How the budget session let down the spirit of parliamentary democracy – Hindustan Times
Poor planning and check-marking of the law-making process are the troubling highlights of the budget session of Parliament. These are not new in the highest legislative bodys functioning. But they are now bordering on becoming routine.
Last year, the pandemic derailed parliamentary functioning. So after a hiatus of four months, Parliament convened at the end of January for the budget session. The plan was for the two Houses to meet for 33 days. Instead, the session was cut short to 24 days. Political parties joined hands, asking for curtailing the session to campaign in the upcoming five assembly elections.
Ideally, the parliamentary calendar should be sacrosanct and its dates planned in advance. And this requires planning on part of the government, which is entrusted by the Constitution with convening Parliament. The approximate time-frame of assembly elections is known well in advance. For example, the tenure of the Punjab, Goa and Manipur assemblies will end in March next year. So elections will take place in these states in February and March 2022, clashing with next years budget session. So the dates for the session can be decided now and such planning will ensure that the sittings of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha dont have to be cut short.
Since campaigning was heating up in the second half of the budget session, the benches in the two Houses were empty. Several Members of Parliament (MPs) did not turn up in Question Hour to get responses from government ministers. Average attendance in the Lok Sabha dipped to 71% and in the Rajya Sabha to 74%.
But this careful planning of the parliamentary calendar has been missing in successive governments. In 2001, during the term of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayees government, the budget session was cut short by eight days due to state elections in five states. Again in 2011, the budget session had to be cut short because of state elections during Prime Minister Manmohan Singhs tenure.
Governments legislative business also suffered because of the absence of planning. Last October, when Parliament was not in session and immediate action was required, the government used its ordinance-making power to set up a commission for air quality management for the national capital region. The ordinance was brought in because immediate action was required. But during the budget session, the government missed the deadline for getting parliamentary approval for the commission. As a result, the commission had to be disbanded. The government was also planning to introduce 19 new bills during the session. But, by the end of the session, it could only bring 13 bills before Parliament.
The other worrying aspect of the session was the lack of scrutiny of government legislation in Parliament. Since laws have a large impact on society and address legal and policy issues, they require careful consideration by subject-specific parliamentary committees. A short three-page amendment to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act passed during the session illustrates this point. Introduced last year in March, it increases the period in which abortions may be carried out to 24 weeks (age of the foetus) . It has implications for abortions for victims of sexual violence after the 24-week period. The law requires abortions to be performed by doctors with specialisation in gynaecology or obstetrics and there is a shortage of such doctors in rural areas. So it also raises the issue of access to safe abortions in rural areas.
Scrutiny by a committee, with inputs from the government and other stakeholders, would have ironed out these issues. So far, in the Lok Sabha, 11% of the bills passed by Parliament were examined by a subject committee. In the budget session, the government turned down multiple demands for sending bills to committees and it took Parliament an average of 10 days to pass the 11 bills.
The session saw Parliament doing a lot of work. But effective legislatures are measured by their outcomes and not by their output. It is time for the government and Opposition parties to prioritise their legislative responsibilities. Because better outcomes are a result of careful planning and robust mechanisms of scrutiny. Such measures will affirm peoples trust in Parliament and strengthen the foundation of our democracy.
Chakshu Roy is the head of legislative and civic engagement, PRS Legislative Research
The views expressed are personal
The rest is here:
How the budget session let down the spirit of parliamentary democracy - Hindustan Times
- Protests are the last thing keeping Turkeys democracy alive - The Economist - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Ive never seen such clampdowns in Istanbul. Turkeys democracy is fighting for its life | Orhan Pamuk - The Guardian - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Democracy is more than rules and institutions, its a way of life - The Conversation - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Voters Need to Know What Redboxing Is and How It Undermines Democracy - Campaign Legal Center - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Trumps Latest Executive Order is a Shamand a Warning - Democracy Docket - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- How the Fight for American Democracy Can Start with Unions - Progressive.org - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- US swing toward autocracy doesnt have to be permanent but swinging back to democracy requires vigilance, stamina and elections - The Conversation - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Donald Trumps chilling effect on free speech and dissent is threatening US democracy - The Conversation - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes - Paul Krugman and Zachary D. Carter in Conversation - CUNY Graduate Center - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Hip-Hop Star Macklemore on New Film The Encampments & Why He Speaks Out Against Israels War on Gaza - Democracy Now! - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Why Elon Musk, GOP Are Trying to Buy the Wisconsin Supreme Court Election - Democracy Docket - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Free Inquiry & Expression and the Future of Democracy Series Continues March 27 - Stetson University - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Arkansas AG rejects proposed ballot measure to amend states direct democracy process - Arkansas Advocate - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Our Voice: Threats to Democracy, From Oopsie Too late, to Ignoring Classified Communications - The Ark Valley Voice - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- For the sake of US democracy, its time for Chuck Schumer to step down | Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin - The Guardian - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- To Build a Better Democracy, Start by Rethinking Your Relationship to the Internet - Tech Policy Press - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Duluth Residents Share Concerns at a Town Hall Hosted by Practicing Democracy - FOX 21 Online - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- GOP Slammed Bidens Voting Order as Federal Overreach But Praised Trumps - Democracy Docket - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Democracy in Action group to host Hixson town hall for lawmakers Blackburn, Fleischmann and Hagerty - Chattanooga Times Free Press - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Pro-Beijing Chinese Influencers Kicked Out in Test for Small Democracy - Newsweek - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Comments - This Week in Democracy Week 10: Trump Brags About Institutions 'Bending' to His Will - Zeteo - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- The frog of democracy is nearly boiled. We can still jump out of the pot - The Philadelphia Inquirer - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Fear and anger as 'battle for the soul of Romanian democracy' looms - BBC.com - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Erdogans crackdown: Turkey and the fight for democracy - European Council on Foreign Relations - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- ICYMI: Democracy Forward Challenges Trumps Executive Overreach and Attacks on Legal System - Democracy Forward - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Mourning Democracy, Professors Lambast Columbia Administrators for Submitting to Trump - The Chronicle of Higher Education - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- SCOTUS Hears Latest Conservative Assault on the Voting Rights Act - Democracy Docket - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Civics Education Is About More Than Elections Its the Foundation of Democracy - The 74 - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Avoiding your neighbor because of how they voted? Democracy needs you to talk to them instead - The Conversation Indonesia - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Chicago priests warn about growing Trump threats to immigrants and democracy - People's World - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Trump is abandoning democracy and freedom. That creates an opening for Europe and Britain | Jonathan Freedland - The Guardian - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Poll: 63% of public fears for Israeli democracy as government votes to fire Shin Bet head - The Times of Israel - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- In a true democracy Netanyahu has the right to remove the head of the Shin Bet - Ynetnews - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Purple reign: NCs history of split-ticket voting is democracy working - Carolinacoastonline - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- Do You Want to Fight Back Against Elon Musks Attack on our Democracy? - Shepherd Express - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- 'This game is not over ... our democracy is worth fighting for' is Rep. Summer Lee's rallying cry at Hill District town hall - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - March 25th, 2025 [March 25th, 2025]
- When Did We Decide That Democracy and Improving Peoples Lives Contradicted Each Other? - Esquire - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- An Unprecedented, Breathtaking Assault on American Democracy: LWV Responds to Trump Administrations First 60 Days - League of Women Voters - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Opinion | Dont count on the courts to save democracy - The Washington Post - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Video. We need to improve democracy, Lech Wasa says - Euronews - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- DOGEs USAID Takeover Likely Violated the Constitution, Judge Says - Democracy Docket - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Commentary: California sheriffs are becoming MAGA allies and threatening democracy - Stocktonia News - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- The End of US Democracy and the Implications for International Relations - E-International Relations - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Why Indonesias new military law is alarming pro-democracy activists and rights groups - The Associated Press - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Breaking Social Security: Trump & Musk Move Ahead with Plan to Cut Agency Staff & Services - Democracy Now! - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Chris Murphy: 'If We Continue to Engage in Business as Usual, This Democracy Could Be Gone' - Rolling Stone - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- House Of Lords Thrown Into 'Chaos' As Democracy Protesters Bring Debate To A Halt - Yahoo News UK - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Unchaining Venezuela: a struggle for democracy - The London School of Economics and Political Science - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Murkowski says Trump is testing the institutions of democracy - KTOO - March 20th, 2025 [March 20th, 2025]
- Democrats grapple with Trump, democracy and an argument that didnt work - The Hill - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Trumps Cuts to Democracy Promotion Like the NED Already Hit Asian Organizations Hard - Council on Foreign Relations - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- A Slim Majority of Voters Think U.S. Democracy Is Currently Working Well - Data For Progress - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Ken Roth on Israels Starvation Strategy in Gaza & Righting Wrongs of Abusive Governments - Democracy Now! - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- African Democracy Is in Retreat. That's a Problem for America | Opinion - Newsweek - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Political science department hosts discussion on the state of U.S. democracy - The Collegian University of Richmond - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Join Light For Our Democracy - Marblehead Current - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Polish democracy hero Wasa says Trumps treatment of Zelenskyy filled him with horror - The Associated Press - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Trumps War Against Democracy and the Rules-Based World Order - The Globalist - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Authoritarianism expert weighs in on Trump, Musk and the fate of U.S. democracy | Here & Now - WBUR News - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Letter: Do we have any way to save our besieged democracy? - Yakima Herald-Republic - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- The Freak Show: Our Democracy Is Being Dismantled Right Before Our Eyes - Aquarian Weekly - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Mayor Johnson heads to Washington to be grilled on immigration. GOP should focus on democracy instead. - Chicago Sun-Times - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Democracy that works - Anhui News - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Trumps moves test the limits of presidential power and the resilience of US democracy - The Associated Press - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Passing SAVE Act Would Be Taking a Chainsaw to Democracy - Democracy Docket - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Just 6% of the worlds population live in a full democracy, new report claims - The Independent - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Bezos, Billionaires and Bibi: Democracy and the Free Press Are Shrinking - Haaretz - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- California to launch first-in-the-nation digital democracy effort to improve public engagement - Office of Governor Gavin Newsom - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Defending American arts, culture, and democracy - Brookings Institution - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- European Reactions to the U.S. Retreat From Democracy - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Urge Your Members of Congress to Stand Up for Democracy - League of Women Voters - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- A Protest, a Phone Call, and the Power of Democracy - LGBTQ Victory Institute - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- This Week in Democracy - Week 6: Chaos in the Oval, Attacks on the Press, and What Did you Accomplish Last Week - Zeteo - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Defining Oligarchy: The Fusion of Wealth and Power in American Democracy - Baylor University - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Opinion | The Worst Existential Threat to American Democracy Is Already Here: Voter Suppression - Common Dreams - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Democracy in the crosshairs - IPS Journal - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Separation of powers and democracy under threat in US - MSR News Online - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Extended Interview: Mark Graham on Internet Archives Work Preserving the Web as Govt Sites Go Dark - Democracy Now! - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Wayback Machine Saves Thousands of Federal Webpages Amid Purge of Government Data Under Trump - Democracy Now! - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]
- Human Rights and Democracy in the Quantum Age - Just Security - March 1st, 2025 [March 1st, 2025]