Parliamentary Proceedings - Questions and Answers

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:

The Constitution of India provides for the 3 kinds of funds for the Central Government -


• Consolidated Fund of India (Article 266) - It is a fund to which all receipts are credited and all payments are debited.

Consolidated Fund of India has -

1. all revenues received by the Government of India;

2. all loans raised by the Government by the issue of treasury bills, loans or ways and means of advances; and

3. all money received by the government in repayment of loans.


• All the legally authorized payments on behalf of the Government of India are made out of this fund.


• No money out of this fund can be appropriated (issued or drawn) except in accordance with a parliamentary law.


• Public Account of India (Article 266) - All other public money (other than those which are credited to the Consolidated Fund of India) received by or on behalf of the Government of India shall be credited to the Public Account of India.


• This includes provident fund deposits, judicial deposits, savings bank deposits, departmental deposits, remittances and so on.


• This account is operated by executive action, that is, the payments from this account can be made without parliamentary appropriation.


• Such payments are mostly in the nature of banking transactions.


• Contingency Fund of India (Article 267) - The Constitution authorised the Parliament to establish a ‘Contingency Fund of India’, into which amounts determined by law are paid from time to time.


• Accordingly, the Parliament enacted the contingency fund of India Act in 1950.


• This fund is placed at the disposal of the president, and he can make advances out of it to meet unforeseen expenditure pending its authorisation by the Parliament.


• The fund is held by the finance secretary on behalf of the president.


• It is also operated by executive action.

ANSWER: Excess Grant - voted by the Lok Sabha after the financial year

Explanation:

• Supplementary Grant - It is granted when the amount authorised by the Parliament through the appropriation act for a particular service for the current financial year is found to be insufficient for that year.


• Additional Grant - It is granted when a need has arisen during the current financial year for additional expenditure upon some new service not contemplated in the budget for that year.


• Excess Grant - It is granted when money has been spent on any service during a financial year in excess of the amount granted for that service in the budget for that year.


• It is voted by the Lok Sabha after the financial year.


• Before the demands for excess grants are submitted to the Lok Sabha for voting, they must be approved by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament.


• Vote of Credit - It is granted for meeting an unexpected demand upon the resources of India, when on account of the magnitude or the indefinite character of the service, the demand cannot be stated with the details ordinarily given in a budget.


• It is like a blank cheque given to the Executive by the Lok Sabha.


• Exceptional Grant - It is granted for a special purpose and forms no part of the current service of any financial year.


• Token Grant - It is granted when funds to meet the proposed expenditure on a new service can be made available by re-appropriation.


• A demand for the grant of a token sum (of Re. 1) is submitted to the vote of the Lok Sabha and if assented, funds are made available.


• Re-appropriation involves transfer of funds from one head to another. It does not involve any additional expenditure.


• Supplementary, additional, excess and exceptional grants and vote of credit are regulated by the same procedure which is applicable in the case of a regular budget.

ANSWER: Grants for Railways

Explanation:

• The budget consists of two types of expenditure - the expenditure ‘charged’ upon the Consolidated Fund of India and the expenditure ‘made’ from the Consolidated Fund of India.


• The charged expenditure is non-votable by the Parliament, that is, it can only be discussed by the Parliament, while the other type has to be voted by the Parliament.

The list of the charged expenditure is -

1. Emoluments and allowances of the President and other expenditure relating to his office.

2. Salaries and allowances of the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

3. Salaries, allowances and pensions of the judges of the Supreme Court.

4. Pensions of the judges of high courts.

5. Salary, allowances and pension of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India

6. Salaries, allowances and pension of the chairman and members of the Union Public Service Commission.

7. Administrative expenses of the Supreme Court, the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and the Union Public Service Commission including the salaries, allowances and pensions of the persons serving in these offices.

8. The debt charges for which the Government of India is liable, including interest, sinking fund charges and redemption charges and other expenditure relating to the raising of loans and the service and redemption of debt.

9. Any sum required to satisfy any judgment, decree or award of any court or arbitral tribunal.

10. Any other expenditure declared by the Parliament to be so charged.

ANSWER: Both 1 and 2

Explanation:

• The Constitution refers to the budget as the ‘annual financial statement’ in Article 112.


• The term ‘budget’ has nowhere been used in the Constitution.


• The budget is a statement of the estimated receipts and expenditure of the Government of India in a financial year, which begins on 1^st April and ends on 31^st March of the following year.

The budget contains -

1. Estimates of revenue and capital receipts.

2. Ways and means to raise the revenue.

3. Estimates of expenditure.

4. Details of the actual receipts and expenditure of the closing financial year and the reasons for any deficit or surplus in that year.

5. Economic and financial policy of the coming year, that is, taxation proposals, prospects of revenue, spending programme and introduction of new schemes/projects.


• The Government of India has two budgets, namely, the Railway Budget and the General Budget.


• Former consists of the estimates of receipts and expenditures of only the Ministry of Railways.


• Latter consists of the estimates of receipts and expenditure of all the ministries of the Government of India (except the railways).


• The Railway Budget was separated from the General Budget in 1921 on the recommendations of the Acworth Committee.

