The Parliament of India

The Parliament of India is a part of the Indian government. The Union Parliament of the country is the legislative body that has supreme power. The main function of the parliament is to ensure the formulation and regulation of different laws and rules in the country. In this article, we will learn about the Indian Parliament and its functions along with some other details.

What is Parliament of India?

The Indian parliament is basically a particular type of bicameral legislature that consists of two different houses. These houses are known as the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Article 79 of the Constitution of India says that, "There shall be a Parliament for the Union which shall consist of the President and two Houses to be known respectively as the council of States and the House of the People."

Together, these houses participate in the country's affairs and help in the formulation of the laws and rules that are to be obeyed by the citizens of the country.

The Lok Sabha is known as the House of the People. The members of the Lok Sabha are said to be directly elected by the common people of the country through the process of elections and voting. Hence, the people of the country have a say in which members should and shouldn’t be allowed to have a seat at the Lok Sabha.

The Rajya Sabha, on the other hand, which is known as the Council of States commonly consists of the members that are selected from the legislative assemblies of the states as well as the Union territories. The main members of the parliament include the people who are a part of these 2 different houses as well as the President of India.

Functions of The Parliament House

The main functions that the Indian parliament has been specifically mentioned in Chapter II of Part V that is a part of the Indian Constitution. There are several heads of the functions that are fulfilled by the parliament and all of them are mentioned below in detail.

The major function of the Parliament is said to be the legislation. It acted as the supreme law making body of the country and made laws for the requirements of the country. It does not only make new laws but also rectifies and edits the previous laws as well. On the other hand, it is the only body which has the power to amend the Constitution of India.

The parliament of our country is involved in the legislation of different matters that have a mention in the Concurrent list as well as the Union List. In the case of the concurrent list, the state legislatures, as well as the parliament, tend to have a joint type of jurisdiction. However, the main law is the union law that prevails over the state unless there is some sort of state law that has a better presidential assent. The parliament is also allowed to pass several laws on different items that are on the State list under certain circumstances.

When it comes to the Parliamentary type of government, the legislature has more responsibilities than the executive. On the other hand, we also can say that the executive is said to be responsible to the legislature. Hence, the parliament tends to have more control over different matters, even more than the executive as well.

In case there is a case of the vote without confidence or no confidence motion; the parliament members will easily be able to remove the Executive or the Cabinet out of their power. Not to mention that the members will also be able to make rejections in the case of budget proposals that are brought to them from the Cabinet.

Although it is only allowed in the Lok Sabha or the House of the People, the main objective of the motion of adjournment is to draw the attention of the parliament regarding any topic that is recent and will be an interest to the public. This is a very extraordinary tool that the parliament has in terms of normal business.

The members of parliament will be able to ask certain questions to different ministers on their commissions and omissions. If there are any lapses in the government, then it will be readily exposed to the parliament as well.

There are some financial responsibilities as well. Without the approval of the parliament, the executive body is not allowed to make any monetary decisions. In the case of the Union Budget, while the Cabinet is responsible for the formation of it, the Parliament has to provide its approval. All the different proposals related to the imposing of taxes also need the approval of the Indian Parliament members. Parliament is the ultimate authority when it comes to finances. The Executive cannot spend a single pie without parliamentary approval.

The parliament also has a role to play in the election of the Vice President as well as the President of the country. The electoral college of the country that is responsible for the election of the President, includes the elected members of the two houses of the Parliament as well as the legislative assemblies of the States and the Union Territories. Not to mention that the President of the Country of India can be easily removed in case there is a resolution that is passed by the Council of States and it is accepted by the Lok Sabha. This particular resolution is passed by following the impeachment process.

The parliament also has the right to punish the members of the different houses in case there are any breaches in the privileges that have been provided to them. Thus, the parliament also has judicial powers as well.

Besides these functions, the parliament can also remove the major officials as well by following a removal procedure in the Parliament. For example, removal of Judges of the Supreme Court as well as High Court, the CAG, Chairman as well as Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and Speaker as well as Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Chairman of the UPSC, etc.

Conclusion

There are a number of major functions that the parliament of India performs and it can be said without a doubt that it is one of the most important inclusions to the Indian constitution. It is undoubtedly a supreme law making body which makes certain decisions as per the requirements of the country. The parliament also represents the voice of the people thus we can say that law making is done by the people of the country and that too for the people of the country.