Committees of Parliament

Why in the News?

There has been a plan to revamp the Standing Committees of Parliament.

Key Points:

About

Parliamentary Committee

• A Parliamentary Committee is a panel of MPs that are appointed or elected by the House or nominated by the Speaker, and works under the direction of the Speaker. 
• It presents its report to the House or to the Speaker.
• Parliamentary Committees have their origins in the British Parliament. 
• They draw their authority from Article 105, which deals with the privileges of MPs, and Article 118, which gives Parliament authority to make rules to regulate its procedure and conduct of business.
• MPs typically have a one-year tenure on Parliamentary Committees. 
• Usually, the composition of a Committee remains more or less the same in terms of representation of the various parties.

Classification

Broadly, Parliamentary committees are of two kinds:

• • Standing Committees: They are permanent (constituted every year or periodically) in nature and work on a continuous basis.

• Example:

• • • • Financial Committees (Public Accounts Committee, Estimates Committee)
      • Departmental Standing Committees
      • Committees to Inquire
      • Committees to Scrutinise and Control
  •  Ad Hoc Committees: These are appointed for a specific purpose and they cease to exist after they have completed the task assigned to them.

• Example:

• • • Committees like the Railway Convention Committee, Committee on Food Management and Security in Parliament House Complex

Departmentally Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) 

• DRSCs were constituted in 1993 to assist Parliament in scrutinising funds allocated to Ministries. 
• They also examine Bills referred to them by Parliament and analyse other relevant policy issues. 
• There are 24 DRSCs that oversee the working of a Ministry or group of Ministries. 
• They are composed of 31 members: 21 from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha. 
• These DRSCs are constituted for a period of one year.  

Select Committee & Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC)

• Parliament can also constitute a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) with a special purpose, with members from both Houses, for detailed scrutiny of a subject or Bill. 
• JPCs and Select Committees are usually chaired by ruling party MPs and are disbanded after they have submitted their report.
• Suggestions by the Select Committees and JPCs — which have a majority of MPs and heads from the ruling party — are accepted more frequently.

Accountability Committees  

• These are the Committee on Government Assurances, the Committee on Subordinate Legislation, and the Committee on Petitions.  

Limitation of Committees:

• It is not concerned with the questions of policy in a broader sense.
• It conducts a post-mortem examination of accounts (showing the expenditure already incurred).
• It cannot intervene in matters of day-to-day administration. 
• Its recommendations are advisory and not binding on the ministries. 
• It is not vested with the power of disallowance of expenditures by the departments. 

Significance:

• Committees are small groups with relatively fewer demands on their time; in these meetings, every MP gets a chance and the time to contribute to the discussion. 
• Parliament has only around 100 sittings a year; Committee meetings are independent of Parliament’s calendar.
• They increase Parliamentary scrutiny and give members more time and a wider role in examining important legislation.
• Discussions in committees are confidential and off-camera, party affiliations usually do not come in the way of MPs speaking their minds in ways they are unable to do in Parliament.
• These Committees work closely with multiple Ministries and facilitate inter-ministerial coordination.
• Bills that are referred to Committees often return to the House with significant value addition. 
• The Committees look into the demands for grants of Ministries/departments, consider their annual reports and report to Parliament.