Answer the following questions on the Parliament of India. Your answers should be precise, to the point and brief. This blog should be read along with the blog on the Decline of the Legislature.
Answer the following questions on the Parliament of India. Your answers should be precise, to the point and brief. This blog should be read along with the blog on the Decline of the Legislature.
1. The President is said to be a part of parliament. How?
What role does he play in Parliament?
ARTICLE 52 TO 78 IN PART FIVE DEALS WITH THE UNION EXECUTIVE. PRESIDENT IS ELECTED BY ELECTORAL COLLEGE HE IS ENTITLED TO NUMBER OF PRIVILAGES AND IMMUNITIES .HE ENJOYS PERSONAL IMMUNITY FROM LEGAL LIABILITY FOR HIS OFFICIAL ACTS. HE IS IMMUNE IN FROM ANY CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS , EVEN IN RESPECT OF HIS PERSONAL ACTS HE CANNOT BE ARRESTED OR IMPRISONED, BUT CAN BE IMPEACHED FOR VIOLATION OF CONSTITUTION.
THE POWERS AND ROLE ENJOYED BY THE PRESIDENT ARE AS FOLLOWS,
1)EXECUTIVE POWERS.
2)LEGISLATIVE POWERS.
3)FINANCIAL POWERS.
4)JUDICIAL POWERS.
5)DIPLOMATIC POWERS.
6)MILITARY POWERS.
7)EMERGENCY POWERS.
2.How many members are there in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and how many of these are nominated and from which class?
AT PRESENT RAJYA SABHA HAS 245 MEMBERS. OF THESE 229 MEMBERS REPRESENT STATES, 4 MEMBERS REPRESENT THE UNION TERRITORIES AND 12 MEMBERS ARE NOMINATED BY THE PRESIDENT.
AT PRESENT IN LOK SABHA 545 MEMBERS , OF THESE 530 MEMBERS REPRESENT THE STATES , 13 MEMBERS REPRESENT THE UNION TERRITORIES , AND 2 ANLO-INDIAN MEMBERS ARE NOMINATED BY THE PRESIDENT.
3. How are the members of the Council of States elected? Can non residents of a particular State become representatives of the State in the Council of States? have you any comments to make on this?
4.How are the members of the Union Territories represented in Parliament?
ARTICLE 239 TO 241 IN PART 4 DEALS WITH THE UNION TERRITORIES.
1)THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH CENTRE IS UNITARY.
2)THEY ARE UNDER DIRECT CONTROL AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE CENTRE.
3)THEY DO NOT HAVE ANY AUTONOMY.
4)THERE IS NO UNIFORMITY IN THEIR ADMINISRATIVE SET UP.
5)THEIR EXECUTIVE HEAD IS KNOWN BY VARIOUS DESIGNATIONS, LIKE ADMINISTRATOR OR LIEUTENANT GOVERNER OR CHEIF COMMISSIONER.
6)AN ADMINSTARTOR IS AN AGENT OF PRESIDENT.
5. How does the Council of States differ from the Senate of USA?
6. What are the qualifications for the elections to the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha?
Qualifications for members of parliament are:
1) He must be the citizen of India
2) He must not be less than 30 years of age in the case of rajya sabha and not less than 25 years of age in the case of lok sabha
3) He must not hold any office of profit under the govt of india or the govt of state
4) He must not be unsound mind and not convicted by court.
7. Carefully explain the terms session, recess, adjournment, prorogation, dissolution, zero hour, question hour.
A meeting of a legislative or judicial body for the purpose of transacting business is called sessions.
A recess appointment is valid only until the end of the next full session of the Senate after the appointment. Thus, a recess appointment cannot be used as a means of avoiding the Senate, it is a period of cessation.
Adjournment:A sitting of parliment can be terminated by adjournment, an adjournment suspends the work in a sitting for a specified time, which may be hours, days or weeks.
Prorogation:It is done by president, it terminates the sitting and also sessions of house, prorogation brings to an end all bills or business pending before the house.
Dissolution:Only the lok sabha is subject to dissolution, it is of 2 types
Automatic dissolution:It’s an expiry of its tenure of 5 years.
Whenever the president decides to dissolve the house, which he is authorised to do . once the lok sabha is dissolved before the completion of it’s normal tenure , the dissolution is irrevocable.
Question hour:The first hour of every parlimentary sitting is slotted for this. During this time members ask questions and ministers usually give answers in three forms starred question(requires oral answers), unstarred question(requires written answer),a short notice question(asked by giving notice, answered orally).
