Union Legislature

The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha

Meaning of the Federal setup in India
i)Lok Sabha – Term – Composition – Qualifications for membership –
Parliamenary procedures – a brief idea of sessions, Quorum, question hour,
Adjournment and No confidence motion – Speaker – election and function
ii)Rajya Sabha – Composition – Qualifications for membership – election –
term – Presiding Officer
Powers and functions of Union Parliament – Legislative, Financial, Judicial,
Electoral, amendment of the Constitution, Control over the executives,
Exclusive powers of two houses.
https://youtu.be/OseuB9yT93Q
 Federal Set up in India
• In a federal Country, the power is distributed between the
centre and the states.
• Distribution of power among the states is called as
Federalism.
Features: i)Two or more tiers of Governments ii)Different
levels of Governments govern the same citizens iii)The basic
and fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be
unilaterally changed by any one level of the Government iv)
Supremacy of the Constitution v) Supreme Court is the final
interpreter and guardian of the Constitution.
 India is Quasi – Unitary country
Unitary features:
i)A strong centre – 3 lists – originally 97 but now 100 subjects
are there in Union list – 61 in State list – 52 in Concurrent list –
residuary list is controlled by the Parliament.
ii)A Strong Constitution for both the Union and the States –
Single – Common – Unified Constitution governs.
iii)Single Citizenship – no state-wise change.
iv)Rajya Sabha representation is unequal – depends upon the
population and size of the states.
v)Union territories are not autonomous but centrally controlled.
 Bicameral Parliamentary Government
i)President, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are the components
of the Parliament.
ii)Lok Sabha – Lower House – People’s house – more
powerful by number of members and financial jurisdictions.
iii)Rajya Sabha – Upper House – Represents the states –
permanent house – same power of Law making like Lok
Sabha except financial power – many nominated eminent
personalities of different walks of life share their expertise.
 Lok Sabha
• Maximum 550 – 530 from states
– 20 from Union territories.
• Not a permanent body – 5 years
maximum
• Members are to be 25 years age
• Indian citizen having faith on
sovereignty and integrity and
allegiance to the Constitution.
• Registered voter in any
constituency
• Speaker controls the House.
• https://youtu.be/3UrjMMXWBK4
Rajya Sabha
• Maximum 250 – currently 245 – 12
members are nominated by president
for their excellence – 238 members are
elected by state Legislative Assemblies.
• Permanent house – members tenure 6
years – Rajya Sabha is permanent body
and cannot be dissolved at any time.
However every second year, one third of
the members are retired and vacancy
are filled up by fresh elections and
Presidential nomination at the beginning
of every third year.
• Indian citizen – 30 years of age.
• having faith on sovereignty and integrity
and allegiance to the Constitution.
• Vice-President of India is the Ex-Officio
Chairman of Rajya Sabha.
 Parliamentary Procedures
• Sessions – 3 sessions in a year – minimum twice
they have to meet with a 6 month’s gap – Budget
session(January – February) – Monsoon
session(August – September) – Winter
session(November – December) President can call
for a special session.
• Quorum – 1/10th of the full capacity – required to
carry on the meeting to take the decision.
 Hours of the Parliament
• Question hour – the very first hour of the working day – the MPs have the
right to ask questions to the ministers of their departments, known as
Interpelletion. The main objective is to keep a check on the government.
• 3 types of questions – Starred questions (seeking oral answers) with
supplimentary questions. Unstarred question(seeking written answers)
with no supplementary question. – Short notice question(seeking
explanation on a matter of public interest) with a notice within 10 days
• Zero hour – the time immediately after Question hour(12 o clock to lunch
hour) which can be used to ask all types of questions , mainly a debating
sessions to pressurize the minister where the opposition squeezes the
ruling party council of ministers.
 Motions
• Adjournment motion: The Adjournment motion is an extraordinary procedure
which, when admitted, leads to setting aside the normal business of the House
for discussing a definite matter of urgent public importance.
• No Confidence motion: The parliamentary motion demonstrates to the head
of state that the elected Parliament either has or no longer has confidence in
one or more members of the appointed government. A Vote of No Confidence
is a formal proposal in Lok Sabha to evoke a decision of the house.
• Cut motion: Cut motion is a power given to the members of the Lok Sabha
that enables its members to oppose any demand in a Finance Bill proposed by
a government. If a cut motion is accepted, it is tantamount to a no-confidence
motion.
• Censure motion: "Strong disapproval" or "sharp criticism" is what a censure
literally means. It can be a sharp rebuke from the legislature, or it can be
widespread resistance to the government's or a single minister's policies. The
opposition introduces it in Parliament to protest a specific government policy
or a minister or council of ministers.
 Functions of the Parliament
Legislative :
1)The function of the legislative is to form policies and laws that will
govern the nation.
• 2)Introducing Bills and going through different stages in two
houses it becomes Law.
• 3)Union Legislature is to be concerned with the 100 Union List
subjects and 52 Concurrent List subjects generally.
• 4)In extraordinary / emergency situations they can take decision
on the 61 State List subjects also.
• Amendment of the Constitution is the special function where
both the houses and the President may be involved with a
special majority and voting. https://youtu.be/Ur7n041TaUYg
 Executive functions