The reasons for this separation are -

1. To introduce flexibility in railway finance.

2. To facilitate a business approach to the railway policy.

3. To secure stability of the general revenues by providing an assured annual contribution from railway revenues.

4. To enable the railways to keep their profits for their own development (after paying a fixed annual contribution to the general revenues).

Constitutional Provisions -

1. The President shall in respect of every financial year cause to be laid before both the Houses of Parliament a statement of estimated receipts and expenditure of the Government of India for that year.

2. No demand for a grant shall be made except on the recommendation of the President.

3. No money shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund of India except under appropriation made by law.

4. No money bill imposing tax shall be introduced in the Parliament except on the recommendation of the President, and such a bill shall not be introduced in the Rajya Sabha.

5. No tax shall be levied or collected except by authority of law.

6. Parliament can reduce or abolish a tax but cannot increase it.

7. The Constitution has also defined the relative roles or position of both the Houses of Parliament with regard to the enactment of the budget in the following way -

a) A money bill or finance bill dealing with taxation cannot be introduced in the Rajya Sabha - it must be introduced only in the Lok Sabha.

b) The Rajya Sabha has no power to vote on the demand for grants; it is the exclusive privilege of the Lok Sabha.

c) The Rajya Sabha should return the Money bill (or Finance bill) to the Lok Sabha within fourteen days.

d) The Lok Sabha can either accept or reject the recommendations made by Rajya Sabha in this regard.

8. The estimates of expenditure embodied in the budget shall show separately the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India and the expenditure made from the Consolidated Fund of India.

9. The budget shall distinguish expenditure on revenue account from other expenditure.

ANSWER: Only 2

Explanation:

• Joint sitting is to resolve a deadlock between the two Houses over passage of a bill.

A deadlock is deemed to have taken place under any one of the following 3 situations after a bill has been passed by one House and transmitted to the other House -

1. If the bill is rejected by the other House.
2. If the Houses have finally disagreed as to the amendments to be made in the bill.

3. If more than six months have elapsed from the date of the receipt of the bill by the other House without the bill being passed by it.


• The president can summon both the Houses to meet in a joint sitting for the purpose of deliberating and voting on the bill.


• The provision of joint sitting is applicable to ordinary bills or financial bills only and not to money bills or Constitutional amendment bills.


• For money bill, the Lok Sabha has over-riding powers, while a Constitutional amendment bill must be passed by each House separately.


• In reckoning the period of six months, no account can be taken of any period during which the other House (to which the bill has been sent) is prorogued or adjourned for more than four consecutive days.


• If the bill (under dispute) has already lapsed due to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha, no joint sitting can be summoned.


• But, the joint sitting can be held if the Lok Sabha is dissolved after the President has notified his intention to summon such a sitting (as the bill does not lapse in this case).


• After the President notifies his intention to summon a joint sitting of the two Houses, none of the Houses can proceed further with the bill.


• The Speaker of Lok Sabha presides over a joint sitting of the two Houses and the Deputy Speaker, in his absence.


• If the Deputy Speaker is also absent from a joint sitting, the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha presides.


• If he is also absent, such other person as may be determined by the members present at the joint sitting, presides over the meeting.


• It is clear that the Chairman of Rajya Sabha does not preside over a joint sitting as he is not a member of either House of Parliament.


• The quorum to constitute a joint sitting is one-tenth of the total number of members of the two Houses.


• The joint sitting is governed by the Rules of Procedure of Lok Sabha and not of Rajya Sabha.


• If the bill in dispute is passed by a majority of the total number of members of both the Houses present and voting in the joint sitting, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both the Houses.


• Normally, the Lok Sabha with greater number wins the battle in a joint sitting.

The Constitution has specified that at a joint sitting, new amendments to the bill cannot be proposed except in two cases -

1. Those amendments that have caused final disagreement between the Houses.

2. Those amendments that might have become necessary due to the delay in the passage of the bill.

Since 1950, the provision regarding the joint sitting of the two Houses has been invoked only thrice. The bills that have been passed at joint sittings are -

1. Dowry Prohibition Bill, 1960.

2. Banking Service Commission (Repeal) Bill, 1977.

3. Prevention of Terrorism Bill, 2002.

ANSWER: 2, 3

Explanation:

• Financial bills are those bills that deal with fiscal matters, that is, revenue or expenditure.


• However, the Constitution uses the term ‘financial bill’ in a technical sense.

Financial bills are of three kinds -

1. Money bills—Article 110.

2. Financial bills (I)—Article 117 (1).

3. Financial bills (II)—Article 117 (3).


• Money bills are simply a species of financial bills.


• All money bills are financial bills but all financial bills are not money bills.


• Only those financial bills are money bills which contain exclusively those matters which are mentioned in Article 110 of the Constitution.


• These are also certified by the Speaker of Lok Sabha as money bills.


• The financial bills (I) and (II), on the other hand, have been dealt with in Article 117 of the Constitution.


• Financial Bills (I) -
  
  A financial bill (I) is a bill that contains not only any or all the matters mentioned in Article 110, but also other matters of general legislation.


