Revision summary
This 15-mark answer analyses the transformation of the Indian Parliament over the past two decades, moving from a deliberative forum to an arena of executive assertion. It highlights declining debate hours, bypassing of Department-Related Standing Committees (DRSCs), and the rise of ordinance-making and bypassing of bicameral consensus through Money Bills. The critique incorporates Morris-Jones and Pratap Bhanu Mehta's insights on the hollowing out of institutions. The conclusion argues for systemic institutional reforms to restore Parliament's core constitutional role as a deliberative check on executive power.
Model answer
Copper italics in this answer — like this — are the key facts. Each one is unpacked in the Facts & figures rail.
Introduction
Over the past two decades, the Indian Parliament has witnessed a paradigm shift from a vibrant forum of structured debate to an instrument of majoritarian executive legislative output. While this transformation has ensured administrative decisiveness and speed in policy implementation, it has severely undermined the core constitutional mandate of parliamentary deliberation, scrutiny, and accountability.
Body
Executive Dominance and Legislative Bypass
The legislative process in the last two decades has seen a marked centralisation of power within the executive wing, diminishing the floor space for opposition pushback.
- Whip Culture: Strict anti-defection provisions under the Tenth Schedule have curtailed individual lawmaker autonomy, turning voting into a mechanical party-line exercise.
- Money Bill Route: Contentious socio-economic legislations, such as the Aadhaar Act, have frequently been certified as Money Bills, circumventing Rajya Sabha scrutiny.
- Ordinance Overuse: Resorting to executive ordinances to push through key economic and administrative reforms reflects a tendency to bypass legislative debate altogether.
Decline of Committee Scrutiny
Department-Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) were institutionalised to enable rigorous, non-partisan examination of bills, but their efficacy has steadily eroded.
- Falling Referrals: The percentage of bills referred to DRSCs has witnessed a steep decline, with crucial legislations passed hastily without expert or stakeholder consultation.
- Reduced Sitting Hours: Committees suffer from low attendance, truncated meeting schedules, and a lack of independent research infrastructure.
- Partisan Polarisation: Committee deliberations, once known for consensus-building behind closed doors, increasingly mirror the acrimonious rhetoric of the floor.
Transformation of Parliamentary Culture
Parliamentary disruptions have transformed from tactical pressure tactics into a systemic mode of political signalling by both ruling and opposition parties.
- Loss of Working Days: Productive time is frequently lost to continuous adjournments, preventing substantive discussions on national security, inflation, and federal issues.
- Decline in Quality Debates: Zero Hour and Question Hour are increasingly used for media optics rather than holding ministers accountable through sharp, data-backed supplementary queries.
- Scholarly Critique: Political scientists like Pratap Bhanu Mehta note that Parliament is morphing into a register of executive will rather than a deliberative legislature.
Critical Evaluation and Counter-Trends
Despite these systemic deficits, the Indian Parliament continues to exert profound democratic authority and responsiveness under specific contexts.
- Electoral Legitimacy: High voter turnouts and diverse social representation ensure that Parliament remains the ultimate democratic mirror of India's plural society.
- Landmark Consensus: Instances like the GST constitutional amendment demonstrate that bipartisan consensus is still achievable on complex federal structural reforms.
Flow diagram
flowchart TD A[Traditional Model] -->|Last Two Decades| B[Executive Ascendancy] B --> C[Bypassing DRSCs] B --> D[Money Bill Route] B --> E[Frequent Disruptions] C --> F[Reduced Scrutiny] D --> G[Weakened Rajya Sabha] F --> H[Democratic Deficit] G --> H[Democratic Deficit]
Conclusion
The shifts in the functioning of the Indian Parliament reflect a broader global democratic trend towards executive-centric governance. While efficiency is vital for a developing nation, it cannot permanently substitute for rigorous legislative scrutiny without hollowing out constitutional checks and balances. Restoring Parliament to its prime status requires institutional reforms, including mandatory committee referrals for all major bills and protected time for non-partisan opposition-led agendas.
Quick related
Students also ask
-
The foundational base of western democracy has been shaped by Locke's ideas of constitutionalism, freedom and property. Elucidate
Next question on this syllabus topic (2025 · Q4(a)). View answer →
-
What are the major shifts in the functioning of the Indian Parliament in the last two decades?
Key shifts include declining debate hours, frequent disruptions, bypassing of Department-Related Standing Committees, and an increase in executive dominance through ordinances and Money Bills.
-
How to structure a 15-mark UPSC answer on parliamentary reforms?
Start with a precise intro locating executive dominance, use short thematic subheadings for body points covering committee decline and legislative shortcuts, integrate political science insights, and conclude with institutional safeguards.
Same topic · past papers
UPSC has asked this before
These previous-year questions sit on the same topic. Open one to practise the earlier ask.
More from this topic
Q7(b) · UPSC Mains 2025 · PSIR GS 1 · 20 marks · Solution
Caste remains a vital axis for political mobilisation in India. How would the caste census address the aspirations of people? Discuss
Indian Nationalism
Caste remains a mobilisation axis because it still structures dignity, land, and access to the state, as Kothari, Mandal, and bahujan politics show. Parties already count jatis; the demand is that the official Census should too, beyond SC and ST. Aspirations include fairer reservation design, targeting of welfare, and recognition after the unpublished 2011 SECC caste data. Risks include reification of identity and a pure percentage war that forgets class, gender, and Ambedkar’s horizon of annihilation. A democratic census would publish usable aggregates while protecting persons and keeping constitutional individual rights at the centre.
Q7(a) · UPSC Mains 2025 · PSIR GS 1 · 20 marks · Solution
Enunciate the impediments to women's participation in local governance in the process of political decentralisation
Indian Nationalism
The 73rd and 74th Amendments reserved local seats for women, which is a structural opening, not yet equal participation. Sarpanch-pati proxy rule, unpaid care, and a male bureaucracy remain the everyday patriarchal impediments. Caste and class decide which women can act; Dalit women office-holders face additional violence and veto. Thin devolution of money and staff makes many local offices ceremonial, so participation has no policy content. Parties and seat rotation often transfer the reserved ticket to a household rather than building a woman’s public career.
Q6(a) · UPSC Mains 2025 · PSIR GS 1 · 20 marks · Solution
Parliamentary Committees are a strong tool of Parliamentary Democracy. It provides for the opportunity for cross-pollination of ideas among members of the Parliament. Discuss
Indian Nationalism
Parliamentary committees are the efficient working form of Indian parliamentary democracy, where bills, grants, and CAG reports can be examined in detail. Department-related Standing Committees mix Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members across ministries; PAC, Estimates, and COPU are the financial core. Cross-pollination happens because the whip is weaker, witnesses bring expertise, and members may agree on technical text they would never concede in the well of the House. The tool fails when bills are not referred, demands are guillotined, or ordinances replace debate. Committees strengthen democracy only if the House and the executive treat their reports as more than annual ritual.