Parliament of India

The Parliament of India (IAST: Bhāratīya Sansad) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the President of India and the two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The President in his role as head of legislature has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve Lok Sabha. The president can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the Prime Minister and his Union Council of Ministers.

Parliament of India

Bhāratīya Sansad
Type
Type
HousesRajya Sabha (Upper house)
Lok Sabha (Lower house)
History
Founded26 January 1950 (1950-01-26)
Preceded byConstituent Assembly of India
Leadership
Venkaiah Naidu[2]
since 11 August 2017
Harivansh Narayan Singh[3], JD(U)
since 9 August 2018
Thawar Chand Gehlot[4], BJP
since 11 June 2019
Ghulam Nabi Azad, INC
since 8 June 2014
Vacant
since 23 May 2019
Vacant (Since 26 May 2019, No party has 10% Seats)
Structure
Seats788 245 Members of Rajya Sabha
543 Members of Lok Sabha
Rajya Sabha political groups
Lok Sabha political groups
Elections
Single transferable vote
First-past-the-post
Rajya Sabha last election
5 July 2019
Lok Sabha last election
11 April – 19 May 2019
Rajya Sabha next election
April 2020
Lok Sabha next election
May 2024
Meeting place
Sansad Bhavan, Sansad Marg, New Delhi, India
Website
parliamentofindia.nic.in
Constitution
Constitution of India
India
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Those elected or nominated (by the President) to either house of Parliament are referred to as Members of Parliament (MP). The Members of Parliament, Lok Sabha are directly elected by the Indian public voting in Single-member districts and the Members of Parliament, Rajya Sabha are elected by the members of all State Legislative Assembly by proportional representation. The Parliament has a sanctioned strength of 543 in Lok Sabha and 245 in Rajya Sabha including the 12 nominees from the expertise of different fields of science, culture, art and history. The Parliament meets at Sansad Bhavan in New Delhi.

History
Main articles: Imperial Legislative Council and Constituent Assembly of India

The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to write the Constitution of India. Following India's independence from Britain in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament.

Sansad Bhavan

The Sansad Bhavan (Parliament House) is located in New Delhi. It was designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker, who were responsible for planning and construction of New Delhi by British government. The construction of building took six years and the opening ceremony was performed on 18 January 1927 by the then Viceroy and Governor-General of India, Lord Irwin. The construction costs for the building were ₹8.3 million (US$120,000). The parliament is 170 metres (560 ft) in diameter and covers an area of 2.4 hectares (6 acres). The Central Hall consists of the chambers of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and the Library hall. Surrounding these three chambers is the four-storeyed circular structure providing accommodations for members and houses Parliamentary committees, offices and the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.[7]

Statue of Chandragupta Maurya at Parliament of India

General layout of the Parliament

The centre and the focus of the building is the Central Hall. It consists of chambers of the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha, and the Library Hall and between them lie garden courts. Surrounding these three chambers is the four-storeyed circular structure providing accommodations for ministers, chairmen, parliamentary committees, party offices, important offices of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Secretariat, and also the offices of the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. The Central Hall is circular in shape and the dome is 30 metres (98 ft) in diameter. It is a place of historical importance. The Indian Constitution was framed in the Central Hall. The Central Hall was originally used in the library of the erstwhile Central Legislative Assembly and the Council of States. In 1946, it was converted and refurbished into Constituent Assembly Hall. At present, the Central Hall is used for holding joint sittings of both the houses of parliament and also used for address by the President in the commencement of first session after each general election.

Proposal for a new building

A new Parliament building may replace the existing complex. The new building is being considered on account of the stability concerns regarding the current complex.[8] A committee to suggest alternatives to the current building has been set up by the Former Speaker, Meira Kumar. The present building, an 85-year-old structure suffers from inadequacy of space to house members and their staff and is thought to suffer from structural issues. The building also needs to be protected because of its heritage tag.[9]

Composition

The Indian Parliament consists of two houses called the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha with the President of India acting as their head.

Parliamentary Seats in Each State and UT of India

President of India
Main article: President of India

The President of India, the head of state, is a component of Parliament. Under Article 60 and Article 111, the President's responsibility is to ensure that laws passed by the Parliament are in accordance with the constitutional mandate and that the stipulated procedure is followed before according his/her approval to the bills. The President of India is elected by the elected members of Parliament of India and the state legislatures and serves for a term of 5 years.[10]

Lok Sabha
Main article: Lok Sabha

Lok Sabha (House of the People) or the lower house has 543 members. 543 members are directly elected by citizens of India on the basis of universal adult franchise representing Parliamentary constituencies across the country. Between 1952 and 2020, 2 additional members of the Anglo-Indian community were also nominated by the President of India on the advice of Government of India, which was abolished in January 2020 by the 104th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2019.[11] Every citizen of India who is over 18 years of age, irrespective of gender, caste, religion, or race and is otherwise not disqualified, is eligible to vote for the Lok Sabha. The Constitution provides that the maximum strength of the House be 552 members. It has a term of five years. To be eligible for membership in the Lok Sabha, a person must be a citizen of India and must be 25 years of age or older, mentally sound, should not be bankrupt, and should not be criminally convicted. The total elective membership is distributed among the states in such a way that the ratio between the number of seats allotted to each state and the population of the state is, so far as practicable, the same for all states. [12]

Rajya Sabha
Main article: Rajya Sabha

Rajya Sabha (Council of States) or the upper house is a permanent body not subject to dissolution. One third of the members retire every second year, and are replaced by newly elected members. Each member is elected for a term of six years.[13] Its members are indirectly elected by members of legislative bodies of the states. The Rajya Sabha can have a maximum of 250 members. It currently has a sanctioned strength of 245 members, of which 233 are elected from States and Union Territories and 12 are nominated by the President. The number of members from a state depends on its population. The minimum age for a person to become a member of Rajya Sabha is 30 years.