• For instance, a bill that contains a borrowing clause, but does not exclusively deal with borrowing.

In two respects, a financial bill (I) is similar to a money bill -

a) both of them can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha and not in the Rajya Sabha; and

b) both of them can be introduced only on the recommendation of the president.


• In all other respects, a financial bill (I) is governed by the same legislative procedure applicable to an ordinary bill.


• Hence, it can be either rejected or amended by the Rajya Sabha (except that an amendment other than for reduction or abolition of a tax cannot be moved in either House without the recommendation of the president).


• In case of a disagreement between the two Houses over such a bill, the president can summon a joint sitting of the two Houses to resolve the deadlock.


• When the bill is presented to the President, he can either give his assent to the bill or withhold his assent to the bill or return the bill for reconsideration of the Houses.


• Financial Bills (II) - A financial bill (II) contains provisions involving expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India, but does not include any of the matters mentioned in Article 110.


• It is treated as an ordinary bill and in all respects; it is governed by the same legislative procedure which is applicable to an ordinary bill.


• The only special feature of this bill is that it cannot be passed by either House of Parliament unless the President has recommended to that House the consideration of the bill.


• Financial bill (II) can be introduced in either House of Parliament.


• It can be either rejected or amended by either House of Parliament. In case of a disagreement between the two Houses over such a bill, the President can summon a joint sitting of the two Houses to resolve the deadlock.


• When the bill is presented to the President, he can either give his assent to the bill or withhold his assent to the bill or return the bill for reconsideration of the Houses.

ANSWER: 1, 2, 3

Explanation:

• Article 110 of the Constitution deals with the definition of money bills.

It states that a bill is deemed to be a money bill if it contains ‘only’ provisions dealing with all or any of the following matters -

1. The imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax.

2. The regulation of the borrowing of money by the Union government.

3. The custody of the Consolidated Fund of India or the contingency fund of India, the payment of moneys into or the withdrawal of money from any such fund.

4. The appropriation of money out of the Consolidated Fund of India.

5. Declaration of any expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India or increasing the amount of any such expenditure.

6. The receipt of money on account of the Consolidated Fund of India or the public account of India or the custody or issue of such money, or the audit of the accounts of the Union or of a state.

7. Any matter incidental to any of the matters specified above.

But, a bill is not to be deemed to be a money bill by reason only that it provides for -

1. The imposition of fines or other pecuniary penalties.

2. The demand or payment of fees for licenses or fees for services rendered.

2. The imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax by any local authority or body for local purposes.


• If any question arises whether a bill is a money bill or not, the decision of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha is final.


• His decision in this regard cannot be questioned in any court of law or in the either House of Parliament or even the president.


• When a money bill is transmitted to the Rajya Sabha for recommendation and presented to the president for assent, the Speaker endorses it as a money bill.


• The Constitution lays down a special procedure for the passing of money bills in the Parliament.


• A money bill can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha and that too on the recommendation of the president.


• Every such bill is considered to be a government bill and can be introduced only by a minister.


• After a money bill is passed by the Lok Sabha, it is transmitted to the Rajya Sabha for its consideration.


• The Rajya Sabha cannot reject or amend a money bill. It can only make the recommendations.


• It must return the bill to the Lok Sabha within 14 days, with or without recommendations.


• The Lok Sabha can either accept or reject all or any of the recommendations of the Rajya Sabha.


• If the Lok Sabha accepts any recommendation, the bill is then deemed to have been passed by both the Houses in the modified form.


• If the Lok Sabha does not accept any recommendation, the bill is then deemed to have passed by both the Houses in the form originally passed by the Lok Sabha without any change.


• If the Rajya Sabha does not return the bill to the Lok Sabha within 14 days, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both the Houses in the form originally passed by the Lok Sabha.


• Lok Sabha has more powers than Rajya Sabha with regard to a money bill.


• Finally, when a money bill is presented to the president, he may either give his assent or withhold his assent to the bill but cannot return the bill for reconsideration of the Houses.


• Generally, the president gives his assent to a money bill as it is introduced in the Parliament with his prior permission.

ANSWER: 1, 2, 4

Explanation:

Difference between Ordinary and Money bills -

Sr. No.	Ordinary Bill	Money Bill (Article 110)
1.	Can be introduced either in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha.	Can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha.
2.	Can be introduced either by a minister or by a private member.	Can be introduced only by a minister.
3.	It doesn’t need recommendation of the president for introduction.	It needs recommendation of the President for its introduction.
4.	It can be amended or rejected by the Rajya Sabha.	It cannot be amended or rejected by the Rajya Sabha. The recommendations of Rajya Sabha may be accepted or rejected by the Lok Sabha.
5.	Rajya Sabha can detain the bill for a maximum period of six months.	Rajya Sabha can detain the bill for a maximum period of 14 days only.
6.	If originated in Lok Sabha endorsing by the Speaker is not needed when sending it over to the Rajya Sabha.	It requires the certification of the Speaker when sent over to the Rajya Sabha.
7.	It is sent for the President’s assent only after being approved by both the Houses.	It is sent for the President’s assent even if it is approved by only Lok Sabha.
8.	A joint sitting of both the houses can be summoned by the president to resolve deadlocks.	There is no provision of joint sitting of both the Houses.
9.	Defeat of this bill when introduced by a minister may lead to the resignation of the government.	Its defeat in the Lok Sabha leads to the resignation of the government.
10.	Bill can be rejected, approved, or returned for reconsideration by the President.	Bill can be rejected or approved but cannot be returned for reconsideration by the President.

