CHAPTER-VII

PROCESSING AND PASSING IN THE STATE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY AND ^{PROCEDURE IN FINANCIAL MATTERS APPROPRIATION BILLS}

^{20. Inclusion of the agenda and motion for introduction and publication of the Bill: The business of the Legislative Assembly is arranged by the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Bills are put down on the agenda for introduction on suitable days. No Bill can be included for the introduction in the List of Business for a day, until copies thereof are made available} for the use of Members at least two days before the day on which it is proposed to be introduced. The Appropriation Bills, Finance Bills and such Secret Bills as on the request of the Minister-in-Charge of the Bill are presented by the Speaker to be introduced without making available the copies of the Bills to the Members, may be introduced earlier than two days after its circulation or even without prior circulation. Where the Minister desires that the Bill be introduced earlier than two days after the circulation of copies or even without prior circulation , he is to give full reasons in a memorandum for the consideration of the Speaker explaining as to why the Bill is sought to be introduced without making available to the Members copies thereof in advance. Once it is known that certain Bills are likely to come up for any kind of consideration the Business Advisory Committee comprised of Members of Assembly allot a time limit for each of the Bills and every attempt is made by the House to adhere to the time schedule. On the specified day, the Minister-in-Charge of the Bill moves a motion for leave to introduce the Bill and the motion is not ordinarily opposed. Where a motion is opposed on the ground that the Bill initiates legislation outside the legislative competence of the House, the Speaker may permit full discussion thereon. As soon as may be after the Bill has been introduced, it is published in the Official Gazette; but it is possible for a Bill to be published earlier in the Official Gazette, if the Speaker, on a request being made to him, orders the publication of the Bill in the Official Gazette before any motion is made. In such a case it is not necessary to make a motion for leave to introduce the Bill or to publish it again in the Official Gazette.

21. Motions in relation to Bills: After copies of the Bill have been made available to the House and the Bill is to be introduced, it is open to the Member-in-Charge to make one f the following motions in respect of the Bill, namely:-

(1) that it be taken into consideration; or

(2) that it be referred to a Select Committee of the House; or

(3) that it be circulated for the purpose of eliciting public opinion thereon.

No motion can be made unless the copies of the Bill have been made available to Members for three clear days before the day on which the motion is to be made.

When any of the above motions is moved, the principle of the Bill and its provisions are discussed generally, but no amendments are moved at this stage. But if the Minister-in-Charge moves the Bill be taken into consideration, any member may move an amendment that it be referred to a Select Committee or that it be circulated for eliciting public opinion. When a Bill is circulated for public opinion the next motion to be made after obtaining public opinion is generally for a Select Committee.

22. Functions of the Draftsman in Select Committee: If a Bill is referred to a Select Committee the Draftsman who prepared the Bill attends all meetings thereof and is responsible for revising the Bill in the light of the decisions taken at the meetings of the Committee. Although not a Member of the Committee, the Draftsman is often permitted to take part in the proceedings thereof. When legal issues are involved. The procedure followed in the Select Committee is, as far as practicable, the same as that followed in the House during the consideration of a Bill. A record of decisions taken by the Committee is maintained in the Vidhan Sabha Secretariat. and is distributed to Members of the Committee soon after each meeting. The Committee has the power to examine witnesses or to call for documents, and is required under rules to present its report with the Bill as amended by it to the House within the time fixed in that behalf; if no time is fixed by the House, within three months from the date on which the motion for reference to the Select Committee was adopted. Although reports are prepared by the Vidhan Sabha Secretariat, but from the nature of things, that Secretariat will have to work in close collaboration with the Draftsman in drawing up the reports. Thereafter, the report and the Bill are published in the Official Gazette. To the copies of the report and the Bill as circulated to the Members of the House the minutes of the various meetings and minutes of dissent, if any, recorded by a Member under rule 268 of the Rules of Procedure are also appended.

After the presentation of the report to the Vidhan Sabha, the Member-in-charge may move that Bill as reported by the Select Committee be taken into consideration or that the Bill be re-committed or that it be re-circulated for the purpose of obtaining the public opinion or further public opinion as he may decide. The debate on the motion that the Bill as reported by the Select Committee be taken into consideration, is to be confined to the consideration of the report of the Select Committee and the matter referred to in that report or any alternative suggestions consistent with the principle of the Bill.

23. Amendments to Bills: When a Bill comes up before the Assembly for consideration, it is in its second reading stage consisting of clause by clause consideration of the Bill, as introduced or as reported by the Select Committee, as the case may be, and it is open to Members of the Assembly to move amendments. Rule 149 of the Rules of Procedure governs the admissibility of amendments. Broadly speaking, they should be within the scope of the Bill and relevant to the subject matter of the clause to which they relate.

