Legislative Procedure for Ordinary Bills in State Legislature
Article 196 governs how ordinary bills originate, pass, and survive prorogation or dissolution in a State Legislature, unlike Money Bills.
At a glance
Article 196 sets out how ordinary bills originate, get passed, and survive prorogation or Assembly dissolution in a State Legislature.
A bill is deemed passed only when both Houses agree; the Council has a suspensive check under Article 197, not a veto.
Distinguishes ordinary bill procedure from the special, Council-excluded procedure for Money Bills under Article 198.
Ordinary bills procedure in a State Legislature is laid down in Article 196 of the Constitution, which governs where a bill may be introduced, when it counts as "passed," and what happens to a pending bill when the House is prorogued or the Assembly is dissolved. It applies to all bills other than Money Bills and other financial Bills, which follow their own special procedures under Articles 198 and 207.
Where an Ordinary Bill May Originate
Subject to the special procedures for Money Bills (Article 198) and financial Bills (Article 207), an ordinary bill may originate in either House of the Legislature of a State that has a Legislative Council. In a State with only a Legislative Assembly, it can naturally originate only there. This places ordinary bills on a different footing from Money Bills, which under Article 198 cannot be introduced in a Legislative Council at all.
When a Bill Is Deemed Passed
Subject to Articles 197 and 198, a bill is not deemed to have been passed by the Houses of a State Legislature with a Legislative Council unless both Houses have agreed to it — either without any amendment, or with only those amendments that both Houses have agreed to. This means that, for an ordinary bill, the Legislative Council is not a mere recommending body; its concurrence (or an agreement reached through the process described in Article 197) is built into what counts as a validly passed bill. Article 197 restricts the Council's power on non-Money Bills to a suspensive check: if the Council does not agree with the Assembly's version — whether by rejecting it, letting it lie without passing it, or returning it with amendments the Assembly does not accept — and the Assembly passes the bill again, the bill is deemed to have been passed by the Legislature in the form in which the Assembly passed it the second time, incorporating only such Council amendments, if any, as the Assembly has agreed to. This mechanism does not apply to Money Bills at all.
Bills Do Not Lapse on Prorogation
A bill pending in the Legislature of a State does not lapse merely because a House, or both Houses, is prorogued. Prorogation ends a session but does not kill pending legislative business; the bill can be taken up again in the next session at the stage it had reached.
Effect of Dissolution of the Assembly
Dissolution of the Legislative Assembly is treated differently from prorogation. A bill that is pending in the Legislative Council but has not yet been passed by the Legislative Assembly does not lapse merely because the Assembly is dissolved; it can still be taken up once a new Assembly is constituted. This protects bills that originated in, and are still before, the Council from being wiped out by an Assembly-level event that has nothing to do with the Council's own proceedings.
Common Stages an Ordinary Bill Passes Through
An ordinary bill generally moves through a first reading (introduction), a second reading (general discussion and detailed, clause-by-clause consideration), a third reading (a final vote on the bill as a whole), consideration in the other House where the Legislature is bicameral, and finally assent. A bill may be introduced either by a minister, in which case it is treated as a government bill, or by a private member. For an ordinary bill, both Houses of a bicameral State Legislature otherwise stand on an equal footing in exercising legislative power, in contrast to the restricted role the Council has on Money Bills.
UPSC Relevance
Prelims: Remember that Article 196 governs ordinary bills; a bill may originate in either House of a bicameral State Legislature (subject to Articles 198 and 207); prorogation does not cause a pending bill to lapse; and a Council-pending bill not yet passed by the Assembly survives the Assembly's dissolution.
Mains: Examine how Article 196 read with Article 197 gives the Legislative Council only a suspensive, delaying role over ordinary bills — unlike its complete exclusion from Money Bills under Article 198 — and what this implies for the balance of power between the two Houses of a bicameral State Legislature.
FAQ
Q1. Which article governs the introduction and passing of ordinary bills in a State Legislature? A. Article 196 of the Constitution.
Q2. Can an ordinary bill be introduced in the Legislative Council? A. Yes, in a State that has a Legislative Council, an ordinary bill may originate in either House, subject to the special procedures for Money Bills and financial Bills.
Q3. Does a pending bill lapse if the House is prorogued? A. No. A bill pending in the Legislature does not lapse by reason of prorogation of the House or Houses.
Q4. What happens to a Council-pending bill if the Assembly is dissolved? A. If the bill is pending in the Legislative Council and has not been passed by the Legislative Assembly, it does not lapse merely because the Assembly is dissolved.
Q5. What power does the Legislative Council have over an ordinary bill it disagrees with? A. Under Article 197, its power is only a suspensive check — if the Assembly passes the bill again after disagreement, the bill is deemed passed as re-passed by the Assembly, with only such Council amendments as the Assembly has accepted.
Quick Revision
- Article 196 = introduction and passing of ordinary bills in a State Legislature.
- Ordinary bill may originate in either House of a bicameral State Legislature, subject to Articles 198 (Money Bills) and 207 (financial Bills).
- Bill deemed passed only when both Houses agree, without amendment or with mutually agreed amendments.
- Article 197: Council's disagreement over an ordinary bill can be overridden by the Assembly passing it again.
- Pending bill does not lapse on prorogation of the House(s).
- Council-pending, Assembly-unpassed bill survives dissolution of the Assembly.
- Ordinary bill stages: first reading, second reading, third reading, consideration in the other House, assent.
Sources
- Constitution of India, Article 196 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
- Constitution of India, Article 197 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
- Constitution of India, Article 198 — https://www.indiacode.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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Constitutional provisions
Introduction and passing of bills; effect of prorogation and dissolution on pending bills.
Restricts the Legislative Council's power over non-Money Bills to a suspensive check.
Special procedure for Money Bills; excludes the Council from introduction.