ANSWER: 1, 2, 3

Explanation:

• The legislative procedure is identical in both the Houses of Parliament.


• Each bill has to pass through the same stages in each House.


• A bill is a proposal for legislation and it becomes an act or law when duly enacted.


• Bills introduced in the Parliament are of two kinds - public bills (government bills) and private bills (private members’ bills).


• Though both are governed by the same general procedure and pass through the same stages in the House, they differ in various respects.

The bills introduced in the Parliament can also be classified into four categories -

1. Ordinary bills - concerned with any matter other than financial subjects.

2. Money bills - concerned with the financial matters like taxation, public expenditure etc.

3. Financial bills - concerned with financial matters (but are different from money bills).

4. Constitution amendment bills - concerned with the amendment of the provisions of the Constitution.


• The Constitution has laid down separate procedures for the enactment of all the four types of bills.

Difference between public bill and private bill -

Sr. No.	Public Bill	Private Bill
1.	Minister introduces it in the Parliament.	Any member of Parliament other than a minister can introduce it.
2.	Policies of the government (ruling party) are reflected by this bill.	Stand of opposition party on public matter is reflected by it.
3.	It has greater chance to be approved by the Parliament.	It has lesser chance to be approved by the Parliament.
4.	If rejected by the House leads to the expression of want of parliamentary confidence in the government and may lead to its resignation.	If rejected it has no implication on the parliamentary confidence in the government or its resignation.
5.	Its introduction in the House requires seven days notice.	Its introduction in the House requires one month’s notice.
6.	The concerned department in consultation with the law department drafts the bill.	Responsibility of drafting it is of the member concerned.

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:

• The members can move resolutions to draw the attention of the House or the government to matters of general public interest.


• The discussion on a resolution is strictly relevant to and within the scope of the resolution.


• A member who has moved a resolution or amendment to a resolution cannot withdraw the same except by leave of the House.

Resolutions are classified into three categories -

1. Private Member’s Resolution - It is one that is moved by a private member (other than a minister). It is discussed only on alternate Fridays and in the afternoon sitting.

2. Government Resolution - It is one that is moved by a minister. It can be taken up any day from Monday to Thursday.

3. Statutory Resolution - It can be moved either by a private member or a minister. It is so called because it is always tabled in pursuance of a provision in the Constitution or an Act of Parliament.

Resolutions are different from motions in the following respects -

1. All resolutions come in the category of substantive motions.

2. Every resolution is a particular type of motion.

3. All motions need not necessarily be substantive.

4. All motions are not necessarily put to vote of the House, whereas all the resolutions are required to be voted upon.

ANSWER: Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation:

No-Day-Yet-Named Motion -


• It is a motion that has been admitted by the Speaker but no date has been fixed for its discussion.


• The Speaker, after considering the state of business in the House and in consultation with the leader of the House or on the recommendation of the Business Advisory Committee, allots a day or days or part of a day for the discussion of such a motion.

Point of Order -


• A member can raise a point of order when the proceedings of the House do not follow the normal rules of procedure.


• A point of order should relate to the interpretation or enforcement of the Rules of the House or such articles of the Constitution that regulate the business of the House and should raise a question that is within the cognizance of the Speaker.


• It is usually raised by an opposition member in order to control the government.


• It is an extraordinary device as it suspends the proceedings before the House.


• No debate is allowed on a point of order.

Half-an-Hour Discussion -


• It is meant for discussing a matter of sufficient public importance, which has been subjected to a lot of debate and the answer to which needs elucidation on a matter of fact.


• The Speaker can allot three days in a week for such discussions.


• There is no formal motion or voting before the House.

Short Duration Discussion -


• It is also known as two-hour discussion as the time allotted for such a discussion should not exceed two hours.


• The members of the Parliament can raise such discussions on a matter of urgent public importance.


• The Speaker can allot two days in a week for such discussions.


• There is neither a formal motion before the house nor voting.


• This device has been in existence since 1953.

Special Mention -


• A matter which is not a point of order or which cannot be raised during question hour, half-an hour discussion, short duration discussion or under adjournment motion, calling attention notice or under any rule of the House can be raised under the special mention in the Rajya Sabha.


• Its equivalent procedural device in the Lok Sabha is known as ‘Notice (Mention) Under Rule 377’.

ANSWER: 1, 3

Explanation:

• Article 75 of the Constitution says that the council of ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha.


• It means that the ministry stays in office so long as it enjoys confidence of the majority of the members of the Lok Sabha.


• Lok Sabha can remove the ministry from office by passing a no-confidence motion.


• The motion needs the support of 50 members to be admitted.

