Open Access Research Article
LEGISLATIVE PROCESS IN INDIA
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Article Details
LEGISLATIVE
PROCESS IN INDIA
AUTHORED BY - UDAY RAJ CHAUHAN[1]
Abstract
Recently, the Parliament of India
passed the Criminal Law bills to replace the Indian Penal Code, Criminal
Procedure Code and Evidence Act by Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik
Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill respectively. So it is essential to
understand the legislative process in India. The legislative process includes
various and complex steps after which a bill becomes an act, The main objective
of this paper is to understand the legislative process of the parliament and
the relevant provisions under the Constitution of India.
Introduction
One of the main functions of the
Parliament is to legislate laws. The process of legislating a law in India is monumental
which must be because the laws made by the Parliament of India become a central
act and are generally enforced on all the states and union territory of India. It is necessary to understand the legislative
process or how the laws are made in India as it is the primary source of law. This
paper is about the various stages through which the Parliament of India makes
laws.
Difference
between Act and Bill
In Layman’s terms, a Bill is a
document that is proposed in Parliament for consideration and has not been passed
yet by the Parliament. On the other hand Act is a document that is passed by the
parliament and has Legal weight in it as the violation of any act by any person
is punishable and it is also enforceable in the court of law.
Process of
Legislation
An ordinary bill may originate in
either house and as it is passed by both houses and after getting president’s
ascent the bill becomes an act. There are usually 3 reading stages of a bill:-
·
Introduction Stage: - In this stage, no discussion takes place only the basic
introduction of the bill is given to the house, it can be proposed by a
Minister or any private member.
§ A private Member is a member who is
not a Minister though theoretically private members are authorised to introduce
a bill but practically it is not possible to get it passed without the support
of the ruling government and also most of the time the session is occupied by
Government bills.
·
Consideration Stage: - In this stage clause by clause discussion takes place and
the important bills are sent to the Select Committee or Joint Select Committee
for consideration. Then reports of the Select Committee or Joint Select
Committee are submitted to the House.
Select Committee or Joint Select
Committee
To prevent laws from
being enacted only based on members of parliament's private opinions, one
member of parliament represents a large number of citizens approximately 2.5
million citizens[2] hence a Select
Committee or Joint Select Committee was created. The select committee is formed
only for any particular bill and after the disposal or passing of that
particular bill the select committee will also dissolve.
·
General Discussion: - This is the third stage, in this stage brief discussion
takes place and after the brief discussion the bill is put up for voting in the
case of an ordinary bill a simple majority of Members are present and voting is
required to pass the bill.
A similar process is followed by the
other house and once both houses pass the bill the bill is sent to the
president for his President’s assent. President has power under Article 111 of
the Indian Constitution he can either:-
·
Give
his assent
·
Hold
his assent (VETO)
·
Sent
the bill for reconsideration
All the above three acts are done
with the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers. Once the president gives
his assent on the bill, it is considered that the bill is passed and that bill
now becomes an Act.
Joint
Sitting
Under Article 108 of the Constitution
of India President has the power to call for a joint sitting of both houses in
case: -
·
If
the bill is rejected by the other house.
·
The
2nd House disagreed on the Amendment
·
When
the other house does not pass the bill for more than 6 months.
The presiding officer in the joint
sitting will be the Speaker of Lok Sabha, In his absence any person who is
determined by rules of procedure.
In India, only 3 times Joint sitting
has been called by the President:
·
1961
(Dowry Prohibition Bill)
·
1978
(Banking Service Commission) (Repealed)
·
2002
(Prevention of Terrorism Bill)
Financial
Bill
A financial bill means a money bill
that also contains some other matter tacked on it. A bill is neither a money
bill or a financial bill if it relates to the Imposition of fines or other
pecuniary penalties, Demand of fees of licences or fees for any service,
Imposition, Abolition, Remission or regulation of any tax by local authorities.
Money Bill
A bill is deemed to be a money bill
if it contains only provisions dealing with:
§ The Imposition, Abolition, Remission,
Altering or regulation of any tax.
§ The Regulation of Borrowing money or
the giving of any guarantee by the Government of India, or Amendment of any law
with respect to any financial obligation undertaken or to be taken by the
Government of India.
§ Withdrawal of payment of money into
the Consolidated Fund or the Contingency Fund of India.
Article 110 of the Constitution of
India lays down which bill is to be considered as the money bill, a money bill
can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha has to send it back
to the Lok Sabha within 14 days otherwise it is deemed that the Rajya Sabha has
passed the bill. In the case of a money bill Rajya Sabha has very limited
powers as Rajya Sabha can suggest amendments to the money bill but it is not
binding on Lok Sabha to agree on those amendments and the Rajya Sabha cannot
reject the Money Bill it can only suggests Amendments in it.[3]
Ordinance
Article 123 of the Constitution of
India gives power to the president to promulgate ordinances when both houses
i.e. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are not in session then the president has the
power to issue an ordinance and the validity of the ordinance is a maximum of
six months and six weeks after that it should be passed by both the houses for its
further enforceability.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the legislative
process in India is a lengthy process that ensures the proper framing of the
act, ensures the advantageousness of the act on the society and most importantly
factors that the act must not be arbitrary and should be just, fair and
equitable[4].
Although many bills after becoming acts are declared unconstitutional and read
down by the Supreme Court of India by their Judicial Review Jurisdiction which
is also an additional safeguard to prevent making any law that is arbitrary and
not just, fair and equitable.
[1] The author is a student at
Galgotias University, Greater Noida
[2] Pradeep Chhibber, F.J. (2019) This data shows why
Indian mps don’t truly represent their people, ThePrint. Available at:
https://theprint.in/opinion/this-data-shows-why-indian-mps-dont-truly-represent-their-people/201769/
(Accessed: 20 December 2023).
[3] Seervai, H.M. (2023) Constitutional
law of India: A critical commentary Vol 1. Fourth. Delhi, Delhi: Law &
Justice Publishing Co.
Article Information
LEGISLATIVE PROCESS IN INDIA
Authors: UDAY RAJ CHAUHAN
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2023/12/30
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
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