Session of Parliament

The period during which the House meets to conduct its business is called a session. The Constitution empowers the President to summon each House at such intervals that there should not be more than a six-month gap between the two sessions. Hence the Parliament must meet at least twice a year. In India, the Parliament conducts three sessions each year:[14]

  • Budget session: January/February to May
  • Monsoon session: July to August/September
  • Winter session: November to December

Lawmaking procedures
Main article: Lawmaking procedure in India

Legislative proposals are brought before either house of the Parliament in the form of a bill. A bill is the draft of a legislative proposal, which, when passed by both houses of Parliament and assented to by the President, becomes an Act of Parliament. Money bills must originate in the Lok Sabha. The Council of States can only make recommendations over the bills to the House, within a period of fourteen days.[15]

Parliamentary committees
Main article: List of Indian parliamentary committees

Parliamentary committees are formed to deliberate specific matters at length. The public is directly or indirectly associated and studies are conducted to help committees arrive at the conclusions. Parliamentary committees are of two kinds: Ad hoc committees and the Standing committees.[16][17][18]

Standing committees are permanent committees constituted from time to time in pursuance of the provisions of an act of Parliament or rules of procedure and conduct of business in Parliament. The work of these committees is of a continuing nature. Ad hoc committees are appointed for a specific purpose and they cease to exist when they finish the task assigned to them and submits a report.

Incidents
Main article: 2001 Indian Parliament attack

On 13 December 2001, Indian Parliament was attacked by an Islamic terrorist group. The perpetrators were Lashkar-e-Taiba (Let) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorists. The attack led to the deaths of five terrorists, six Delhi Police personnel, two Parliament Security Services personnel, and a gardener, which totalled 14 fatalities. The incident led to increased tensions between India and Pakistan, resulting in the India–Pakistan standoff.[19]

Joint Sessions and debates

On 16 November 2016, during the winter session of Indian Parliament, the sittings in both Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament observed strong opposition and uproar by political parties on demonetisation (note ban) initiative by the Narendra Modi Government.

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See also

References
  1. "Live: Ram Nath Kovind becomes the 14th President of India". The Hindu. New Delhi, India. 25 July 2017. Archived from the original on 25 July 2017.
  2. "Venkaiah Naidu sworn in as Vice-President". The Hindu. New Delhi, India. 11 August 2017. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014.
  3. "Harivansh Narayan Singh: Changemaker in Rajya Sabha". 10 August 2018.
  4. "Thawar Chand Gehlot appointed Leader of House for Rajya Sabha; Piyush Goyal to be Deputy Leader of Upper House". Firstpost. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  5. "Om Birla unanimously elected Lok Sabha Speaker, PM Modi heaps praises on BJP colleague". India Today. 19 June 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  6. "Narendra Modi is sworn in as the 15th Prime Minister of India". The Times of India. 26 May 2014. Archived from the original on 6 September 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
  7. "History of the Parliament, Delhi". delhiassembly.nic.in. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  8. "Delhi may see a new Parliament building". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 13 July 2012. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  9. Firstpost (13 July 2012). "Speaker sets up panel to suggest new home for Parliament". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 11 August 2012. Retrieved 15 August 2012.
  10. Constitution of India (PDF). Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India. 1 December 2007. p. 26. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 September 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  11. "Anglo Indian Representation To Lok Sabha, State Assemblies Done Away; SC-ST Reservation Extended For 10 Years: Constitution (104th Amendment) Act To Come Into Force On 25th Jan". www.livelaw.in. 23 January 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  12. "Lok Sabha". parliamentofindia.nic.in. Archived from the original on 1 June 2015. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  13. "Parliament – Government: National Portal of India". Home: National Portal of India. Archived from the original on 30 April 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  14. "Our Parliament" (PDF). New Delhi: Lok Sabha Secretariat. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 September 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  15. "How bill becomes act". parliamentofindia.nic.in. Archived from the original on 16 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  16. Parliamentary Committee. "Parliament of India". Indian Parliament. Archived from the original on 24 July 2012.
  17. Committees of Rajya Sabha. "General Information". Rajya Sabha Secretariat. Archived from the original on 20 September 2012.
  18. Lok Sabha - Committee Home. "Introduction". Lok Sabha Secretariat. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016.
  19. "Terrorists attack Parliament; five intruders, six cops killed". rediff.com. 13 December 2001. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.

Further reading
  • "The Parliamentary System" by Arun Shourie, Publisher: Rupa & Co
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