This article has been written by Kritika Jaiman.

Introduction

“Asking questions in Court is Contempt Asking questions outside Parliament is Sedition and now Asking questions inside Parliament is Forbidden”, tweeted Mahua Moitra (Lok Sabha MP, TMC). On September 2, 2020, the upper house and the lower house secretariats released a schedule for the Monsoon Session of Parliament and it was announced that the Question Hour will be dropped from the coming Monsoon Session. The decision was taken to shorten the Monsoon Session amid pandemic.

The Monsoon Session will take place from September 14, 2020- October 1, 2020. The Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha will be scheduled from 9am- 1pm and 3pm – 7pm respectively, except on day 1, when Lok Sabha will be held before Rajya Sabha. The parliament will work for 7 days a week instead of a usual 5 days a week. In this parliamentary session, no starred questions are allowed, unstarred questions have been reduced to 160 questions from 230 questions and zero hour has been limited to 30 mins from 1 hour. The objective behind such a truncated session is to ensure that parliamentarians stay for a shorter period of time in Delhi in order to curb COVID-19. This session will have 2 hours break from 1pm – 3pm so that the houses can be disinfected for the following session. The seating arrangements are made to follow social distancing. The move to unilaterally cancel the question hour and shorten the zero hour by the government met with severe condemnation from opposition parties. 

The decision was vociferously objected by the opposition even on Day 1 at Zero Hour. Question Hour is a tool in the hands of opposition parties to ask ministers uncomfortable questions and make them accountable. On previous occasions, this hour has successfully resulted in setting up of committees, public inquires etc. For instance, in 1957, one of the financial scams was unveiled in Lok Sabha. A Congress MP asked the then Finance Minister TT Krishnamachari regarding the 1 cr. investment made by the LIC in Haridas Mundhra’s companies. This Question was followed by a number of questions. The Question Hour resulted in public inquiry by Justice MC Chagla. The report submitted by Justice MC Chagla revealed that the investments were done to benefit Mundhra’s companies instead of LIC. In 1991, the parliamentary proceedings started getting broadcasted which made this hour even more effective tool in ensuring the accountability of the government.

What is Question Hour and Zero Hour

That hour of the session when questions are asked by the MPs to the ministers related to the working of their ministries is called Question Hour. It takes place every day, during the session for 60 minutes. The questions must be submitted 15 days prior, which gives ministers a chance to prepare for the questions. It is regulated according to the Lok Sabha Rules and Rajya Sabha Rules.

Zero Hour is an ‘Indian Parliamentary Innovation’. Matters of national importance can be raised during this hour without prior notice. Although Zero Hour is not mentioned in any Rule Book but over the years presiding officers of both the houses have made efforts to regulate the Zero Hour and make it more effective. Question Hour is the first Hour in the Lok Sabha followed by Zero Hour, whereas, in Rajya Sabha it is the other way round. The significant difference between Question Hour and Zero Hour is that in the former ministers are bound to answer all the questions whereas it is optional in the latter.

Starred and Unstarred Questions

The questions under Question Hour can be classified into two categories. While submitting their questions for Question Hour, the interested MPs have to inform, whether they expect a written reply or an oral reply. In case they want an oral reply, they can put an asterisk sign (*) next to the question. It is known as a starred question. The minister has to reply on the floor during question hour and there can be rebuttal or follow-up questions from MPs. If no asterisk sign is put next to the question, it is known as an unstarred question and a written reply is expected from the minister. Maximum 20 starred questions and 230 unstarred questions are allowed in a day and the selection of questions is done by ballot system. Each MP is allowed to ask one starred and four unstarred questions and if no starred question is asked then a MP is allowed to ask five unstarred questions. The word limit for each question is restricted to 150 words.

Unstarred questions are usually asked when MPs are willing to collect data to understand the working of a government. On the other hand starred questions are preferred when the MPs prefer to put a minister on spot by asking uncomfortable questions and follow-up with rebuttals.

Precedents

Question hour has been suspended earlier to address the extraordinary situation of War and Emergency. For the First time it was suspended during the Indo-China War in 1962. In 1975 and 1976 when India was under National Emergency. On November 7th and November 16th , 1990 and July 21st and July 22nd , 2008, when the session was convened with the objective of taking a vote of confidence.

The instant case of suspension of Question Hour cannot be justified by the precedents. Only on two previous occasions the Question Hour was dropped entirely from the session of the parliament. Firstly, in 1962, the cancellation of Question Hour at the time of winter session was a result of agreement between the ruling and the opposition parties. (see here) Secondly, it was done amid the infamous national emergency in 1975 and 1976. Declaration of Emergency based on internal aggression remained controversial and undemocratic, suspension of Question Hour during this period is a bad precedent.

How the cancellation of Question Hour affects Democracy

Democracy without accountability is an autocracy. Question hour is an essence of parliamentary democracy. On the website of Lok Sabha, Question Hour is described as the government trial. It is written that, “Through the Question Hour the Government is able to quickly feel the pulse of the nation and adapt its policies and actions accordingly. It is through questions in the Parliament that the Government remains in touch with the people in as much as members are enabled thereby to ventilate the grievances of the public in matters concerning the administration.” During pandemic Question Hour is needed more than ever before when India is at her lowest. It is important to question, discuss and debate about the COVID-19 mismanagement, economic downfall, migrant crisis etc. It is the only time when government can be held responsible for the inadequacies of past 6 months and to come up with better policies.

Why is the dismissal of Question Hour unjustified

858 citizens from varied professions including students, journalists, lawyers, wrote a letter to presiding officers of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha against suspension of Question Hour. It was mentioned in the letter that, “As per settled convention also, it is only in very exceptional cases that Question Hour may be dispensed with as Presiding Officers are known to rarely exercise this power, and that too only when the Houses unanimously agree.”

There are two conditions that have to be satisfied; firstly, there should be an exceptional situation. Although COVID-19 is an unprecedented situation but it is not exceptional in the sense that Question Hour has to be dropped. After making all the arrangements for the opening of parliament, it is not reasonable that if the house remains open for 90 more minutes every day or few additional days, it will put the life of ministers under risk. Centre should take inspiration from Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh and Haryana, who have successfully held state legislative sessions with Question Hour. In fact, in the United Kingdom and Canada virtual sessions were arranged for questioning of the government. Further, opposition parties are themselves asking for conducting question hour. Most states have reopened government offices with full capacity, courts and public places have reopened, the government is conducting final year exams, entrance exams and recruitment exams. Amid unlock 4, restricting the functioning of the parliament seems like an irresponsible step.

Secondly, there should be a unanimous agreement. The continuous objection by opposition parties outside and inside the house, is indicative of the fact that there was no consensus between the ruling and opposition parties. Also no formal resolution was passed in the houses for the dismissal of question hour.

Constitutional Right

Question Hour is a parliamentary right of the opposition to ask ministers questions and hold them accountable. This is not just a parliamentary right of the MPs but this right is inherent in the constitution. According to Article 75(3) of the Constitution, “The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People”. They can be held collectively responsible only on the floor of the house. They become answerable when questions are put up during Question Hour.

Separation of Powers

The decision of the executive to unilaterally suspend Question Hour without consulting the legislature is a violation of Separation of Powers which is a part of basic structure doctrine.

Conclusion

Question hour is an indispensable part of a parliamentary proceeding. It is not just a constitutional right or a parliamentary right of the opposition but the right of the citizens to held government answerable through their political representatives. The cancellation of Question Hour may be a boon for the government but its cons outnumber its pros. It can only be hoped that in the absence of Question Hour, the house takes full advantage of the limited Zero Hour and Unstarred Questions.

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