Article 108 of the Indian Constitution lays down the mechanism to resolve disagreements between the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on a particular piece of legislation. It provides for a joint sitting of both Houses to deliberate and vote on a Bill in specific circumstances where a deadlock has occurred. This mechanism is crucial for ensuring the legislative process does not get stalled indefinitely due to inter-House differences.
The provision for a joint sitting is a significant feature of the Indian parliamentary system, aimed at facilitating smooth legislative functioning while respecting the bicameral structure. However, it is not applicable to all types of Bills, notably excluding Money Bills and Constitution Amendment Bills.
Original Text
108. Joint sitting of both Houses in certain cases.—
(1) If after a Bill has been passed by one House and transmitted to the other House—
(a) the Bill is rejected by the other House; or
(b) the Houses have finally disagreed as to the amendments to be made in the Bill; or
(c) more than six months elapse from the date of the reception of the Bill by the other House without the Bill being passed by it,
the President may, unless the Bill has lapsed by reason of a dissolution of the House of the People, notify to the Houses by message if they are sitting or by public notification if they are not sitting, his intention to summon them to meet in a joint sitting for the purpose of deliberating and voting on the Bill:
Provided that nothing in this clause shall apply to a Money Bill or to a Bill to amend the Constitution.
(2) In reckoning any such period of six months as is referred to in clause (1), no account shall be taken of any period during which the House aforesaid is prorogued or adjourned for more than four consecutive days.
(3) Where the President has under clause (1) notified his intention of summoning a joint sitting, neither House shall proceed further with the Bill, but the President may at any time after the date of his notification summon the Houses to meet in a joint sitting for the purpose specified in the notification and, if they so meet, the joint sitting shall be held and continue notwithstanding any prorogation or dissolution of the House of the People.
(4) If at the joint sitting of the two Houses the Bill, with such amendments, if any, as are agreed to in joint sitting, is passed by a majority of the total number of members of both Houses present and voting, it shall be deemed for the purposes of this Constitution to have been passed by both Houses:
Provided that at a joint sitting—
(a) if the Bill, having been passed by the House of the People, is transmitted to the Council of States and is there rejected, altered or not passed within six months, such amendments (if any) as are recommended in the Council of States and agreed to by the House of the People, shall be considered for the purposes of the proceedings in the joint sitting as amendments proposed to be made in the Bill and agreed to by both Houses; and
(b) if the Bill has been passed with amendments by one House and returned to the other House for reconsideration, such amendments as are suggested in the House returning the Bill shall be considered as amendments recommended by the House concerned and agreed to by the other House.
(5) A joint sitting may be held and a Bill passed thereat notwithstanding that a dissolution of the House of the People has intervened since the President notified his intention to summon the Houses to meet therein.
Detailed Explanation
Article 108 outlines the procedure and conditions under which the President can summon a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) to resolve a deadlock on a Bill. The purpose is to overcome situations where the two Houses disagree fundamentally on a non-money, non-Constitution Amendment Bill, preventing its passage.
A joint sitting can be invoked by the President if one of three conditions regarding a Bill (passed by one House and sent to the other) is met:
- Rejection: The Bill is rejected by the second House.
- Disagreement on Amendments: The Houses have finally disagreed on the amendments to be made to the Bill.
- Lapse of Time: More than six months have passed since the reception of the Bill by the second House without it being passed. When calculating this six-month period, any period during which the second House is prorogued or adjourned for more than four consecutive days is excluded.
Upon the occurrence of any of these conditions, the President may notify both Houses (or the public if they are not sitting) of the intention to summon a joint sitting. However, this power cannot be exercised if the Bill has already lapsed due to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha. Once the President has notified the intention to summon a joint sitting, neither House can proceed further with the Bill independently. The President retains the power to summon the joint sitting at any time after the notification, even if there has been a prorogation or dissolution of the Lok Sabha since the notification.
