Discuss the relative parts played by both the Houses of the Parliament in Financial Legislation.

Q. Discuss the relative parts played by both the Houses of the Parliament in Financial Legislation.

Ans.

The financial business in Parliament starts with the presentation of Annual Financial Statement. According to Art. 112, the statement is caused to be laid before both Houses of the Parliament by the President at the beginning of every financial year.

After the Annual Financial Statement is presented, there is a general discussion as a whole in either House. This discussion is to be a general discussion relating to a policy involving a review and criticism of the administration and a valuation of the grievances of the people. No motion is moved at this stage nor is the Budget submitted to vote.

The Council of States shall have no further business with the Annual Financial Statement beyond the above general discussion. The voting of grants, ie, of the demands for expenditure made by the Government is an exclusive business of the House of People. In the House of People , after the general discussion is over, estimates are submitted in the form of demand for grants on the particular head and it is followed by a vote of the House on each of the heads. It is given in Art. 113(2) of our constitution.

After the grants are voted by the House of People, the grants so made by the House of People as well as the expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India are incorporated in an Appreciation Bill. It provides the legal authority for the withdrawal of these sums from ths Consolidated Fund of India.

Similarly the taxing proposals of the budget are embodied in another Bill known as Annual Financial Bill.

Both these Bills being Money Bill, the special procedure relating to Mony Bill shall have to be followed. It means that they can be introduced only in the House of People and after each Bill is passed by the House of People, it shall be transmitted to the Council of States, which shall have the power only to make recommendation to the House of People within a period of 14 days. The Council of States shall have no power of amending or rejecting a Bill. It shall lie in the hands of the House of People to accept or reject the recommendation of the Council of States. In either case, the Bill will be deemed to be passed as soon as the House of People decides whether it would accept or reject any or all recommendations of the Council of States and thereafter the Bill becomes an Act on receiving the assent of the President.