• 1) Execution of laws and policies are ensured by the office of the

Executive. These offices are that of Prime Minister and his Cabinet at
the central level.
• 2)Passing the No Confidence motion in the point of need.
• 3)Keeping check on the Executives through the Question Hour and Zero
Hour by making the executives to answer.
• 4)Exercising the control on executives by Adjournment, Cut, Censure
and No Confidence motions at each appropriate points of time.
• Proclaiming Emergency by the President with the support of both the
houses.
• Change of name, area, boundary of the states.
• On the request of concerned State Assembly, the Parliament can abolish
or create the Legislative Councils in the states,
https://youtu.be/AgdLV7tklXM
 Financial functions
• As the Custodian of public exchequer Parliament controls
the entire purse of the Central Government and all
expenditures.
• Planning Budget - approving budget.
Electoral functions
• Making Electoral College for President and Vice President
election by electing both the house members and state
Legislative Assembly.
• Election of Speaker and Deputy Speaker in the first
meeting with simple majority – Rajya Sabha elects its
Deputy Chairman
 Judicial functions
• Parliament is powerful to IMPEACH the
President or the Vice President, the Judges of
the Supreme Court and the High courts, Chief
Election Commissioner, Comptroller and
Auditor General of India.
 Special powers of Lok sabha
• Money bills can only be initiated by Lok sabha.
• No – Confidence motion can also be initiated
in Lok Sabha as it is the main part of the ruling
government.
• Ordinary bills may face deadlock situation but
ultimately Lok sabha prevails as it has greater
numerical strength.
 Special Powers of Rajya sabha
• Rajya Sabha creates new all-India services in the
interest of the country.
• On state list, Rajya sabha can have better
influence to make laws.
• During emergency or dissolved Lok sabha
situation, Rajya sabha becomes solely responsible
for operation of the Parliament as it is a
permanent house.
 Speaker – election and function
• The speaker is elected in the very first meeting of the Lok Sabha
by simple majority, following general elections. Serving for a
term of 5 years, he/she is chosen from amongst the members of
the Lok Sabha and is by convention a member of the ruling party
or alliance.
 Functions of Speaker

