HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW
It is essential to know the process through
which a bill has to pass before it becomes a law in Union Parliament. Bills are
of two types :
(a)
Ordinary Bills, and (b) Money Bills.
(A) Passing of Ordinary
Bills
Ordinary Bills consist of those bills in which
money is not involved in any way. The decision whether a bill is a Money Bill
or otherwise rests entirely with the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. A bill has to
pass through the following stages before it becomes an Act :
(1) Introduction
: With a prior notice of at least 30 days in
case of a private member's Bill but without any notice in case of a Government Bill,
the person seeks to introduce the bill is called upon by the Speaker of the
House to explain the aims and objectives of the bill and to ask for the leave
of the House to introduce it. It should be
remembered here that an Ordinary Bill can be initiated in either of the two
Houses of Parliament. After the initiator has spoken, a discussion follows.
Then the request for introduction of the bill is put to vote. It is more
than often that a private member’s bill is rejected because of opposition from
the Government. If the House votes in favour of the bill, the initiator
formally introduces it.
(2) Select
Committee Stage : Like the Select Committee of
the British Parliament, our Parliament has also a provision for the bills to be
considered by a Select Committee before it could be considered by the House for
passage. But unlike the British convention, only a few very important bill go
to the Committee stage. Most of the bills are directly taken up by the House.
The bills that go to the Committee are reported back to the House on a
prescribed date by the Chairman of the Committee.
(3) Second Reading : This is the stage when the bill is debated clause by clause, amendments
to it are proposed and included, and each clause is passed by a majority vote.
(4) Third Reading : The third reading of the bill is just a formality. Members can speak for
or against the bill as a whole. Discussion on various clauses of the bill
cannot be reopened. The bill is then passed or rejected as a whole by a
majority vote of the House and it receives the signatures of the Chairman of
the House to the effect. Thereafter. It is sent to the other House.
The bill goes through all the aforesaid stages
in the Second Chamber. If the bill is passed, as it was, in the Second House
also, it is forwarded with the signatures of the Chairman to the President for
his assent.
(5) The President’s Assent : A bill passed by both the Houses of the Parliament is then sent to the
President. A bill, so received by the Parliament, can receive the following
treatment at his hands :
(a) He may give his assent. Thus, the bill becomes
a law.
(b) He may reject it outright and send it
back to the Parliament. In such a case, if the Parliament passes the bill,
as it was, for the second time, the President cannot withhold his consent. It
becomes a law with his signatures.
(c) He may propose certain changes, additions
or deletions to the bill and return it to the Parliament. But the Parliament is
not bound to accept them. If it does, well and good. but if it does not
accept the changes and passes the bill, as it was, once again, the President is
obliged to sign it to make a law.
(B) Passing of Money Bills/Budget
Annual Budget of the country or that of a State
and every bill that envisages levy of taxes and/or some expenditure by the
Government is called a Money Bill. The decision of the Speaker. whether a
particular bill is a Money Bill or an Ordinary Bill, is always taken as final.
The procedure adopted for the passage of the
Money Bill is slightly different from that adopted for Ordinary Bills. The main
point to be, remembered in this context is that a Monev Bill cannot be
initiated in the Rajya Sabha. The following is the procedure for the passage of
a Money Bill :
(1) Prior Presidential Approval : A Money Bill can be introduced only when it has been accorded the approval
by the President. Constitutionally speaking, it is the President himself who
gets a Money Bill introduced through the government.
(2) Introduction : A Money Bill is generally introduced in the Lok Sabha by the Finance
Minister. He makes a Policy Statement regarding finance on that occasion. The
Opposition is also free to speak on these matters.
(3) Second Reading : As in the case of Ordinary Bills, an itemwise discussion on the bill
takes place. Amendments are proposed and voted in respect of each item. In this
way, the whole of the bill is cleared.
(4) Third Reading : The Third Reading is only a formality. Members can recommend or criticize
the policy matters and provisions of the bill, as a whole. A majority vote
decides the passage or rejection of the bill. Here we should remember that
rejection of a Money Bill amounts to no-confidence in the Government. Hence,
its passage is always a foregone conclusion.
(5) Money Bill in the Rajya Sabha : After its clearance in the Lok Sabha, a Money Bill is sent to the
Rajya Sabha which is allowed 14 days.
During this period, the Rajya Sabha :
(a)
may pass it,
(b)
may reject it,
(c)
may propose certain amendments to it and return it to the
Lok Sabha.
(d)
may just sit over it.
If amendments are proposed, the Lok Sabha
reviews them. But it is not binding on it to accept them. In case of a
difference, there is no provision for a joint session. The opinion of the Lok
Sabha prevails in such a situation. After the lapse of four days, the bill is
deemed to be passed and sent for the President’s assent. The assent of the
President is never withheld as a Money Bill has prior approval of the
President.
