Do you think that Parliament needs to ensure sufficient scrutiny over the proposals and actions of the government? Analyse (200 Words)
Refer - The Hindu
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 4 years
KEY POINTS
· Members of Parliament and Parliament staff got affected by COVID-19, and the winter session was cancelled. As a result, the fiscal year 2020-21 saw the Lok Sabha sitting for 34 days (and the Rajya Sabha for 33), the lowest ever.
· The casualty was proper legislative scrutiny of proposed legislation as well as government functioning and finances.
No Bill scrutiny
· An important development this session has been the absence of careful scrutiny of Bills.
· During the session, 13 Bills were introduced, and not even one of them was referred to a parliamentary committee for examination.
· The Insurance (Amendment) Bill, 2021, the Bill to increase the limit of foreign direct investment in insurance companies from 49% to 74% also took just a week between introduction and passing by both Houses.
Money Bill classification
· The last few years have seen the dubious practice of marking Bills as ‘Money Bills’ and getting them past the Rajya Sabha.
· The Finance Bill has made major amendments to the Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956. As this is a Money Bill, the Rajya Sabha cannot make any amendments, and has only recommendatory powers.
Deputy Speaker
· A striking feature of the current Lok Sabha is the absence of a Deputy Speaker. The issue showed up starkly this session when the Speaker was hospitalised.
Scrutiny
· In order to fulfil its constitutional mandate, it is imperative that Parliament functions effectively.
· This will require making and following processes such as creating a system of research support to Members of Parliament, providing sufficient time for MPs to examine issues.