Sr. No.	No confidence Motion	Censure Motion
1.	There is no need to state the reasons for its adoption in the Lok Sabha.	The reason should be stated for its adoption in the Lok Sabha.
2.	It can be moved against the entire council of ministers only and not individual ministers.	It can be moved against an individual minister or a group of ministers or the entire council of ministers.
3.	It is moved for judging the confidence of Lok Sabha in the council of ministers.	It is moved for censuring the council of ministers for specific policies and actions.
4.	The council of ministers must resign from office If it is passed in the Lok Sabha.	The council of ministers does not have to resign from the office If it is passed in the Lok Sabha.

ANSWER: 2, 4

Explanation:

• Privilege Motion - It is concerned with the breach of parliamentary privileges by a minister.


• It is moved by a member when he feels that a minister has committed a breach of privilege of the House or one or more of its members by withholding facts of a case or by giving wrong or distorted facts.


• Its purpose is to censure the concerned minister.


• Calling Attention Motion - It is introduced in the Parliament by a member to call the attention of a minister to a matter of urgent public importance, and to seek an authoritative statement from him on that matter.


• Like the zero hour, it is also an Indian innovation in the parliamentary procedure and has been in existence since 1954.


• However, unlike the zero hour, it is mentioned in the Rules of Procedure.


• Adjournment Motion - It is introduced in the Parliament to draw attention of the House to a definite matter of urgent public importance.


• It needs the support of 50 members to be admitted.


• Since it interrupts the normal business of the House, it is regarded as an extraordinary device.


• It involves an element of censure against the government and hence Rajya Sabha is not permitted to make use of this device.


• The discussion on an adjournment motion should last for more than two hours and thirty minutes.

The right to move a motion for an adjournment of the business of the House is subject to the following restrictions -

1. It should raise a matter which is definite, factual, urgent and of public importance.

2. It should not cover more than one matter.

3. It should be restricted to a specific matter of recent occurrence and should not be framed in general terms.

4. It should not raise a question of privilege.

5. It should not revive discussion on a matter that has been discussed in the same session.

6. It should not deal with any matter that is under adjudication by court.

7. It should not raise any question that can be raised on a distinct motion.


• Motion of Thanks - The first session after each general election and the first session of every fiscal year is addressed by the president.


• In this address, the president outlines the policies and programmes of the government in the previous year and coming year.


• This address of the president, which corresponds to the ‘speech from the Throne in Britain’, is discussed in both the Houses of Parliament on a motion called the ‘Motion of Thanks’.


• At the end of the discussion, the motion is put to vote.


• This motion must be passed in the House.


• Otherwise, it amounts to the defeat of the government.


• This inaugural speech of the president is an occasion available to the members of Parliament to raise discussions and debates to examine and criticize the government and administration for its lapses and failures.

ANSWER: All of the above

Explanation:

• No discussion on a matter of general public importance can take place except on a motion made with the consent of the presiding officer.


• The House expresses its decisions or opinions on various issues through the adoption or rejection of motions moved by either ministers or private members.

The motions moved by the members fall into 3 principal categories -

1. Substantive Motion - It is a self-contained independent proposal dealing with a very important matter like impeachment of the President or removal of Chief Election Commissioner.

2. Substitute Motion - It is a motion that is moved in substitution of an original motion and proposes an alternative to it. If adopted by the House, it supersedes the original motion.

3. Subsidiary Motion - It is a motion that, by itself, has no meaning. Also it cannot state the - decision of the House without reference to the original motion or proceedings of the House.

It is divided into 3 sub-categories -

(i) Ancillary Motion - It is used as the regular way of proceeding with various kinds of business.

(ii) Superseding Motion - It is moved in the course of debate on another issue and seeks to supersede that issue.

(iii) Amendment - It seeks to modify or substitute only a part of the original motion.


• Closure Motion - It is a motion moved by a member to cut short the debate on a matter before the House.


• If the motion is approved by the House, debate is stopped forthwith and the matter is put to vote.

There are four kinds of closure motions -

1. Simple Closure - It is one when a member moves that the ‘matter having been sufficiently discussed be now put to vote’.

2. Closure by Compartments - In this case, the clauses of a bill or a lengthy resolution are grouped into parts before the commencement of the debate. The debate covers the part as a whole and the entire part is put to vote.

3. Kangaroo Closure - In this only important clauses are taken up for debate and voting and the intervening clauses are skipped over and taken as passed.

4. Guillotine Closure - In it the non-discussed clauses of a bill or a resolution are also put to vote along with the discussed ones due to end of time (as the time allotted for the discussion is over).

ANSWER: Only 1

Explanation:

Question Hour -


• The first hour of every parliamentary sitting is kept for this.


• During this time, the members ask questions and the ministers usually give answers.


• The questions are of three kinds, namely, starred, unstarred and short notice.


• A starred question (distinguished by an asterisk) requires an oral answer and hence supplementary questions can follow.


• An unstarred question, on the other hand, requires a written answer and hence, supplementary questions cannot follow.


• A short notice question is one that is asked by giving a notice of less than ten days.


• It is answered orally.

Zero Hour -


• Unlike the question hour, the zero hour is not mentioned in the Rules of Procedure.


