Parliamentary Privileges & Immunity

Knowledge Themes

Structural Subtopics

• Constitutional provisions under Article 105 and Article 194
• Individual privileges versus collective privileges
• Freedom of speech and its constitutional limits under Article 121
• Immunity from arrest in civil cases and limitations in criminal cases
• Right of the House to exclude strangers and hold secret sittings
• Power to punish for breach of privilege and contempt of the House
• Role and functioning of the Committee of Privileges
• Sources of privileges including conventions and judicial interpretations
• Conflict between parliamentary privileges and fundamental rights
• Judicial review of parliamentary proceedings and Article 122
• Rationale for and against codification of privileges
• Landmark judgments like P.V. Narasimha Rao and Sita Soren cases
• Procedure for raising a privilege motion in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha
• Rights of non-members entitled to speak in the House such as the Attorney General