Role of Parliament in India

The Role of parliament in India is important in shaping the nation’s democracy, ensuring government accountability, and maintaining a system of checks and balances. Read this article to know all about the various function and role of Indian Parliament. The Indian Parliament is the central hub of the nation’s political and administrative framework, responsible for a variety of vital functions. It holds significant legislative, executive, financial, constituent, judicial, electoral, and other powers, handling India’s overall governance. In this article, you will learn about various powers and function of parliament. The Role of Parliament in Indian polity is very important topic for GS Paper-2 Polity & Governance of UPSC CSE Exam. To explore more interesting UPSC Polity Class 8 and Class 9 concepts similar to Role of parliament in India, check out other articles of IASToppers. 

Table of Content

• What is the role of parliament in India?
• Legislative Powers and Functions
• Executive Powers and Functions
• Financial Powers and Functions
• Constituent Powers and Functions
• Judicial Powers and Functions
• Electoral Powers and Functions
• Other Powers and Functions
• Conclusion
• FAQs on Functions of Parliament

What is the role of parliament in India?

The Indian Parliament serves as the heart of the country’s political and administrative structure, carrying out multiple tasks and wielding considerable influence. Its constitutionally mandated responsibilities and rights can be divided into the following sections:

• Legislative Powers and Functions
• Executive Powers and Functions
• Financial Powers and Functions
• Constituent Powers and Functions
• Judicial Powers and Functions
• Electoral Powers and Functions
• Other powers and functions

Legislative Powers and Functions

• The primary responsibility of the Indian Parliament is to create laws to govern the nation.
• It holds the exclusive right to legislate on topics listed in the Union List and on any residual topics, i.e., subjects not included in any of the three lists.
• When it comes to the Concurrent List, the Parliament’s law takes precedence over any conflicting state legislature.
• The Constitution of India also grants the Parliament the right to legislate on subjects in the State List under certain exceptional situations:
  • Upon passing a resolution by the Rajya Sabha.
  • During the declaration of a National Emergency.
  • When two or more states make a joint request to the Parliament.
  • To uphold international agreements, treaties, and conventions.
  • During the implementation of the President’s Rule in a state.
• Every presidential ordinance (released during the Parliament’s recess) must gain Parliament’s approval within six weeks of its reassembly.
  • If the Parliament doesn’t approve an ordinance within this time frame, it becomes void.
• The Parliament drafts laws in a foundational form, enabling the Executive to establish detailed rules and regulations within the primary law’s boundaries.
• This process is referred to as delegated legislation or executive legislation or subordinate legislation. The Parliament then reviews these rules and regulations.

Executive Powers and Functions

India’s Constitution underpins a system of parliamentary governance wherein the Executive is answerable to the Parliament for its actions and policy-making decisions. To elaborate:

• Parliamentary control is exercised over the Executive’s activities using several tools, including question hour, zero-hour, half-hour discussion, short duration debate, motions such as calling attention, adjournment, no-confidence, censure, and other discussions.
• The Parliament additionally keeps an eye on the Executive’s undertakings through various parliamentary committees.

Accountability of Ministers

• In the Indian parliamentary system, ministers owe their accountability to the Parliament at large and to the Lok Sabha specifically.
• Each minister holds individual responsibility for the efficient functioning of their respective ministry as part of their collective responsibility.
• The tenure of the ministers depends on their continued acceptance by the majority of Lok Sabha members.
  • In other words, a vote of no-confidence passed by the Lok Sabha can lead to the removal of the council of ministers.

Expressing Lack of Confidence in the Government

The Lok Sabha can indicate its lack of trust in the government through various means such as:

• Declining to pass a vote of thanks on the President’s inaugural speech.
• Denying a money bill.
• Passing either a censure motion or an adjournment motion.
• Defeating the government on a crucial issue.
• Passing a cut motion.

Parliament’s Key Role in Government Formation

• The Parliament’s primary role involves selecting the group that will form the government, maintaining its support as long as it holds its confidence, and displacing it when this confidence wanes.
• Consequently, the decision on who forms the next government is left to the citizens in the next general election.

Financial Powers and Functions

The Executive branch in India cannot impose or collect any taxes, nor can it incur any expenditure without the Parliament’s authority and consent. This is how it works:

• The budget, which legitimizes the government’s income and expenditure for the upcoming fiscal year, is submitted to the Parliament for approval.
• The Parliament also monitors the government’s financial operations and expenditures with the assistance of its financial committees.
  • These include the Public Accounts Committee, the Estimates Committee, and the Committee on Public Undertakings.
• These committees investigate and report instances of illegal, improper, unauthorized, and wasteful public expenditure.

