Understanding Private Member Bills In The Indian Constitution

A private member's bill is a proposed law introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. In India, a private member's bill is introduced in Parliament by a private member, which is a member of parliament (MP) who is not a minister. Private members can also move legislative proposals or bills that they think are appropriate to be included in the Statute Book. Since 1952, only 14 private member's bills have become laws in India.

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Who can introduce a private member bill?

In India, a private member's bill is introduced in the Parliament by a private member, who is a Member of Parliament (MP) and not a minister. In other words, a private member is a non-government member.

In the Westminster system, most bills are "government bills" or "public bills" introduced by the executive, with private members' bills being the exception. Private members' bills may be introduced by non-ministerial MPs from government-supporting parties (backbenchers), by members of opposition parties (frontbencher or backbencher), or by independents or crossbenchers.

In the Indian Parliament, the upper house, the Rajya Sabha, consists of representatives of the States and the Union Territories, as well as persons nominated by the President of India. The lower house is the Lok Sabha.

Some examples of private members' bills introduced in the Lok Sabha include:

• The Muslim Wakfs Bill, introduced by Syed Md. Ahmed Kasmi
• The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill, introduced by Raghunath Singh
• The Indian Registration (Amendment) Bill, introduced by SC Samanta
• The Proceedings of Legislature (Protection of Publication) Bill, introduced by Feroze Gandhi
• The Women's and Children's Institutions (Licensing) Bill, introduced by Rajmata Kamlendu

Some examples of private members' bills introduced in the Rajya Sabha include:

• The Historical Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Declaration of National Importance) Bill, introduced by Raghubir Sinh
• The Hindu Marriage (Amendment) Bill, introduced by Seeta Parmanand
• The Indian Penal Code (Amendment) Bill, introduced by Diwan Chand Lal

How does it differ from a government bill?

A private member's bill is a proposed law introduced by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. In the Indian context, a private member is a Member of Parliament (MP) who is not a minister. Private members have the freedom to introduce legislative proposals or bills that they believe should be included in the Statute Book.

A government bill, on the other hand, is introduced by ministers and has the backing of the government, reflecting its legislative agenda. Government bills can be introduced and discussed on any day, while private member bills can only be introduced and discussed on Fridays. There is also a cap of three private member bills per session of Parliament.

The admissibility of a private member bill is decided by the Chairman for Rajya Sabha and the Speaker for Lok Sabha. The member must give at least a month's notice before the bill can be introduced, and the House secretariat examines it for compliance with constitutional provisions and rules on legislation. The President of India has the power of absolute veto and can easily reject a private member's bill.

In terms of their chance of approval, government bills are more likely to be passed than private member bills. Since 1952, only 14 private member bills have become laws, and no private member's bill has been passed by Parliament since 1970.

In summary, the key differences between private member bills and government bills in the Indian context lie in who introduces them, when they can be introduced, the number of bills that can be introduced, their chance of approval, and the process of drafting and admitting the bills.

How many private member bills have become law?

In India, a private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. Members of Parliament (MPs) other than ministers are considered private members and can introduce private member bills. These bills can be introduced by non-ministerial MPs from government-supporting parties (backbenchers), by members of opposition parties (frontbencher or backbencher), or by independents or crossbenchers.

Since 1952, only 14 private member bills have become laws in India, the last of which was passed in 1970. The low number of successful private member bills is not unique to India, as countries like Australia and Ireland have also seen few private member bills become laws. The low success rate of private member bills in India has been attributed to various factors, including the limited time allocated for their discussion and the high threshold for passage.

Some of the notable private member bills that have become laws in India include:

• The Proceedings of Legislature (Protection of Publication) Bill, 1956, introduced by Feroze Gandhi in the Lok Sabha.
• The Salaries and Allowances of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 1964, introduced by Raghunath Singh in the Lok Sabha.
• The Indian Penal Code (Amendment) Bill, 1967, introduced by Diwan Chaman Lall in the Rajya Sabha.
• The Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Bill, 1968, which became an Act on 9 August 1970.
• The Rights of Transgender Persons Bill, 2014, passed by the Rajya Sabha in 2015, but not converted into law as it remains stuck in the Lok Sabha.

The Rajya Sabha is the Upper House of the Indian Parliament, consisting of representatives of the States and Union Territories, as well as persons nominated by the President of India. The Lok Sabha, on the other hand, is the Lower House of the Indian Parliament.

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What is the process of introducing a private member bill?

A private member's bill is introduced in the Parliament by a private member, who is a Member of Parliament (MP) and not a minister. In other words, a private member is any member of parliament who is not a member of the cabinet (executive).

In the Westminster system, most bills are "government bills" introduced by the executive, with private members' bills being the exception. However, some time is set aside in the schedule for reading such bills. They may be introduced by non-ministerial MPs from government-supporting parties (backbenchers), by members of opposition parties (frontbencher or backbencher), or by independents or crossbenchers.

In India, the process of introducing a private member's bill is as follows:

• A private member's bill can be introduced and discussed only on Fridays.
• A private member can give a maximum of three notices for the introduction of private members' bills during a session.
• The member must give at least a month's notice before the bill can be listed for introduction.
• The admissibility of the bill is decided by the Chairman for Rajya Sabha and the Speaker in the case of Lok Sabha.
• In case of multiple bills, a ballot system is used to decide the sequence of bills for introduction.
• The Parliamentary Committee on Private Member's Bills and Resolutions goes through all such bills and classifies them based on their urgency and importance.
• Upon conclusion of the discussion, the member piloting the bill can either withdraw it on the request of the minister concerned or choose to press ahead with its passage.
• The bill must be passed in both houses of Parliament to become an act.
• Once passed in both houses, Presidential assent is also mandatory for the bill to become an Act.

Since 1952, only 14 private member's bills have become laws in India. Some examples of private members' bills that have been passed in Indian Parliament include:

• The Muslim Wakfs Bill introduced by Syed Md. Ahmed Kasmi in Lok Sabha
• The Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill introduced by Raghunath Singh in Lok Sabha
• The Indian Registration (Amendment) Bill introduced by SC Samanta in Lok Sabha
• The Proceedings of Legislature (Protection of Publication) Bill introduced by Feroze Gandhi in Lok Sabha
• The Women's and Children's Institutions (Licensing) Bill introduced by Rajmata Kamlendu in Lok Sabha

Can the President of India veto a private member bill?

A private member's bill is a proposed law introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. In India, a private member is a member of parliament (MP) who is not a member of the cabinet (executive). In other words, it is introduced by a non-ministerial MP.

The President of India has veto power over ordinary bills passed by the Parliament. The President has three types of veto powers: absolute, suspensive, and pocket. The absolute veto refers to the power of the President to withhold their assent to a bill passed by the Parliament, causing the bill to not become an Act. The suspensive veto refers to the power of the President to return a bill for reconsideration by the Parliament. The pocket veto refers to the power of the President to take no action on a bill, keeping it pending indefinitely.

The President of India can use their powers of absolute veto to discard a private member's bill. This is one of the two cases in which the absolute veto is exercised, the other being when a government bill is passed and the cabinet resigns, with the new cabinet advising the President not to give their assent to the bill.

Therefore, the President of India can veto a private member bill.

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