Committee of Privileges

The Committee of Privileges is a standing committee of Parliament that functions in a semi-judicial capacity: it examines cases in which the privileges of the House, or of its members, are alleged to have been breached, and recommends what action the House should take. It sits within the broader category of committees whose task is to inquire into specific kinds of complaints on the House's behalf.

What the Committee Does

When a question of breach of privilege arises, it is the Committee of Privileges that examines the matter and reports back with its recommendation. Because its findings can lead to action against a member or an outsider for conduct that offends the dignity or authority of the House, its proceedings are described as semi-judicial in character — the committee weighs facts and arguments and arrives at a reasoned view, much as a court or tribunal would, even though it ultimately reports to the House rather than delivering a binding judgment itself.

Composition

The Committee of Privileges in the Lok Sabha has 15 members, while its counterpart in the Rajya Sabha has 10 members. This places it in the same size range as the related Committee on Petitions, which also has 15 members in the Lok Sabha and 10 in the Rajya Sabha, and which examines petitions on Bills and matters of general public importance.

Breach of Privilege versus Contempt of the House

The terms 'breach of privilege' and 'contempt of the House' are often used interchangeably, but they are not identical. A breach of privilege is always a form of contempt, because it is a clear violation of one of the specific privileges, immunities or powers enjoyed by the House or its members. Contempt, however, is the wider concept: it covers any action that offends the dignity and authority of the House or hampers a member in the discharge of duties, even where no specific privilege has technically been breached. Disobedience of a legitimate order of the House, for instance, is not a breach of any named privilege, yet it can still be punished as contempt of the House. The Committee of Privileges is the body that examines such questions and decides how to characterise, and what to recommend on, an alleged act of contempt or breach.

Sources of Parliamentary Privilege

Article 105 of the Constitution expressly mentions two privileges of Parliament and its members: freedom of speech within Parliament, and the right of publication of its proceedings. For other privileges, the Constitution did not spell out a fixed list, leaving the position to be worked out through law, convention and precedent — a gap that the Committee of Privileges was itself set up, in part, to help fill by examining and defining how these privileges apply in practice.

Constituent Assembly Origins

The idea of a Committee of Privileges surfaces directly in the Constituent Assembly's debates on the privileges clause. Member Shri H. V. Kamath explained to the Assembly that, under the rules of procedure the House had tentatively adopted while sitting as the interim legislature, there would be a Committee of Privileges to go into privilege questions and define the various privileges of members. The presiding officer likewise noted that the Parliament, then presided over by Mr. Mavalankar, had adopted rules of business and procedure and had appointed, or was about to appoint, a Committee of Privileges even before the Constitution's privileges clause was finalised.

The debate also reveals unease among members about how vague the privileges clause was. Several members pointed out that the clause was modelled on the Government of India Act, 1935, which itself tied Indian parliamentary privileges to those of the House of Commons — privileges that, members complained, were nowhere collected in a single systematic list, so that no member could be entirely certain what their privileges actually were. Some suggested that a Schedule listing the privileges should be added to the Constitution instead of this open-ended reference, drawing a comparison with Section 49 of the Australian Constitution, which used almost identical wording to tie Australian parliamentary privileges to those of the House of Commons.

A separate strand of the debate concerned who should decide whether a member had incurred a disqualification. One proposed amendment would have required the Speaker or the Chairman to refer such a question to the Committee of Privileges for a report before deciding. Other members objected that the Draft Constitution did not yet establish any Committee of Privileges at all, and that relying on it could cause delay if the House was not in session; they preferred that the Governor decide the question after consulting the Election Commission.

Connection to the Anti-Defection Law

The Committee of Privileges also has a role under the Tenth Schedule's anti-defection framework. The presiding officer of a House, who decides defection questions, may refer a defection case to the Committee of Privileges for inquiry before taking a final decision, after giving the member concerned a chance to explain their position.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims

The Committee of Privileges is one of the 'Committees to Inquire', functioning in a semi-judicial capacity.
Lok Sabha's Committee of Privileges has 15 members; the Rajya Sabha's has 10.
Article 105 expressly names only two privileges: freedom of speech in Parliament and the right to publish its proceedings.
A breach of privilege is always contempt of the House, but contempt of the House is not always a breach of a specific privilege.

Mains

Discuss why the Constitution left most parliamentary privileges undefined, and evaluate the role of the Committee of Privileges in filling this gap.
Examine the distinction between 'breach of privilege' and 'contempt of the House', with reference to how the Committee of Privileges addresses each.

FAQ

Q1. What does the Committee of Privileges do? It examines cases where the privileges of the House or its members are alleged to have been breached and recommends what action the House should take, functioning in a semi-judicial capacity.

Q2. How many members does the Committee of Privileges have? 15 members in the Lok Sabha and 10 members in the Rajya Sabha.

Q3. Is a breach of privilege the same as contempt of the House? Not exactly. A breach of privilege is always a form of contempt, but contempt is a broader concept that also covers actions offending the dignity and authority of the House even without breaching a specifically named privilege.

Q4. Which privileges does the Constitution expressly mention? Article 105 expressly mentions two: freedom of speech in Parliament and the right of publication of its proceedings; other privileges are not listed in a fixed schedule.

Q5. Does the Committee of Privileges play any role in anti-defection cases? Yes. The presiding officer deciding a defection case under the Tenth Schedule may refer the matter to the Committee of Privileges for inquiry before making a final decision.

Quick Revision

Committee of Privileges: semi-judicial; examines breach-of-privilege complaints and recommends action.
Lok Sabha: 15 members; Rajya Sabha: 10 members.
Breach of privilege is always contempt of the House; contempt of the House is broader and need not involve a specific privilege.
Article 105 expressly names two privileges: freedom of speech in Parliament and right to publish proceedings.
Constituent Assembly debates show the Committee of Privileges being set up under the House's rules of procedure even before the Constitution was finalised.
Under the Tenth Schedule, the presiding officer may refer a defection case to the Committee of Privileges for inquiry.

Sources

Constitution of India, Article 105 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
Constituent Assembly Debates, on the privileges clause — https://www.constitutionofindia.net/
Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business, Lok Sabha — https://loksabha.nic.in/

Further Reference

For deeper reading on this topic and the wider polity syllabus, these standard works are recommended:

M. Laxmikanth, Indian Polity (McGraw Hill) — the standard UPSC handbook.
D.D. Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of India (LexisNexis) — authoritative constitutional-law treatment.
The Constitution of India — Bare Act — the official text.

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