Two-Stage Financial Oversight by Parliament

Parliamentary oversight over the Executive’s financial matters occurs in two phases:

• Pre-budget control: This involves controlling the appropriation of grants through the passage of the budget.
• Post-budget control: After the allocation of grants, this phase of control is executed through the three financial committees.

The Principle of Annuity in Budgeting

The budget is based on the principle of annuity, meaning:

• The Parliament grants money to the government for one fiscal year.
• Unspent funds at the end of the fiscal year are returned to the Consolidated Fund of India, a practice known as the ‘rule of lapse’.
• This rule ensures effective financial control by the Parliament, as no reserve funds can be created without its approval. However, this rule also leads to a surge in expenditure towards the end of the financial year, commonly known as ‘March Rush’.

Constituent Powers and Functions

• The Parliament holds the authority to make modifications to the Constitution, including introducing, altering, or revoking any clause.

Principal Types of Constitutional Amendments

• The Parliament can undertake most amendments to the Constitution by utilizing a special majority.
  • This requires a majority from the total members of each House, and at least two-thirds of the members who are present and voting in each House.
• Other parts of the Constitution can be amended by the Parliament using a simple majority – majority of the members present and voting in each House of Parliament.

Initiation of Constitutional Amendments

• The power to initiate any amendment to the Constitution solely resides with the Parliament, not the state legislature.
• Exception to this rule: A state legislature can put forth a resolution asking the Parliament to either establish or dissolve the legislative council in the state.
• Following such a resolution, the Parliament enacts a law to amend the Constitution as required.

Key Modes of Constitutional Amendments

In conclusion, the Parliament can employ three distinct modes to amend the Constitution:

1. By simple majority
2. By special majority
3. By special majority, with approval of half of all state legislatures

Limits on the Parliament’s Constituent Powers

• This means that Parliament has the authority to alter any clause of the Constitution, provided it does not affect the ‘basic structure’ of the Constitution.
• This principle was established by the Supreme Court in the Kesavananda Bharati case in 1973 and reinforced in the Minerva Mills case in 1980.

Judicial Powers and Functions

• The Parliament holds the legal capacity to impeach the President if there are breaches of the Constitution.
• Parliament can also dismiss the Vice-President from his official role.
• Parliament can suggest the dismissal of certain key officials such as: Supreme Court and High Court judges (including the Chief Justice), the Chief Election Commissioner, and Comptroller and Auditor General, with the recommendations forwarded to the President.
• If any Parliament member or non-member violates its privileges or shows contempt, the Parliament holds the right to impose penalties.

Electoral Powers and Functions

• In the process of electing the President, the Parliament collaborates with state legislative assemblies.
• Parliament is also in charge of the election of the Vice-President.
• Lok Sabha is responsible for electing its own Speaker and Deputy Speaker. Similarly, the Rajya Sabha elects its Deputy Chairman.
• Parliament holds the authority to create regulations related to the elections for the positions of President and Vice-President, members of both Parliament house, and also members of both the state legislative houses.
• Exercising this legislative power, the Parliament has enacted several laws, such as the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Election Act (1952), the Representation of People Act (1950), and the Representation of People Act (1951).

Other Powers and Functions

• The Parliament operates as the highest deliberative body for discussion in the nation, where matters of national and international relevance are debated.
• It is tasked with the approval of all three kinds of emergencies – national, state, and financial – which are declared by the President.
• The Parliament holds the authority to form or dissolve state legislative councils, but this must be based on recommendations from the respective state legislative assemblies.
• It has the power to modify the geography and nomenclature of states within the Indian Union. This includes enlarging or reducing the area of states, altering their boundaries, and even renaming states.
• The Parliament also oversees the structural and jurisdictional aspects of the Supreme Court and High Courts. It also has authority to establish a shared High Court for two or more states.

Conclusion

The Indian Parliament, being the apex legislative body, plays a multifunctional role in shaping the nation’s governance and constitutional structure. In nutshell, the indispensable role of Parliament in Indian democracy is to ensure a democratic framework where the executive remains answerable, financial integrity is maintained, constitutional amendments are made when needed, justice is upheld, and smooth electoral processes are carried out.

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