History & Civics
The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two houses. With reference to the Indian Parliament, answer the following questions:
(i) Mention any three circumstances under which the Parliament can make laws on subjects in the state list.
(ii) Explain the following terms:
(a) Question Hour
(b) Quorum
(c) No Confidence Motion
(iii) When can the term of the Lok Sabha be extended?
Mention any three powers of the Lok Sabha which show its superiority over the Rajya Sabha.
Union Parliament
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Answer
(i) Three circumstances under which the Parliament can make laws on subjects in the state list are:
- During a National Emergency: During a national emergency, Parliament has the power to make laws on any matter in the State List for the whole or any part of the territory of India.
- When Two or More States Pass a Resolution: If two or more states pass a resolution requesting Parliament to legislate on a subject in the State List, Parliament can make laws regulating that matter. Such laws apply only to the states that have passed the resolution.
- Agreement Between States: If two or more states request Parliament to legislate on a State List subject, the Parliament can make laws on that particular subject.
(ii) (a) Question Hour — The first hour of a sitting in both Houses is allotted for asking and answering of questions. The questions are asked to obtain information on a matter of public importance or to highlight a grievance. It is a valuable device against injustice and slackness of the government.
(b) Quorum — The Quorum means the minimum number of members required to be present in order to conduct a sitting or enable the business of the House. It is fixed at 1/10th of the total membership of each House.
(c) No Confidence Motion — If a Government acts against the Constitutional provisions, it can be voted out of office by passing a vote of no-confidence against the Prime Minister, or the Ministry as a whole or any of its members. In such a case, the whole Ministry has to resign.
(iii) During the proclamation of an emergency the period of the Lok Sabha may be extended by Parliament for one year at a time.
Three powers of the Lok Sabha which show its superiority over the Rajya Sabha are:
- The Prime Minister and his Council of Ministers are responsible to the Lok Sabha. If the Lok Sabha passes a vote of no-confidence against the Council of Ministers, they must resign. However, the Rajya Sabha (Upper House) cannot pass a vote of no-confidence against the Council of Ministers. The no-confidence motion is exclusively a power of the Lok Sabha.
- A Money Bill can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha. The Rajya Sabha may only offer suggestions which may or may not be accepted by Lok Sabha. If the Money Bill is not returned by the Rajya Sabha within 14 days, it is taken as it has been passed by the Rajya Sabha.
- Any ordinary law needs to be passed by both the Houses, but in case of conflict, the view of Lok Sabha prevails because it has a large number of members.
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