Why the Rajya Sabha is critical to Indian democracy and why preserving it is not an impossible task

*Paromita Das

For a long time, the Upper House of Parliament has kept the country’s bicameral edifice functioning and flourishing. The Rajya Sabha, like its distinctive three-tiered chamber, has seen some of India’s finest minds congregate and confabulates over the years.

However, with the election of 13 Rajya Sabha seats, existential questions about the Upper House’s dilution and continued relevance have arisen. The larger issue is the dangers of a single ruling party, such as the BJP, controlling both Houses.
Meanwhile, the BJP won both Rajya Sabha seats from Assam in the Upper House election held on Thursday. With this, the party’s Rajya Sabha tally surpassed 100, making it the first party to do so since 1988. In the meantime, the BJP is looking to carve out a larger battleground for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections by pushing through its agenda and bills with vigour.

The Rajya Sabha

The Congress party’s numbers have shrunk to the point where it may lose its position as Leader of the Opposition by July of this year, when another round of biennial elections for the Upper House will be held. To maintain that position, a minimum of 25 seats are required.
Five seats were up for grabs in Punjab; three in Kerala; two in Assam, and one each in Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Tripura.

The rationale for a second House has been frequently debated, with critics claiming that because Lok Sabha MPs are directly elected, they represent the people’s mandate.

The bicameral system has some inherent advantages.

As the second and permanent Chamber, the Rajya Sabha serves as a revisionary house for laws and bills; provides checks and balances for greater executive accountability, and serves as a platform for diverse talent and expertise.

Those who oppose a second chamber argue that sending Bills to Rajya Sabha only delays the legislative process.
However, I believe that bicameralism is necessary for a federal constitution because the Rajya Sabha serves to institutionalize the principles of power-sharing between the Centre and the states.

There is an important point to be made here. When the ruling party has a landslide majority in the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha can prevent the government from acting authoritarianly.

Parliament is not only a legislative body, but it is also a deliberative one, allowing members to debate major issues of public concern.
With the Indian polity becoming more complex, the Rajya Sabha’s importance has only grown over time.

Women, religious, ethnic, and linguistic minorities are underrepresented in the Lok Sabha (due to first past the post-election system).

Federal structures in countries such as the United States and Australia ensure that all states have equal representation in their upper houses. Unlike in India, where states are represented proportionally to their population, states in the United States are represented proportionally to their population.

Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Venkaiah Naidu

For example, the number of Rajya Sabha seats allotted to Uttar Pradesh alone is significantly greater than that of the combined north-eastern states.
Ordinary bills are being passed in the form of Money Bills, in some cases, circumventing the Rajya Sabha and raising concerns about the upper house’s efficacy. This can be seen most recently in the Aadhaar Act controversy.

In fact, I believe the Money Bill evolved into a tool of subtle subversion. It took a deft sleight of hand to get proposals through that suited the party’s numbers.

In 2019, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in the Rajya Sabha, “The role of the Upper House must not be undermined, and it should be allowed more time to study and debate Bills.”
“In comparison to the 15th and 14th Lok Sabhas, only 25% of Bills were referred to committees in the 16th Lok Sabha. Regardless of what the other House does, it is critical that our House form select committees to ensure that Bills received are thoroughly scrutinised “Singh then stated.

He was referring to the Modi government’s deft use of a constitutional provision – the money bill – to push key proposals through. The Modi government used this tactic in 2017 when the combined Opposition in the Rajya Sabha outweighed the ruling alliance.

What must be understood further is that a money bill can only be introduced in the Lok Sabha. This means that the opposition will not be able to sit on it for long.
A “money bill,” as opposed to a general bill, must be related to matters of public finance. According to Article 110 of the Constitution, this broadly refers to the government’s taxes, spending, or borrowing.

When a money bill is presented to the Rajya Sabha, it has the authority to recommend changes. However, such suggested changes are not legally binding. If the lower house, where the BJP clearly has a majority, rejects Rajya Sabha’s recommendations on a money bill, the bill is automatically passed. This provision adheres to the parliamentary system of the Commonwealth.
I also thought the way the “domicile” status clause was changed in 2003 left a lot to be desired. In layman’s terms, it means that a person who does not belong to a state can run in the Rajya Sabha elections from that state, even if they are neither a resident nor a domicile of that state.

This was a strategy used by any ruling party to get some of their defeated Lok Sabha candidates elected to the Rajya Sabha.

Another red flag is that the sincerity of nominated members is frequently called into question. The government makes nominations to recognize the celebrity status of some icons or to appease influencers.
After being nominated, these members rarely participate in House proceedings. For example, Sachin Tendulkar was appointed in 2012, and the House had met 348 days since then, but he had only attended 24 of them.

Rekha, an actress, attended for 18 days. Furthermore, according to available data, Rekha has not attended more than one day of any session since her nomination in 2012.

To preserve Rajya Sabha’s federal character, the following steps must be taken:

1. Rajya Sabha members are directly elected by state citizens.

2. Censorship and patronage appointments would be reduced as a result of this.

3. A federal arrangement can be devised to ensure that each state has equal representation.
4. The proceedings in the House should not be dominated by large states.

5. Improved nomination procedure to improve the quality of debate in the House.

To bring things up to date, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the 72 retiring Rajya Sabha members: “This is a final farewell. But, as the Bengalis say, ‘Ami aaschi,’ or the Gujaratis, ‘Aao jo,’ ‘come again.’ That’s what we’d like to tell them (retiring Rajya Sabha members): ‘Come again.’ When such experienced members depart, the country… the House feels a void. Experience can sometimes be more valuable than knowledge.”

Experience does, in fact, hold its own. And this is where the Rajya Sabha comes in. It’s a forum where the wise offer advice. It is a destination where light can be found.