• The Speaker is simultaneously 1)the House's presiding officer,

2)party leader, and 3)the institution's administrative head, among
other duties.
• The speaker's official role is 4)to moderate debate, 5)make rulings
on procedure, 6)announce the results of votes, and the like. The
speaker 7)decides who may speak and 8)has the powers to
discipline by suspending the members who break the procedures
of the chamber or house. 9) The speaker is given the right to
decide whether a member of the lok sabha stands disqualified
under the anti-defection law. 10) The speaker decides the
admissibility of all questions and resolutions. 11) He adjourns the
House or adjourns a meeting in the absence of a quorum. 12) He
regulates proceeding of the house and certifies a bill is a money
bill.
 Some important points
• Consolidated Fund:
• The Consolidated Fund of India (CFI) is a central government
fund that holds all the revenues and receipts of the Indian
government, including tax revenue, borrowings, and any
other sources of income. It is the primary account from
which all government expenditures are met, making it one of
the most crucial financial instruments in India. The salaries
and allowances of the President, the Speaker, the vice
President, Judges of Supreme and High Courts are given
from this fund.
• Supplementary Fund:
• If the amount authorised for the current financial year is found to be
insufficient, the Government can make fresh demand known as the
Supplementary Grant to meet the need after 6 months of the
financial year.
• Vote on Account:
• In case the budget is not passed before the financial year, April 1 st ,
the need of the executives are demanded through Vote on Account
from the Consolidated fund until the budget is passed.
• Contingency Fund:
• The Contingency Fund of India is a fund created to meet unexpected
or urgent expenditure needs that may arise in the course of
governance. It is designed to allow the government to respond to
unforeseen situations or emergencies without waiting for the usual
budgetary process or parliamentary approval.
• Amendment of the Constitution:
• 1. Article which would be open to amendment by Simple
majority are nearly 24 in number including creation of
new states or boundaries and reconstruction of the
existing one and naming of the states. 2.Articles which
would be amended by a two-thirds majority is called
special majority that is the majority of the total
membership of the house and a majority of not less than
two-thirds of the members of each house present and
voting. 3. Articles require two-thirds
majority of Parliament plus Ratification by the states are
dealing with Supreme Court, High courts and the Union,
State and Concurrent list items.
• The Single Transferable Vote (STV) is a proportional representation voting system designed to allow voters to express
preferences for candidates in multi-member constituencies. The aim of STV is to ensure that the outcome of the election
reflects the proportion of votes received by each candidate or party, reducing the likelihood of "wasted votes."
• Here’s how it works in simpler terms:
• 1. Voter's Preferences
• Voters rank candidates in order of preference (1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, etc.).
• Voters can rank as many or as few candidates as they like.
• 2. Quota Calculation
• A "quota" is the minimum number of votes a candidate needs to be elected. The most common formula to calculate the
quota is the Droop Quota:
• Quota=(Total Votes/Number of Seats to be filled+1)+1 The idea is that a candidate needs enough votes to reach this
threshold in order to secure a seat.
• 3. First Count (First Preferences)
• In the first round, each voter’s first-choice candidate is counted.
• If a candidate reaches the quota, they are elected immediately, and any surplus votes they have (i.e., votes above the quota)
are transferred to the voters’ second-choice candidates.
• 4. Eliminating Candidates
• If no candidate has reached the quota, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated.
• Voters who had chosen this eliminated candidate as their first choice have their votes transferred to their second-choice
candidate.
• 5. Repetition of Process
• This process of transferring votes and eliminating the lowest-ranked candidates continues until all seats are filled.
• The votes are transferred based on voters' preferences, and the system ensures that the candidates who are most broadly
supported are elected.
• Key Features:
• Proportionality: STV aims for the final result to reflect the proportional support for different parties or groups. The system tries to
eliminate "wasted votes," where votes do not contribute to electing any representative.
• Preference Voting: Voters rank candidates instead of voting for just one. This allows them to express preferences for a wide range of
candidates.
• Transferability: Votes can be transferred between candidates in various rounds until all seats are filled.

• Example:
• Let’s say we have 5 seats in a constituency, and there are 3 candidates: A, B, and C. Voters rank these candidates:
• Candidate A: 40 votes
• Candidate B: 30 votes
• Candidate C: 20 votes
• If the quota for election is 50 votes, Candidate A is likely to secure a seat, but their surplus votes are redistributed based on second
preferences. Meanwhile, Candidate C might be eliminated, and their votes will transfer to the second-choice candidates.
• This process continues until all the seats are filled.
• Benefits:
• More proportional outcomes, reducing the impact of "safe" seats.
• Encourages a broader range of candidates, including independent candidates and smaller parties.
• Voters' preferences are more accurately represented.
• Drawbacks:
• Can be complex to understand and count.
• Might lead to the election of candidates with less direct popularity (as votes transfer multiple times).
• In essence, STV tries to strike a balance between the need for proportional representation and ensuring that candidates who are
broadly supported have a chance to be elected.