Part VI: The State Legislative - Composition of the State Legislature II

Disqualifications of Members

68. (1) No person shall be a member of both Houses of the Legislature and provision shall be made by Legislature by law for the vacation by a person who is chooser a member of both Houses of his seat in one House or the other.

(2) If a member of a House of the Legislature resigns his seat by writing under his hand addressed to tile Speaker or the Chairman, as the case may be, his s at shall thereupon become vacant.

(3) If for a period of sixty days a member of a House of the Legislature is without permission of the House absent from all meetings thereof, the House may declare his seat vacant:

Provided that in computing the said period of sixty days no account shall be taken of:

(a) such absence caused by reason beyond his control; or

(b) any period during which the House is prorogued or is adjourned for more than four consecutive days.

69. (1) A person shall be disqualified for being chosen and for being a member of the Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council:

(a) if he holds any office of profit under the Government of India or the State Govern-ment within the Union of India, other than an office declared by Legislature by law not to dis-qualify its holder;

(b) if he is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court;

(c) if he is an undischarged insolvent;

(d) if he is not a permanent resident of the State or has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign State, or is under any acknowledgement of allegiance to adherence to a foreign State;

(e) if he is so disqualified by or under any law made by the Legislature.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a person shall not be deemed to hold an office of profit under the Government of India, the State Government or any other State Government vithin the Union of India, by reason only that he is a Minister, or a Deputy Minister.

70. (1) If it is represented to the Speaker or the Chairman that a member of the Legislative Assembly or, as the case may be, of the Legis-lative Council is disqualified for being such a member under the provisions of section 69, or was so disqualified at any time since being chosen as a member and the member does not admit that he is or was so disqualified, the question shall be referred to the High Court decision and its decision shall be final:

Provided that w here the disqualification in question arises from circumstances which subsisted at the time of his being chosen as such member, no such representation as aforesaid shall be entertained:

(a) unless it is made after the expiration of the period by law for presenting an elec-tion petition calling in question the election of the member; and

(b) if such an election petition is pending or has been tried, unless the Speaker or Chairman as the case may be is satisfied that the question of the members' disquali-fication by reason of those circumstances has not been raised or, as the case may be, was not raised, in the proceedings on the election petition.

(2) Where on a representation made under sub-section (I) the member admits that he is or w. s disqualified under the provisions of section 69, or where on a reference made under that sub-section the High Court decides that the member is or was so disqualified, his seat shall thereupon become vacant.

71. If a person sits or votes as a member of the Legislative Assembly or the Legislative Council before he has complied with the requirements of section 54 or when he knows that he is not quali-fied or that he is disqualified for membership thereof or that he is prohibited from so doing by the provisions of any law made by the Legislature, he shall be liable in respect of each day on which he so sits or votes to a penalty of one hundred rupees to be recovered as a debt due to the State.

 

POWERS, PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE AND ITS MEMBERS

72. (1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution and to the rules and standing orders regulating the procedure of the Legislature, there shall be freedom of speech in the Legislature.

(2) No member of the Legislature shall be liable to any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said or any vote given by him in the Legislature or any committee thereof and no person shall be so liable in respect of the publication by or under the authority of a House of the Legislature of any report, paper, votes, or proceedings.

(3) In other respects, the powers, privileges and immunities of a House of the Legislature and- of the members and the committees of a House of the Legislature shall be such as may from time to time be defined by Legislature by law, and until so defined shall be those of the Parliament of India and of its members and committees.

(4) The provisions of sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) shall apply in relation to persons who by virtue of this Constitution have the right t o speak, in and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, a House of the Legislature or any committee thereof as they apply in relation to members of that Legislature.

73. Members of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council shall be entitled to receive such salaries and allowances as may from time to time be determined by Legislature by law and, until provision in that respect is so made, salaries and allowances at such rates and upon such conditions as were immediately before the commencement of this Constitution applicable in the case of members of the Constituent Assembly.

 

LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE

74. (1) Subject to the provisions of sections 76 and 84 with respect to Money Bills and other Finan-cial Bills, a Bill may originate in either House of the Legislature.

(2) Subject to the provisions of sections 75 and 76 a Bill shall not be deemed to have been passed by the Legislature unless it has been agreed to by both Houses, either without amendment or with such amendments only as are agreed to by both Houses.

(3) A Bill pending in the Legislature shall not lapse by reason of the prorogation of the House or House thereof.

(4) A Bill pending in the Legislative Council which has not been passed by the Legislative Assembly shall not lapse on a dissolution of the Assembly.

