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The Journal of Parliamentary Information VOLUME LXI NO. 3 SEPTEMBER 2015 LOK SABHA SECRETARIAT NEW DELHI CBS Publishers & Distributors Pvt. Ltd. 24, Ansari Road, Darya Ganj, New Delhi-2 EDITORIAL BOARD Editor : Anoop Mishra Secretary-General Lok Sabha Associate Editors : Dr. D. Bhalla Secretary Lok Sabha Secretariat Kalpana Sharma Joint Secretary Lok Sabha Secretariat Sayed Kafil Ahmed Director Lok Sabha Secretariat Assistant Editors : Pulin B. Bhutia Additional Director Lok Sabha Secretariat Sanjeev Sachdeva Joint Director Lok Sabha Secretariat V. Thomas Ngaihte _ Joint Director Lok Sabha Secretariat © Lok Sabha Secretariat, New Delhi THE JOURNAL OF PARLIAMENTARY INFORMATION VOLUME LXI NO. 3 SEPTEMBER 2015 CONTENTS PAGE EDITORIAL NOTE 245 ADDRESS Inaugural Address by the Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Conference on “Parliament and the Media Law”, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 8-10 April 2015 247 Speech delivered by Chairperson, Estimates Committee, Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi while releasing a book ‘Parliamentary Questions: Glorious Beginning to an Uncertain Future’ on 10 August 2015 252 PARLIAMENTARY EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES Conferences and Symposia 256 Birth Anniversaries of National Leaders 260 Exchange of Parliamentary Delegations 262 Parliament Museum 263 Bureau of Parliamentary Studies and Training 263 PROCEDURAL MATTERS 266 PARLIAMENTARY AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENTS 273 DOCUMENTS OF CONSTITUTIONAL AND PARLIAMENTARY INTEREST 280 SESSIONAL REVIEW Lok Sabha 353 Rajya Sabha 364 State Legislatures 377 BOOK REVIEW Devender Singh, Parliamentary Questions: Glorious Beginning to an Uncertain Future—Bhartruhari Mahtab 378 (iv) iv The Journal of Parliamentary Information RECENT LITERATURE OF PARLIAMENTARY INTEREST 381 APPENDICES I. Statement showing the work transacted during the Fourth Session (Part II) of the Sixteenth Lok Sabha 389 II. Statement showing the work transacted during the 235th Session of the Rajya Sabha 393 III. Statement showing the activities of the Legislatures of the States and Union Territories during the period 1 April to 30 June 2015 398 IV. List of Bills passed by the Houses of Parliament and Assented to by the President during the period 1 April to 30 June 2015 404 V. List of Bills passed by the Legislatures of the States and the Union Territories during the period 1 April to 30 June 2015 405 VI. Ordinances promulgated by the Union and State Governments during the period 1 April to 30 June 2015 406 VII. Party Position in the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha and the Legislatures of the States and the Union Territories 407 Jai Mata Di m12 final EDITORIAL NOTE The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), along with the World Bank Institute (WBI) had organized a Conference on ‘Parliament and the Media Law’ in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh from 8 to 10 April 2015. The Conference was hosted by the Andhra Pradesh CPA Branch (Andhra Pradesh Legislature). The Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan inaugurated the Conference. Other dignitaries who were present on the occasion included the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Shri N. Chandra Babu Naidu; the Minister of Urban Development, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu and the Deputy Speaker, Lok Sabha, Dr. M. Thambi Durai. Inaugurating the Conference, Smt. Mahajan said that a free, responsible and diverse media is vital to parliamentary democracy as democracy is for freedom of speech and expression. She added that an independent media can play a crucial role in building and moulding public opinion, which, in turn, influences decision-making process. She also said that the ‘freedom of the press’, which it was once called and now includes freedom of every kind of mass media, is not simply freedom of journalists, editors or proprietors alone to report and comment but includes public’s right to know and to participate in free flow of information. The Speaker, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan further said that the relationship between Parliament and media is a crucial aspect of public’s right to be informed. She felt that Parliament, or the Legislature in this sense, is the forum where public issues and policies are discussed and public grievances are addressed. She added that media acts as a link between Legislature and people, and conveys the substance of parliamentary legislation and discussion, and informs the people about policies and programmes of government. She opined that media helps decision makers to understand the pulse of society by providing a feedback mechanism. We have carried the text of her address in this issue. The Third Meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament