The Rajya Sabha on Thursday approved sending three significant bills to a Joint Committee for detailed review. These bills include a provision stating that if the Prime Minister, a Chief Minister, or any minister remains in jail for more than 30 days in connection with serious criminal charges, they can be removed from office.
Home Minister Amit Shah moved the ‘Motion for Reference of Bills to Joint Committee’ in the Lok Sabha, covering three bills — a Constitutional Amendment Bill, an amendment to the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, and an amendment to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. The Rajya Sabha agreed to the proposal after the Lok Sabha had already passed it on Wednesday.
The Joint Committee will comprise 31 members — 21 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha. Its mandate is to conduct an in-depth study of the bills’ legal, constitutional, and practical implications, particularly the provision on disqualification of top officeholders in case of imprisonment. The committee will present its report in the upcoming winter session, expected to begin in the third week of November.
The proposal was passed amid uproar and protests from the opposition, who questioned the intent behind the move. While the government argued that the laws would strengthen democracy and accountability, opposition parties alleged that the BJP might misuse them to target political rivals. The future of the bills now rests on the committee’s findings.