• Thus it is an informal device available to the members of the Parliament to raise matters without any prior notice.


• The zero hour starts immediately after the question hour and lasts until the agenda for the day (ie, regular business of the House) is taken up.


• In other words, the time gap between the question hour and the agenda is known as zero hour.


• It is an Indian innovation in the field of parliamentary procedures and has been in existence since 1962.

ANSWER: 1, 2, 5

Explanation:

Voting in House -


• All matters at any sitting of either House or joint sitting of both the Houses are decided by a majority of votes of the members present and voting, excluding the presiding officer.


• Only a few matters, which are specifically mentioned in the Constitution require special majority, not ordinary majority.


• The presiding officer of a House does not vote in the first instance.


• He exercises a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.


• The proceedings of a House are to be valid irrespective of any unauthorized voting or participation or any vacancy in its membership.

Language in Parliament -


• The Constitution has declared Hindi and English to be the languages for transacting business in the Parliament.


• However, the presiding officer can permit a member to address the House in his/her mother tongue.


• In both the Houses, arrangements are made for simultaneous translation.


• Official Languages Act (1963) allowed English to be continued along with Hindi.

Rights of Ministers and Attorney General -


• In addition to the members of a House, every minister and the attorney general of India have the right to speak and take part in the proceedings of either House, any joint sitting of both the Houses and any committee of Parliament of which he is a member.


• But they are not entitled to vote.

There are two reasons for this constitutional provision -

a. A minister can participate in the proceedings of a House, of which he is not a member.

b. A minister, who is not a member of either House, can participate in the proceedings of both the Houses.

c. It should be noted here that a person can remain a minister for six months, without being a member of either House of Parliament.

Lame-duck Session -


• It refers to the last session of the existing Lok Sabha, after a new Lok Sabha has been elected.


• Those members of the existing Lok Sabha who could not get re-elected to the new Lok Sabha are called lame-ducks.

ANSWER: Pending assurances that are to be examined by the Committee on Government Assurances do not lapse

Explanation:

Quorum -


• Quorum is the minimum number of members required to be present in the House before it can transact any business.


• It is 1/10^th of the total number of members in each House including the presiding officer.


• It means that there must be at least 55 members present in the Lok Sabha and 25 members present in the Rajya Sabha, if any business is to be conducted.


• If there is no quorum during a meeting of the House, it is the duty of the presiding officer either to adjourn the House or to suspend the meeting until there is a quorum.

Dissolution -


• Rajya Sabha, being a permanent House, is not subject to dissolution.


• Only the Lok Sabha is subject to dissolution.


• Unlike a prorogation, dissolution ends the very life of the existing House, and a new House is constituted after general elections are held.

The dissolution of the Lok Sabha may take place in either of two ways -

1. Automatic dissolution, i.e., on the expiry of its tenure of five years or the terms as extended during a national emergency.

2. Whenever the President decides to dissolve the House, which he is authorized to do. Once the Lok Sabha is dissolved before the completion of its normal tenure, the dissolution is irrevocable.


• When the Lok Sabha is dissolved, all business including bills, motions, resolutions, notices, petitions and so on pending before it or its committees lapse.


• They must be reintroduced in the newly-constituted Lok Sabha.


• However, some pending bills and all pending assurances that are to be examined by the Committee on Government Assurances do not lapse on the dissolution of theLok Sabha.

The position with respect to lapsing of bills is as below -

1. A bill pending in the Lok Sabha lapses (whether originating in the Lok Sabha or transmitted to it by the Rajya Sabha).

2. A bill passed by the Lok Sabha but pending in the Rajya Sabha lapses.

3. A bill not passed by the two Houses due to disagreement and if the president has notified the holding of a joint sitting before the dissolution of Lok Sabha, does not lapse.

4. A bill pending in the Rajya Sabha but not passed by the Lok Sabha does not lapse.

5. A bill passed by both Houses but pending assent of the president does not lapse.

6. A bill passed by both Houses but returned by the president for reconsideration of Houses does not lapse.

ANSWER: Presiding officer can call a sitting of the House at any time after the House has been adjourned sine die

Explanation:

Summoning -


• The President from time to time summons each House of Parliament to meet.


• The maximum gap between two sessions of Parliament cannot be more than six months.


• In other words, the Parliament should meet at least twice a year.

There are usually 3 sessions in a year -

1. Budget Session (February to May).

2. Monsoon Session (July to September).

3. Winter Session (November to December).


• A ‘session’ of Parliament is the period spanning between the first sitting of a House and its prorogation (or dissolution in the case of the Lok Sabha).


• During a session, the House meets every day to transact business.


• The period spanning between the prorogation of a House and its reassembly in a new session is called ‘recess’.

Adjournment -


• A session of Parliament consists of many meetings.


• Each meeting of a day consists of two sittings - a morning sitting from 11 am to 1 pm and post-lunch sitting from 2 pm to 6 pm.


• A sitting of Parliament can be terminated by adjournment or adjournment sine die or prorogation or dissolution(in the case of the Lok Sabha).


• An adjournment suspends the work in a sitting for a specified time,which may be hours, days or weeks.