Crucially, Article 108 explicitly states that its provisions do not apply to Money Bills or Bills to amend the Constitution. Money Bills fall under the special procedure outlined in Article 109, where the Lok Sabha has dominant powers, and the Rajya Sabha has limited authority. Constitution Amendment Bills require passage by a special majority in each House separately under Article 368, thereby ruling out the possibility of a joint sitting to resolve disagreements.
The joint sitting is presided over by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. In the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha presides. If both are absent, the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha presides. The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha does not preside over a joint sitting because he is the Vice-President of India and not a member of either House.
A Bill at a joint sitting is passed by a simple majority of the total number of members of both Houses present and voting. If the Bill is passed by this simple majority, it is deemed to have been passed by both Houses for the purposes of the Constitution.
A joint sitting can still be held, and a Bill passed there, even if the Lok Sabha has been dissolved after the President notified the intention to summon the joint sitting. This is because the Rajya Sabha is a permanent body, and the newly constituted Lok Sabha can participate.
Detailed Notes
- Purpose: To resolve deadlocks between Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on a Bill.
- Conditions for Summoning: President can summon if a Bill passed by one House is transmitted to the other and:
- Rejected by the second House.
- Houses disagree on amendments.
- More than six months elapse without the Bill being passed by the second House.
- Exclusions from Six-Month Period: Period of prorogation or adjournment for more than four consecutive days of the second House is excluded.
- Authority to Summon: President of India.
- Notification: President notifies intention to summon, either by message to sitting Houses or public notification if not sitting.
- Effect of Notification: Neither House proceeds further with the Bill independently.
- Lapse of Bill: Cannot summon joint sitting if the Bill has lapsed due to dissolution of Lok Sabha before the President’s notification.
- Dissolution After Notification: Joint sitting can be held even if Lok Sabha dissolves after the President’s notification.
- Bills Excluded:
- Money Bills (governed by Article 109).
- Constitution Amendment Bills (governed by Article 368).
- Presiding Officer:
- Speaker of Lok Sabha.
- In Speaker’s absence: Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha.
- In absence of both Speaker and Deputy Speaker: Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.
- Chairman of Rajya Sabha (Vice-President) does not preside.
- Procedure: Joint sitting held as per rules of procedure of Lok Sabha generally, with necessary modifications.
- Voting: Bill is passed by a simple majority of the total number of members of both Houses present and voting.
- Outcome: If passed in joint sitting, the Bill is deemed passed by both Houses.
- Consideration of Amendments: Specific rules (laid out in the proviso to clause 4) determine which amendments are considered during the joint sitting based on the history of the Bill’s passage/rejection/amendment in each House.
Additional Comments
- Joint sittings are an extraordinary measure used rarely in practice.
- The numerical superiority of the Lok Sabha (currently 543 members) over the Rajya Sabha (currently 245 members) gives the Lok Sabha a dominant position in a joint sitting, making the passage of the Bill originating from and preferred by the Lok Sabha highly probable.
- Only three Bills have been passed in joint sittings since the commencement of the Constitution:
- Dowry Prohibition Bill, 1960 (1961)
- Banking Service Commission (Repeal) Bill, 1977 (1978)
- Prevention of Terrorism Bill (POTA), 2002 (2002)
- The provision for joint sitting reflects a balance between the need for legislative efficiency and the principle of bicameralism.
- The six-month period mentioned in the Article is counted from the date the Bill is received by the second House, not from the date it is passed by the first House.
Summary
Article 108 of the Indian Constitution provides a mechanism for a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha to resolve legislative deadlocks on ordinary Bills. Such a sitting can be summoned by the President when one House rejects a Bill passed by the other, or there is a final disagreement on amendments, or the second House fails to pass the Bill within six months of receiving it. This provision does not apply to Money Bills or Constitution Amendment Bills. The Speaker of the Lok Sabha presides over the joint sitting, and the Bill is passed by a simple majority of the total number of members of both Houses present and voting. A joint sitting can proceed even if the Lok Sabha dissolves after the President’s notification of intention to summon.