Introduction
Parliament is the cornerstone of India's representative democracy, mandated to hold the executive accountable, debate policy choices, and ensure legislative rigor. However, institutional trends in recent years reflect an erosion of deliberative scrutiny, robust representation, and systemic checks and balances.
Key Instances Reflecting the Decline in Parliamentary Functioning
- Bypassing Committee Scrutiny: Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committees provide non-partisan, clause-by-clause scrutiny of legislation. According to PRS Legislative Research, only 16% of bills in the 17th Lok Sabha were referred to committees, a stark drop from 71% in the 15th Lok Sabha and 60% in the 14th Lok Sabha.
- Dilution of Financial Oversight (Article 113): The passage of the Union Budget increasingly lacks comprehensive scrutiny. Nearly 90% of the Demands for Grants are routinely 'guillotined'—passed en bloc without discussion or debate across respective ministries.
- Circumvention through Money Bills (Article 110): The executive has used the Money Bill classification to bypass the Rajya Sabha on contentious substantive legislations. The Supreme Court highlighted the limits of Speaker certification under Article 110 in K.S. Puttaswamy and referred the question to a larger bench in Rojer Mathew v. Union of India.
- Constitutional Omissions regarding Presiding Officers (Article 93): The 17th Lok Sabha completed its full five-year tenure without electing a Deputy Speaker, leaving a constitutional office vacant and undermining conventions that ensure bi-partisan leadership of the House.
- Diminishing Space for Opposition and Dissent (Article 105): The routine disruption or shortening of Question Hour and unprecedented mass suspensions—such as the suspension of 146 MPs during the 2023 Winter Session—limit representative accountability. Furthermore, prolonged delays by Speakers in adjudicating Tenth Schedule disqualification petitions have undercut the anti-defection framework outlined in Kihoto Hollohan.
Key Reforms to Reinvigorate Parliament
- Mandatory Legislative Scrutiny: Institutionalize mandatory referral of all substantive bills to Parliamentary Committees before enactment, as recommended by the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC).
- Independent Tribunal for Defections: Relieve the Speaker of adjudicatory powers under the Tenth Schedule and vest them in an independent quasi-judicial tribunal, as suggested by the Supreme Court in Keisham Meghachandra Singh (2020).
- Guaranteed Financial Debates: Mandate a minimum threshold of sitting days specifically earmarked for debating Demands for Grants, curbing arbitrary reliance on the guillotine.
- Institutional Conventions: Codify conventions ensuring the timely election of the Deputy Speaker from the opposition bench to preserve procedural balance.
Conclusion
Revitalizing Parliament's role requires adherence to constitutional morality and structural procedural reforms. Ensuring mandatory committee scrutiny and safeguarding minority rights inside the House are vital to re-establishing Parliament as the supreme forum of deliberative democracy and executive accountability.