Zero hour:The zero hour starts immidiately after question hourand lasts untill the agenda for the day. or the time gap between question hour and the agenda is kown as zero hour
8. How does dissolution of the Lok Sabha takes place? What are the consequences of dissolution?
9. Can the term of the Lok Sabha be extended: Under what conditions?
10. When does an M.P. lose his seat? Considering the way members behave in the Lok Sabha, either absenting or walking out, can the principle No Work, No Pay be extended to them?
11.When is previous sanction of the President required for introducing legislation?
12. What is a Money Bill? Is it different from a Finance Bill?
MONEY BILL IS INTRODUCED ONLY IN LOK SABHA ,UNDER ARTICLE 110 , IT CAN BE INTRODUCED ONLY BY MINISTER ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF PRESIDENT ,IT CANNOT BE AMMENDED OR REJECTED BY RAJYA SABHA.IT REQUIRES THE CERTIFICATION OF SPEAKER, WHEN TRANSMITTED TO THE RAJYA SABHA. IT IS SENT FOR PRESIDENTS ASSENT EVEN IF IT IS ONLY APPROVED BY LOK SABHA. ITS DEFEAT IN LOK SABHA LEADS TO THE RESIGNATION OF THE GOVERNMENT. IT CAN BE REJECTED OR APPROVED BUT CANNOT BE RETURNED FOR RECONSIDERATION BY THE PRESIDENT.
WHERE AS FINANCIAL BILLS ARE THOSE WHICH DEALS WITH FISCAL MATTERS ,THAT IS REVENUE OR EXPENDITURE, UNDER ARTICLE 117(1) AND (3).
ALL MONEY BILLS ARE FINANCIAL BILLS , BUT ALL FINANCIAL BILLS ARE NOT MONEY BILLS
13. Distinguish between the Consolidated Fund of India and Contingency Fund of India. What is meant by the statement charged on the Consolidated Fund of India? Can you list some of he items charged on the consolidated fund of India?
Consolidated fund:
The fund constituted under article 266(1) of the constitution of India into which all receipts , revenues and loans flow.
All the expenditure is incurred from this fund.
No amount can be used without the authorization of parliament.
List of consolidated fund include
All revenues received by the Government by way of taxes like Income Tax, Central Excise, Customs duties.
Non-Tax Revenues are credited into the Consolidated Fund
all loans raised by the Government by issue of Public notifications, treasury bills (internal debt) and loans obtained from foreign governments and international institutions (external debt) are credited into this fund.
Contingency fund:
The Contingency Fund of India records the transactions connected with Contingency Fund set by the Government of India under Article 267 of the Constitution of India.
Contingency fund is Rs. 50 crores.
Advances from the fund are made for the purposes of meeting unforeseen expenditure which are resumed to the Fund to the full extent as soon as Parliament authorizes additional expenditure.
13. Describe the legislative procedure with regard to a Money Bill.
A money bill originates in lok sabha only, it cannot be introduced in rajya sabha [109(1)]
It cannot be introduced or moved expect on the recoomedation of the president. [ art.117(1)]
Money bills, it is only sent to the Rajya Sabha for recommendations. the bill is sent for a period of 14 working days, and if it is not returned in that span of time, it is considered as passed.
A bill is deemed to have passed both houses with any recommended amendments the Lok Sabha chooses to accept, (and without any that it chooses to decline)
When a Money Bill is returned to the Lok Sabha with the recommended amendments of the Rajya Sabha it is open to Lok Sabha to accept or reject any or all of the recommendations.
Presidential assent is necessary to make a money bill or a financial bill legally effective after its passage in the two houses. The president has no power to refer a money bill back to the houses for reconsideration nor he cannot with hold assent from money bill.
14. What is a Private Member Bill? What is te procedure for passing a non-money bill?
Accodring to Article 117(1) of constitution can be introduced only in the Lok Sabha ,all other Bils may originate in either house. Regarding Money Bills, Rajya sabha may make recommendations, within 14days of the receipt of the Bill from the lok sabha.Disagreement between the two Houses as to the amendment of bill other than Money Bil is resolved at a joint sitting of the both
houses, presided over by the speaker of the Lok sabha
Comment on procedure on money bill
15.What happens when there is a dead lock between the two Houses of the Parliament.?
A JOINT SITTING OF BOTH THE HOUSES CAN BE SUMMONED BY THE PRESIDENT TO RESOLVE THE DEAD LOCK .
18. What is Gerry Mandering?
Gerrymandering is the redistricting of voters to ensure that one party or voting block has power in the resulting district.The name came from a reporter, who used it to compare the shape of the resulting district to a lizard.
Gerrymandering can force an incumbent out of power by diluting his voting base, it can increase the power to a small number of voters in a cluster, or it can isolate a voting block to minimize its overall effectiveness.
In the past, the lines have been drawn by race, by wealth, or by political affiliation. The goal has always been to influence the outcome of the election by segregating voters to maximize their strength or minimize their impact on the election.