Book Description

The concept of democracy is not new to India. In fact, the substance of self-government lies embedded in its hoary past. Nearly forty-one years ago the country adopted a Constitution based on the principles of liberty, equality, fraternity and the rule of law. India opted for parliamentary form of government because it suited the genius of the people. It elected nine Parliaments on the basis of universal adult franchise and was thus able to live up to the expectations of a political awakened electorate. The image of Parliament and its credibility as a representative institution largely depends on the role and functions of its Members. The objective of the present study is, therefore, to provide an analysis of the work done by the Ninth Lok Sabha (18 December, 1989 to 13 March, 1991) in major fields during its short but eventful life span (one year two months and twenty-six days). This sought to be done by means of articles by distinguished parliamentarians and others, and statements and statistical tables supplemented by brief introductory notes. An effort has also been made to present a comparative picture of the background of Members of the earlier Lok Sabha and the work done by them. One of the noteworthy features of the Ninth Lok Sabha, which held 7 sessions consisting of 109 sittings lasting over 754 hours, was the passing of as many as 63 Bills including 7 Constitution Ammendment Bills. Two of the important Bills passed were the -Prasar Bharati- (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Bill and the -National Commission for Women’ Bill. These may well be considered as landmarks in the history of enactments made by the Parliament. The Government can take credit for answering a staggering number of 21,550 questions on diverse subjects put to it by the members of the Ninth Lok Sabha. It is hoped that the study will be helpful to researchers, parliamentarians and all those who are engaged in a study of the working of parliamentary institutions and processes and enable them to form a picture of the tasks achieved and acquaint them with the diverse activities which a modern Parliament is called upon to perform.