop said there is hardly any discussion by political parties on the assembly floor. “What we see is chaos after a few minutes and the session comes to a close. It’s a waste of public money. This definitely has to change,” he added.

He also expressed concern over increased sales of beer and wine in the state, reported Business Standard.

“Liquor sales have dropped by 25 percent since closure of bars in Kerala, but it’s also a matter of concern that beer and wine sales have gone up,” said the archbishop, a champion of a movement to make Kerala a liquor-free state.

The Latin Church in Kerala has 2 million members spread over 12 dioceses.

The main contestants in the fray are the ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front and the Left Democratic Front headed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Challenging them is the National Democratic Alliance led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (Indian people’s party) that heads the federal coalition government.