Parliamentary Sessions and Majorities: A Comprehensive Guide

(Art. 85)

• The President summons each House of Parliament from time to time or at such a place as he/she thinks fit. [UPSC 2020]
• The house should meet at least twice a year. [UPSC 2020]

• It is the duration between 1st sitting of the house and its prorogation  (or dissolution in the case of the Lok Sabha) during which a house meets to transact business.
• There are usually three sessions in a year: [UPSC 2020]
  • The Budget Session (February to May);
  • The Monsoon Session (July to September); and
  • The Winter Session (November to December).

• A sitting of Parliament can be terminated by the Presiding officer through adjournment or adjournment sine die or prorogation or dissolution(Lok Sabha) 
• An adjournment suspends the work in a sitting for a specified time, which may be hours, days or weeks. 
• In both, Adjournment and Adjournment sine die, It does not affect the bills or any other business pending before the House and the same can be resumed when the House meets again.
• Each meeting of a day consists of two sittings, that is, a morning sitting from 11 am to 1 pm and post-lunch sitting from 2 pm to 6 pm.

• • It means terminating a sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period by the Presiding Officer of the house (the House is adjourned without naming a day for reassembly)
• Note: The presiding officer can also call a sitting of the House before the date or time to which it has been adjourned or at any time after the House has been adjourned sine die.

• President issues a notification for prorogation of the session. However, the President can also prorogue the House while in session.
• It terminates the sitting and session of the house.
• It also does not affect the bills or any other business pending before the House. 
• However, all pending notices (other than those for Introducing bills) lapse on prorogation and fresh notices have to be given for the next session. 
• In Britain, prorogation brings to an end all bills or any other business pending before the House.

• Only the Lok Sabha is subject to dissolution. Unlike a prorogation, dissolution ends the very life of the existing House. Dissolution is irrevocable.
• When the Lok Sabha is dissolved, all business including bills, motions, resolutions and so on pending before it or its committees lapse.
• Dissolution of the Lok Sabha may take place in either of two ways:
  • Automatic dissolution (expiry of its tenure).
  • Whenever the President decides to dissolve the House.

• However, some pending bills and all pending assurances that are to be examined by the Committee on Government Assurances do not lapse on the dissolution of the Lok Sabha.

• Last session of the preceding Lok Sabha, after a new Lok Sabha has been elected.
• Those existing members who could not get re-elected to the new Lok Sabha are called as Lame-ducks.

• Minimum no. of members (one-tenth of total members of house including presiding officer) required to be present in the House before it can transact any business.
• If there is no quorum, it is the duty of the presiding officer either to adjourn the House or to suspend the meeting until there is a quorum. 

• The Constitution has declared Hindi and English to be the languages for transacting business in the Parliament. 
• However, the presiding officer can permit a member to address the House in his/ her mother-tongue.
• The Official Languages Act (1963) allowed English to be continued along with Hindi even after 15  years from the commencement of the Constitution  .

• Every minister and the Attorney General of India have the right to speak and take part in the proceedings of both the House + joint sitting + any committee of Parliament of which he is a member, without vote.

• Simple Majority (Majority of Votes): All matters are decided by a majority of votes of the members present and voting, excluding the presiding officer. 
• Special Majority: Only a few matters, which are specifically mentioned in the Constitution like impeachment of the President, amendment of the Constitution, removal of the presiding officers of the Parliament, require either effective majority or special majority, not ordinary majority.
• Validity of House Proceedings: The proceedings of a House are to be valid irrespective of any unauthorized voting or participation or any vacancy in its membership.
• Methods of Voting: Include Voice Vote, Secret Ballot, Recording of Votes by Distribution of Slips, Physical Count of Members in their Places Instead of a Formal Division, and Casting Vote.

• Simple Majority: It means a majority of more than 50% of members are present and voting on any bill or issue on a particular day.
  • There are a total of 543 seats in Lok Sabha and only 400 members are present on the day of voting, a minimum of 201 votes will be required to pass bills 
  • Example: All the ordinary bills, Confidence motions in Lok Sabha only, Election of speaker, Censure motion, Vote of thanks on the president’s address, etc
• Absolute Majority: Absolute majority is defined as the majority comprising over 50% of the total number of members in the house. 
• Example: In the Lok Sabha, it will be 273 or more (50 % of 543 +1). 
• This method, in conjunction with the Special Majority, is essential for ensuring stability when a political party forms a government.
• Effective Majority: It means more than 50% of the effective strength of the house. Effective strength = Total Strength – Vacancies in the House. 
• Example: Used the removal of the Vice President in the Rajya Sabha, Removal of the speaker and deputy speaker of Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies,, etc

Special Majority: 

• Special Majority As per Article 249 and Article 312:  When Rajya Sabha passes a resolution in matters of State list (Arti. 249) and When Rajya Sabha creates new All India Services (Arti. 312), a special majority requires 2/3rd of the members present and voting. 
• Special Majority as per Article 368: A special majority means 2/3rd of the members present and voting plus the majority of the total membership of the house (Absolute majority).
  • Example: Used in cases such as Amendment of the Constitution, Approval and Continuation of the National Emergency, Removal of a judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court, etc

• • Special Majority As Per Article 61: A special majority means 2/3rd of the total strength of the house. 
    • The most stringent form of majority specified in the Constitution is employed for the impeachment of the President as outlined in Article 61 of the Constitution.
• Special Majority as Per Article 368 and State ratification: Certain Constitution Amendment Bills that can affect the federal provisions of the Constitution, have to be passed by a special majority of 2/3rd of the members present and voting in both houses plus ratification by Legislative Assemblies of more than half of States by a simple majority.