Functions of Parliament

Functions of Parliament span far more than law-making: as the highest deliberative body in the country, Parliament exercises legislative, executive, financial, constituent, judicial, and electoral powers, together with a set of miscellaneous powers that touch everything from the boundaries of states to the jurisdiction of the higher judiciary. This multifunctional role places Parliament at the centre of India's politico-administrative system.

Legislative Powers and Functions

The primary function of Parliament is to make laws for the country. It has exclusive power to legislate on the subjects listed in the Union List — currently 98 subjects, up from the original 97 — and on residuary subjects, meaning matters not placed in any of the three lists. On the Concurrent List, which now has 52 subjects against an original 47, Parliament's law holds an overriding position over conflicting state law. Parliament also has the power to create for the Union Territory of Puducherry an elected or partly nominated legislature or Council of Ministers, with powers and functions specified by law.

Executive Powers and Functions

Parliament controls and holds the executive accountable through several tools: questions and debates, a censure motion, an adjournment motion, defeating the government on a vital issue, or passing a cut motion. In this sense, one of Parliament's core functions can be described as selecting the group that forms the government, sustaining it so long as it commands confidence, and turning it out when it no longer does — leaving the final verdict to the electorate at the next general election. This accountability rests on Article 74, under which a Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister aids and advises the President; since the 42nd Amendment, that advice is binding on the President, which has strengthened the parliamentary character of the executive.

Financial Powers and Functions

No tax can be levied or collected, and no government expenditure incurred, except with Parliament's authority and approval. The annual budget must be placed before Parliament, and its enactment legalises the government's receipts and expenditure for the coming financial year. Parliament also scrutinises government spending through its financial committees, including the Public Accounts Committee, which examines whether money was spent as authorised. This financial oversight is reinforced by the Comptroller and Auditor General, appointed by the President as an independent authority who audits the accounts of the Union and the states and submits reports to the President and to Parliament.

Constituent Powers and Functions

Parliament has the power to amend the Constitution under the procedure laid down in Article 368, and it can do so in three ways: by simple majority, by special majority (a majority of the total membership of each House and a two-thirds majority of members present and voting), and by special majority combined with ratification by at least half the state legislatures, for amendments touching the federal structure. This constituent power is not unlimited — in the Kesavananda Bharati case (1973), the Supreme Court ruled that Parliament cannot use even its amending power to alter the 'basic structure' of the Constitution. Parliament can also create or abolish a state legislative council, but only after the concerned state's legislative assembly passes a resolution requesting it.

Judicial Powers and Functions

Parliament's judicial functions include the power to recommend the removal of judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts (including the Chief Justice), as well as the Chief Election Commissioner, State Election Commissioners, and the Comptroller and Auditor General, to the President following the constitutionally prescribed procedure. Parliament can also punish its own members, or outsiders, for breach of its privileges or contempt of the House.

Electoral Powers and Functions

Parliament participates, along with the state legislative assemblies, in electing the President, and it alone elects the Vice-President. Within its own Houses, the Lok Sabha elects its Speaker and Deputy Speaker, while the Rajya Sabha elects its Deputy Chairman. Parliament is also empowered to make laws regulating elections to the offices of President and Vice-President and to both Houses of Parliament and of the state legislatures — powers it has exercised through laws such as the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, and the Representation of the People Acts of 1950 and 1951.

Other Powers and Functions

Beyond these six heads, Parliament performs a further set of functions. As the highest deliberative body in the country, it discusses issues of national and international significance. It approves all three types of Emergency — national, state, and financial — proclaimed by the President; under Article 356, for instance, if a state's constitutional machinery breaks down, the President may assume the state's executive functions and vest the state legislature's powers in Parliament, but such a Proclamation lapses after two months unless approved by both Houses. Parliament can also increase or decrease the area of a state, alter its boundaries, or change its name, and it can regulate the organisation and jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, including establishing a common High Court for two or more states.

How Effective Is Parliamentary Control in Practice?

Parliamentary control over the government and administration in India tends to be more theoretical than practical. Several structural factors blunt its effectiveness: a government with a comfortable majority in the House faces less real criticism; financial committees like the Public Accounts Committee examine expenditure only after it has already been incurred, doing what amounts to post-mortem work; the increased use of the 'guillotine' to close budget discussion without full debate reduces the scope for financial scrutiny; the growth of delegated legislation has shifted detailed law-making from Parliament to the bureaucracy; frequent use of the President's ordinance-making power dilutes Parliament's primacy in legislation; and Parliament's oversight tends to be sporadic, general, and largely political rather than systematic, a problem compounded whenever the opposition is weak or parliamentary conduct itself deteriorates.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims: The six-fold (plus 'other') classification of Parliament's functions, the current number of Union and Concurrent List subjects, and specific provisions like Article 356's two-month clause are commonly tested.
Mains: GS2 questions frequently ask candidates to evaluate how effectively Parliament performs its executive-oversight and financial-control functions, making the 'ineffectiveness' factors — delegated legislation, ordinances, the guillotine — valuable for a balanced answer.

FAQ

Q1. What are the main categories of Parliament's functions? Legislative, executive, financial, constituent, judicial, electoral, and a residual set of other powers and functions.

Q2. How many subjects are currently in the Union and Concurrent Lists? The Union List currently has 98 subjects (originally 97) and the Concurrent List has 52 (originally 47).

Q3. Is Parliament's power to amend the Constitution unlimited? No. The Supreme Court held in the Kesavananda Bharati case (1973) that Parliament cannot alter the Constitution's 'basic structure' even through a constitutional amendment.

Q4. How does Parliament exercise financial control over the executive? No tax or expenditure is valid without Parliament's approval; the budget must be passed by Parliament, and financial committees such as the Public Accounts Committee scrutinise government spending, aided by CAG audit reports.

Q5. Why is parliamentary control over administration often called more theoretical than real? Factors such as majority-party dominance, post-facto financial scrutiny, the guillotine procedure, delegated legislation, and frequent ordinances all reduce Parliament's practical grip on day-to-day administration.

Quick Revision

Seven functional heads: legislative, executive, financial, constituent, judicial, electoral, other.
Union List: 98 subjects (was 97); Concurrent List: 52 subjects (was 47); Parliament's law prevails on the Concurrent List.
Article 368: constitutional amendment by simple majority, special majority, or special majority plus state ratification.
Kesavananda Bharati (1973): basic structure doctrine limits the amending power.
Article 356: President's Rule proclamation lapses after 2 months without parliamentary approval.
CAG audits Union/state accounts and reports to Parliament, reinforcing financial control.
Practical limits on control: guillotine, delegated legislation, ordinances, post-facto committee scrutiny.

Sources

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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