• It does not affect the bills or any other business pending before the House and the same can be resumed when the House meets again.

Adjournment Sine Die -


• Adjournment sine die means terminating a sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period.


• Thus, when the House is adjourned without naming a day for reassembly, it is called adjournment sine die.


• The power of adjournment as well as adjournment sine die lies with the presiding officer of the House.


• He can also call a sitting of the House before the date or time to which it has been adjourned or at any time after the House has been adjourned sine die.

Prorogation -


• The presiding officer (Speaker or Chairman) declares the House adjourned sine die, when the business of a session is completed.


• Within the next few days, the President issues a notification for prorogation of the session.


• However, the President can also prorogue the House while in session.


• It terminates a sitting as well as session of the house.


• Though it does not affect the bills or any other business pending before the House, all pending notices (other than those for introducing bills) lapse on prorogation and fresh notices have to be given for the next session.


• In Britain, prorogation brings to an end all bills or any other business pending before the House.

ANSWER: 2, 3

Explanation:

• A demand becomes a grant after it has been duly voted.


• Voting of demands for grants is the exclusive privilege of the Lok Sabha.


• Rajya Sabha has no power of voting the demands.


• Voting is confined to the votable part of the budget - the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India is not submitted to the vote (it can only be discussed).


• During this stage, the members of Parliament can discuss the details of the budget.


• They can also move motions to reduce any demand for grant.


• Such motions are called as ‘cut motion’.
  
  They are of 3 types -
  
  Policy Cut Motion -
  
  
• It represents the disapproval of the policy underlying the demand.


• It states that the amount of the demand be reduced to Re 1.


• The members can also advocate an alternative policy.


• Economy Cut Motion - It represents the economy that can be affected in the proposed expenditure.


• It states that the amount of the demand be reduced by a specified amount (which may be either a lump-sum reduction in the demand or omission or reduction of an item in the demand).


• Token Cut Motion - It ventilates a specific grievance that is within the sphere of responsibility of the Government of India.


• It states that the amount of the demand be reduced by Rs 100.

A cut motion, to be admissible, must satisfy the following conditions -

(a) It should relate to one demand only.

(b) It should be clearly expressed and should not contain arguments or defamatory statements.

(c) It should be confined to one specific matter.

(d) It should not make suggestions for the amendment or repeal of existing laws.
(e) It should not refer to a matter that is not primarily the concern of Union government.

(f) It should not relate to the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.

(g) It should not relate to a matter that is under adjudication by a court.

(h) It should not raise a question of privilege.

(i) It should not revive discussion on a matter on which a decision has been taken in the same session.
(j) It should not relate to a trivial matter.

Significance of a cut motion -

1. Facilitating the start of concentrated discussion on a specific demand for grant.

2. Upholding the principle of responsible government by probing the activities of the government.


• However, the cut motion do not have much utility in practice.


• They are only moved and discussed in the House but not passed as the government enjoys majority support.


• Their passage by the Lok Sabha amounts to the expressions of want of parliamentary confidence in the government and may lead to its resignation.


• In total, 26 days are allotted for the voting of demands.


• On the last day the Speaker puts all the remaining demands to vote and disposes them whether they have been discussed by the members or not.


• This is known as ‘guillotine’.

ANSWER: 1, 3, 4, 5

Explanation:

The budget goes through 6 stages in the Parliament.

1. Presentation of Budget -


• Railway Budget and General Budget are presented separately and are governed by same procedure.


• The introduction of Railway Budget precedes that of the General Budget.


• Rail Budget used to be presented to the Lok Sabha by the railway minister in the third week of February.


• General Budget used to be presented to the Lok Sabha by the finance minister on the last working day of February.


• After the end of budget speech in the Lok Sabha, the budget is laid before the Rajya Sabha, which can only discuss it and not vote.

2. General Discussion -


• The general discussion on budget begins a few days after its presentation.


• It takes place in both the Houses of Parliament and lasts usually for three to four days.


• At this stage, the Lok Sabha can discuss the budget as a whole or on any question of principle involved therein but no cut motion can be moved nor can the budget be submitted to the vote of the House.


• The finance minister has a general right of reply at the end of the discussion.

3. Scrutiny by Departmental Committees -


• After the general discussion on the budget is over, the Houses are adjourned for about three to four weeks.


• During this period, the 24 departmental standing committees of Parliament examine and discuss in detail the demands for grants of the concerned ministers and prepare reports on them.


• These reports are submitted to both the Houses of Parliament for consideration.

4. Voting on Demands for Grants -


• In the light of departmental standing committees’ reports,the Lok Sabha takes up voting of demands for grants.


• The demands are presented ministry wise.


• A demand becomes a grant after it has been duly voted.


• Rajya Sabha has no power of voting the demands.


• Voting is confined to the votable part of the budget - the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India is not submitted to the vote (it can only be discussed).


• While the General Budget has a total of 109 demands (103 for civil expenditure and 6 for defense expenditure), the Railway Budget has 32 demands.


• Each demand is voted separately by the Lok Sabha.


• During this stage, the members of Parliament can discuss the details of the budget.