Rule 148 of the Rules of Procedure provides for giving notice of an amendment by a Member 36 hours before the day on which the Bill is to be considered. This rule is designed with a view to giving the Minister concerned an opportunity of considering the amendments administratively or politically, and also to consult the Draftsman. The Draftsman is also generally available in the Official Gallery or Lobby during the progress of any Bill that he has drafted. In spite of these precautions, very often the progress of a Bill is so rapid that the Draftsman obtains no opportunity of examining the effect of any amendment proposed or of repairing any damage done by hasty acceptance of ill-drafted amendments. Moreover, a hastily drawn up amendments during the course of a haste decision in the Assembly may not always come right even if prepared or vetted by official Draftsman.

24. Third reading of a Bill: When all the clauses, schedules, if any, of the Bill have been considered and voted upon by the House, the Minister-in-charge moves that the Bill be passed with or without amendments. At this stage debate is confined to arguments either in the support of the Bill or its rejection, without referring to the details thereof further than is absolutely necessary. Only formal verbal or consequential amendments are allowed at this stage.

25. Presentation of budget: In respect of every financial year, the Governor causes to be laid before the State Legislative Assembly a "annual financial statement" or the estimated receipts and expenditure of the State Government, otherwise known as "the budget". The demands for grants are presented to the House, alongwith the budget statement. Each demand first gives totals of voted and charged expenditure as also the revenue and capital expenditure included in the demand separately and also the grand total of the amount of the expenditure for which demand is presented. This is followed by the statements of expenditure under different heads. The demands for grants are followed by the detailed demands for grants laid on the table of the House, sometime after the presentation of the budget, but before the discussion on demands for grants commences. So much of the estimates as relates to expenditure not charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State is submitted in the form of demands for grants to the House which has the power to assent, or to refuse to assent, to any demand, or to assent to any demand subject to the such reduction of the amount specified therein. But no demand for grant can be made except on the recommendations of the Governor, and the recommendations so obtained has to be communicated to the Vidhan Sabha Sectt. The budget is presented to the State Legislative Assembly on such date as the Governor directs. In an election year or to meet with peculiar situations, budget may be presented twice-first to secure a Vote on Account for the few months and latter in full. If the amount authorised to be expended for a particular service for the current financial year is found to be insufficient for the purposes of that year, or when a need has arisen during the current financial year for supplementary or additional expenditure upon some new services not contemplated in the budget for that year, or if any money is spent on any service during the financial year in excess of the amount granted for that service and for that year, the Governor causes to be laid before the Assembly another statement showing the estimated amount of that expenditure or causes to be presented to the Assembly on demand for such excess services as the case may be. The financial business culminating in the passing of the Appropriation Bills has to be completed in time, lest the Governmental machinery should come to standstill. The procedure in relation to financial matters is regulated by a set of Rules framed by the House, and thereafter the Speaker has been empowered to assure timely disposal of all financial business.

26. General discussion in the budget: No discussion on the budget takes place on the day it is presented to the Assembly. After the budget has been presented, the Speaker may appoint a day for commencement of its discussion which continues for such time as the Speaker may allot. and during this stage, the House is at liberty to discuss the budget as a whole or any question of principle involved therein, but no motion can be moved nor the budget is submitted to the vote for the House at this stage. The Finance Minister has the general right to reply at the end of the discussion.

27. Discussion on demands for grants: Demands for grants are not generally moved to the House by the Minister concerned. The demands are assumed to have been moved and are proposed from the Chair to save time of the House. At the stage of discussion on the demands for grants, the debate is essentially confined to a matter which is under the administrative control of the Department to which it relates and to each head of the demand as is put to the vote of the House. During the discussion on the demands for grants, it is open to Members to disapprove a policy pursued by a particular Department or to suggest measures of economy in the administration of that Department or to focus attention of the Department to specific local grievances.

While discussing the demands for grants motion can be moved to reduce any demand for grant; but no amendment to a motion seeking to reduce any demand is permissible. After all the motions for reduction relating to a demand for grant are disposed of, the demand is put to vote of the House. The debate on the supplementary demands for grant is confined to the items constituting the same and no discussion can be raised on the original grants nor the policy underlying them, save in so far as it is necessary to explain or illustrate the particular items under discussion. General grievances cannot be ventilated on a supplementary grant..

28. Appropriation Bills: No money can be withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund of the State except under appropriation made by law. Consequently, as soon as the grants have been made by the House, a Bill is introduced to provide for the appropriation out of the Consolidated Fund of the State of all moneys required to meet the grants made by the House and the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State, but not exceeding in any case the amount shown in the statement previously laid before the House.

Ordinarily, no Bill is included for introduction in the List of Business until after copies thereof have been made available to Members at least two days before the day on which the Bill is proposed to be introduced, but an exception is made in the case of Appropriation Bills which may be introduced without prior circulation of copies to Members. The motion for leave to introduce a Appropriation Bill cannot be opposed as the Bill is introduced only after the relevant demands have been voted in the House. Such a motion is forthwith put to the vote of the House. An amendment to Appropriation Bill for omission of a certain demands is out of order on the ground that the demand has already been voted by the House.

By convention, Bills are not put for consideration and passing on the same day on which they are introduced in the House. In the case of Appropriation Bills, however, the Speaker has on request received from the Minister allowed the Appropriation Bills to be introduced, considered and passed on the same day.