Parliamentary Privileges and Committee of Privileges
Context:
Nearly two years after the constitution of the 18th Lok Sabha, Speaker Om Birla has nominated 15 members to the Committee of Privileges.
The multi-party panel, which came into effect recently, will be chaired by senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Meanwhile, the 18th Lok Sabha still lacks an established ethics committee.
Committee of Privileges:
The committee features cross-party representation.
Alongside the chairperson, it includes six MPs from the BJP, three from the Congress, and representatives from the DMK, TMC, Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena-UBT, and the Samajwadi Party.
The panel is explicitly tasked with examining cases involving the breach of privilege of the House and its individual members.
It determines, with reference to the specific facts of each case, whether a breach has occurred and subsequently makes suitable recommendations in its report.
Parliamentary Privileges:
The fundamental object of parliamentary privilege is to safeguard the freedom, authority, and dignity of Parliament as an institution.
Every member enjoys specific privileges that empower them to perform their legislative duties without any hindrance or external intimidation.
Information regarding these rights is formalized in guiding documents, such as the Rajya Sabha Secretariat's booklet on "Parliamentary Privileges," which is systematically designed to educate newly elected members on the privileges enjoyed collectively by the Parliament and individually by its members.
Constitutional Dimensions:
Under the Indian Constitution (Article 105), these privileges grant MPs freedom of speech inside the House and provide complete immunity from court proceedings for any statement made or vote cast during parliamentary duties.
Privileges are typically classified into two categories:
Collective privileges (like the right to publish reports and exclude strangers)
Individual privileges (like freedom from arrest in civil cases during a parliamentary session).