was held on 1 and 2 June 2015 in Geneva. Participating in the Meeting, the Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan called for reform of the United Nations Security Council. Other participating Speakers and their M07 246 The Journal of Parliamentary Information representatives, particularly from China, Russia, Germany, Kenya and UAE, endorsed the amendment by India to the draft declaration of the World Conference. With regard to the status of the inclusion of the principle of Common But Differential Responsibilities (CBDR) in the proposed set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Smt. Mahajan observed that CBDR should be the ‘guiding principle’ in the development and implementation of SDGs. She also opined that GDP alone should not be the yardstick for measuring development outcomes. We have included brief accounts of the above stated Meeting and other Conferences and Events under the regular feature ‘Parliamentary Events and Activities’. Besides, we also carry in this issue, the other regular features, viz. Procedural Matters, Parliamentary and Constitutional Developments, Documents of Constitutional and Parliamentary Interest, Sessional Reviews, Recent Literature of Parliamentary Interest and Appendices. In our constant pursuit of making the Journal more enriching and useful, we always invite and welcome suggestions for its further improvement. We also welcome informative and original articles pertaining to parliamentary procedures and institutions from Members of Parliament, State Legislatures, scholars and all others interested in the field. Anoop Mishra —Editor Jai Mata Di m12 final 1 INAUGURAL ADDRESS AT THE COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY ASSOCIATION’S CONFERENCE ON ‘PARLIAMENT AND THE MEDIA LAW’, VISAKHAPATNAM, ANDHRA PRADESH, 8-10 APRIL 2015 On 8 April 2015, Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan delivered the Inaugural Address at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Conference on ‘Parliament and the Media Law’ in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. We reproduce the text of the Address delivered by the Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, Smt. Sumitra Mahajan. —Editor Hon’ble Members of Parliament and State Legislatures; Distinguished Representatives from the Media and Legal Communities; Ladies and Gentlemen: I am glad to be here today to inaugurate the CPA Parliament and Media Law Conference in this port city of Visakhapatnam which is very appropriately called ‘the Jewel of the East Coast.’ I commend the CPA and the Andhra Pradesh CPA Branch for selecting this beautiful city which is soon going to be a smart city, to host this Conference. The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) has been actively engaged in the issue of media freedom and its relation to Parliament. Fifteen years back, the CPA and the Parliament of India in association with several Commonwealth media organizations held a conference on ‘Parliament and the Media: Building an Effective Relationship’ which was followed up with other similar conferences focused on various aspects of an informed democracy. It goes without saying that a free, responsible and diverse media is as vital to parliamentary democracy as democracy is for freedom of speech and expression. An independent media can play crucial role in building and moulding public opinion, which, in turn, influences decision- making process. The ‘freedom of the press’, which it was once called and now includes freedom of every kind of mass media, is not simply M07 248 The Journal of Parliamentary Informatio n freedom of journalists, editors or proprietors alone to report and comment but it includes public’s right to know and to participate in free flow of information. While Commonwealth countries generally recognize the right of the media to a fundamental level of freedom, in practice this right is constrained as well as protected by constitutional provisions, statutes, legal precedents and licensing conditions. In India, media freedom is constitutionally secured through fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression in Article 19 (1) (a) of the Constitution. However, right to freedom of speech and expression comes with some restrictions such as sovereignty and integrity of country/security of State/public order/ decency or morality, etc. In recent years, there has been progress on freedom of expression with several Commonwealth countries enacting substantial legislation on it. The relationship between Parliament and media is crucial aspect of public’s right to be informed. Parliament, or the Legislature in this sense, is the forum where public issues and policies are discussed and public grievances are addressed. As media acts as communication link between Legislature and people, it conveys to people substance of parliamentary legislation and discussion, and informs them