Lok Sabha suspends Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury: How Privileges Committee works

Source: The post is based on the article “Lok Sabha suspends Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury: How Privileges Committee works”  published in Indian Express on 13th August 2023.

What is the News?

Lok Sabha has moved a motion to refer the gross, deliberate and repeated misconduct of an MP to the Privileges Committee for further examination.

What are Parliamentary Privileges?

Parliament and its Members (MPs) have certain rights and immunities that enable them to function effectively in their legislative roles. These are called parliamentary privileges.

When the Constitution was enacted, it provided that the Parliamentary privileges would be defined by a law made by our Parliament. Until that law is made, the rights would be the same as those of the House of Commons in the UK. 

In 1978, our Parliament removed the reference to the UK’s House of Commons by a constitutional amendment. But, so far, our Parliament hasn’t made a law to specify parliamentary privileges.

Therefore, currently parliamentary privileges are a mix of provisions in the Constitution, statutes, House procedures and conventions.

For example, the Constitution specifies that MPs have freedom of speech and immunity from judicial proceedings against anything they say or votes they cast in Parliament.

The Code of Civil Procedure also protects MPs from arrest and detention under civil cases during a parliamentary session, and for a specified period before it begins and after it ends. 

How does Parliament act on breach of privilege?

Each House of Parliament is the guardian of its privileges. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have the authority to take suitable action against anyone who breaches the privileges of its members or commits contempt of the House.

There are two mechanisms by which Parliament takes up these matters:

First, a member can raise the issue in the House, and the House decides on it. Usually, the matter is sent to a Privileges Committee for a thorough look. The committee recommends to the House a course of action which is then accepted by it.

Second is MPs can bring matters of breach of privilege to the notice of the presiding officers of their respective Houses. The presiding officers can then decide whether or not to send the case to the committee of privileges.

What does the committee decide in breach of privilege cases against MPs?

The Committee of Privileges has the power to recommend to the House for its consideration the issuance of admonitions, reprimands, suspension and, in rare cases, expulsion from the House. 

The convention followed by the committee of both Houses is that if the MP against whom a privilege matter is raised gives an unqualified apology, then the issue is allowed to rest, and it recommends no further action.