• They can also move motions to reduce any demand for grant. Such motions are called as ‘cut motion’.

5. Passing of Appropriation Bill -


• The Constitution states that ‘no money shall be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund of India except under appropriation made by law’.


• Accordingly, an appropriation bill is introduced to provide for the appropriation, out of the Consolidated Fund of India.

This is for all money required to meet -

(a) The grants voted by the Lok Sabha.

(b) The expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.


• No such amendment can be proposed to the appropriation bill in either house of the Parliament that will have the effect of varying the amount or altering the destination of any grant voted, or of varying the amount of any expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.


• The Appropriation Bill becomes the Appropriation Act after it is assented to by the President.


• The government cannot withdraw money from the Consolidated Fund of India till the enactment of the appropriation bill.


• This takes time and usually goes on till the end of April.


• But the government needs money to carry on its normal activities after 31 March (the end of the financial year).


• For this, the Constitution has authorized the Lok Sabha to make any grant in advance in respect to the estimated expenditure for a part of the financial year, pending the completion of the voting of the demands for grants and the enactment of the appropriation bill.


• This provision is known as the ‘vote on account’.


• It is passed (or granted) after the general discussion on budget is over.


• It is generally granted for two months for an amount equivalent to one-sixth of the total estimation.

6. Passing of Finance Bill -


• The Finance Bill is introduced to give effect to the financial proposals of the Government of India for the following year.


• It is subjected to all the conditions applicable to a Money Bill.


• Amendments (seeking to reject or reduce a tax) can be moved in the case of finance bill.


• According to the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act of 1931, the Finance Bill must be enacted (i.e., passed by the Parliament and assented to by the president) within 75 days.


• The Finance Act legalises the income side of the budget and completes the process of the enactment of the budget.

ANSWER: 1, 4

Explanation:

Every ordinary bill passes through 5 stages in the Parliament before it becomes an Act.


• First Reading - An ordinary bill can be introduced in either House of Parliament.


• Such a bill can be introduced either by a minister or by any other member.


• The member who wants to introduce the bill has to ask for the leave of the House.


• No discussion on the bill takes place at this stage.


• Later, the bill is published in the Gazette of India. If a bill is published in the Gazette before its introduction, leave of the House to introduce the bill is not necessary.


• The introduction of the bill and its publication in the Gazette constitute the first reading of the bill.


• Second Reading - Here, the bill undergoes detailed scrutiny and assumes its final shape.


• It is the most important stage in the enactment of a bill.

This stage has 3 more sub-stages -

(a) Stage of General Discussion - The principles of the bill and its provisions are discussed generally, but not the details.

Here, the House -

i. may take the bill into consideration immediately or on some other fixed date;

ii. may circulate the bill to elicit public opinion;

iii. may refer the bill to a select committee of the House; and

iv. may refer the bill to a joint committee of the two Houses;


• (A Select Committee consists of members of the House where the bill has originated and a joint committee consists of members of both the Houses of Parliament).

(b) Committee Stage - The usual practice is to refer the bill to a select committee of the House. This committee examines the bill in detail, clause by clause. It can also amend its provisions, but without altering the principles underlying it. The committee then sends its reports to the house.

(c) Consideration Stage - The House, then considers the provisions of the bill clause by clause. Each clause is discussed and voted upon separately. The members can also move amendments and if accepted, they become part of the bill.

Third Reading - At this stage, the debate is confined to the acceptance or rejection of the bill as a whole.


• No amendments are allowed, as the general principles underlying the bill have already been scrutinized during the stage of second reading.


• If the majority of members present and voting accept the bill, the bill is regarded as passed by the House.


• Thereafter, the bill is authenticated by the presiding officer of the House and transmitted to the second House for consideration and approval.


• Bill in the Second House - In the second House also, the bill passes through all the three stages.

The 2^nd house may -

1. Pass the bill as sent by the first house (i.e., without amendments).

2. Pass the bill with amendments and return it to the first House for reconsideration.

3. Reject the bill altogether.

4. Not take any action and thus keep the bill pending (maximum period is 6 months).


• If the second House passes the bill without any amendments or the first House accepts the amendments suggested by the second House, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both the Houses and the same is sent to the president for his assent.


• On the other hand, if the first House rejects the amendments suggested by the second House or the second House rejects the bill altogether or the second House does not take any action for 6 months; a deadlock is said to have taken place.


• To resolve this deadlock, the president can summon a joint sitting of the two Houses.


• If the majority of members present and voting in the joint sitting approves the bill, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both the Houses.


• Assent of the President - Every bill after being passed by both Houses of Parliament either individually or at a joint sitting, is presented to the president for his assent.

The President may -

1. give his assent to the bill; or

2. withhold his assent to the bill; or

3. return the bill for reconsideration of the Houses.


• If the president gives his assent to the bill, the bill becomes an act and is placed on the Statute Book.


• If the President withholds his assent to the bill, it ends and does not become an act.


• If the President returns the bill for reconsideration and if it is passed by both the Houses again with or without amendments and presented to the President for his assent, the president must give his assent to the bill. Thus, the President enjoys only a “suspensive veto.”