(5) A Bill which is pending in the Legislative Assembly or which having been passed by the Legislative Assembly, is pending in the Legi-slative Council, shall lapse on a dissolution of the Assembly

75. (1) If after a Bill has been passed by the Legisla-tive Assembly and transmitted to the Legisla-tive Council:

(a) the Bill is rejected by the Council; or

(b) more than three months elapse from the date on which the Bill is laid before the Council without the Bill being passed by it; or

(c) the Bill is passed by the Council with amendments to which the Legislative Assembly does not agree; the Legisl-ative Assembly may, subject to the rules regulating its procedure, pass the Bill again in the same or in any subse-quent session with or without such amendments, if any, as have been made suggested or agreed to by the Legislative Council and then transmit the Bill as so passed to the Legislative Council.

(2) If after a Bill has been so palmed for the se-cond time by the legislative Assembly and transmitted to the Legislative Council:

(a) the Bill is rejected by the Council; or

(b) more shall one month elapses from the date on which the Bill is laid before the Council without the Bill being passed by it; or

(c) the Bill is passed by the Council with amendments to which the Legislative Assembly does not agree;

the Bill shall be deemed to have been passed by the Houses of the Legislature in the form in which it passed by the Legislative Assembly for the second time with such amendments, if any, as have been made or suggested by the Legislative Council and agreed to by the Legislative Assembly.

(3) Nothing in this section shall apply to a Money Bill.

76. (1) A Money Bill shall not be introduced in the Legislative Council.

(2) After a Money Bill has been passed by the Legislative Assembly, it shall be transmitted to the Legislative Council for its recommenda-tions and the Legislative Council shall within a period of fourteen days from the date of its receipt of the Bill return the Bill to the Legis-lative Assembly with its recommendations, and the Legislative Assemble may there upon either accept or reject all or any of the recom-mendations of the Legislative Council.

(3) If the Legislative Assembly accepts any of the recommendations of the Legislative Council, the Money Bil] shall deemed to have been passed by both Houses with the amend-ments recommended by the Legislative Coun-cil and accepted by the Legislative Assembly.

(4) If the Legislative Assembly does not accept any of the recommendations of the Legislative Council, the Money Bill shall be deemed to have been passed by both Houses in the form which it was passed by the Legislative Assembly without any of the amendments recommended by the Legislative Council.

5. If a Money Bill passed by the Legislative Assembly and transmitted to the Legislative Council for its recommendations is not returned to the Legislative Assembly within the said period of fourteen days, it shall be deemed to have been passed by both Houses at the expiration of the said period in the form in which it was passed by the Legislative Assembly.

77. (1) For the purposes of the part, a Bill shall be deemed to be a Money Bill if it contains only provisions dealing with all or any of the following matters namely:

(a) the imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax;

(b) the regulation of the borrowing of money or the giving of any guarantee by the State, or the amendment of the law with respect to any financial obligations under-taken or to be undertaken by the State;

(c) the custody of the Consolidated Fund or the Contingency Fund of the State, the payment of money into or the with-drawal of moneys from any such Fund:

(d) the appropriation of moneys out of the Consolidated Fund of the State;

(e) the declaring of any expenditure to be expenditure charges on the consolidated Fund of the State, or the increasing of the amount of any such expenditure;

(f) the receipt of money on account of the Consolidated Fund of the State or the public account of the State or the custody or issue of such money; or any matter incidental to any of the matters specified in clauses (a) to (f).

(2) A Bill shall not be deemed to be a Money Bill by reason only that it provides for the imposition of fines or other pecuniary penalties or for the demand or payment of fees for lice-nces or fees for services rendered, or by reason that it provides for the imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax by any local authority or body for local purposes.

(3) If any question arises whether a Bill introduced in the Legislature is a Money Bill or not, the decision of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly thereon shall be final.

(4) There shall be endorsed an every Money Bill when it is transmitted to the Legislative Council under section 76 and when it is pre-sented to the Sadar-i-Riyasat for assent under section 78, the certificate of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly signed by him that it is a Money Bill.

78. When a Bill has been passed by both Houses of the Legislature, it shall be presented to the Sadar--i-Riyasat and the Sadar-i-Riyasat shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he with-holds assent therefrom.

Provided that the Sadar-i-Riyasat may, as soon as possible after the presentation to him of the Bill for assent, return the Bill if it is not a Money Bill together with a message requesting that the Houses will reconsider the Bill or any specified provisions thereof and, in particular, will consider the desira-bility of introducing any such amendments as he may recommend in his message and, when a Bill is so returned, the Houses shall reconsider the Bill accordingly, and if the Bill is passed again by the Houses with or without amendment and presented to the Sadar-i-Riyasat for assent, the Sadar-i-Riyasat shall not withhold assent therefrom.