Ethics Committee

Topic: Parliamentary Procedure, Committees and Privileges · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

An Ethics Committee is a committee of a House of Parliament that watches over the moral and ethical conduct of its members. It looks into complaints of unethical behaviour, even when that behaviour is not a breach of privilege. It matters because it covers a gap in the privilege system. It also became front-page news when its report led to the expulsion of Mahua Moitra from the Lok Sabha in 2023 [3][4].

Explanation

What it does

• It examines complaints of unethical conduct by members.
• Not every piece of bad conduct is a breach of privilege, meaning a violation of one of the special rights of the House or its members. The Ethics Committee deals with this wider area of members' behaviour.
• It hears the matter and gives a report to the House.
• The House itself then decides what to do. It acts by passing a motion, which is a formal proposal put to the House for a vote.
• In the Rajya Sabha, the committee oversees a Code of Conduct for members [2]. A code of conduct is a written list of the standards members must follow.

When each House set one up

• Rajya Sabha: set up in 1997 [2].
• Lok Sabha:
• an ad hoc committee (one set up for the time being, not permanent) was formed in 2000;
• it became a permanent part of the Lok Sabha Rules in 2015.

How a case moves (as seen in the 2023 Moitra case)

1. Complaint against a member reaches the committee.
2. Inquiry: the committee examines the charges and the people involved.
3. Report: the committee gives its findings and its recommendation to the House. In 2023 this was the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee's First Report [3].
4. Motion in the House: the House debates and votes on a motion based on the report. A simple vote of the House decides the punishment.
5. Possible punishments (the same range the House uses for privilege cases), from mildest to most severe: - admonition (a warning); - reprimand (a formal rebuke); - suspension from the House; - expulsion (loss of membership).

Limits and weak points

• Lok Sabha members have no written code of conduct. Critics ask whether a member can be punished for breaking standards that were never written down [4].
• Weak due process. Due process means fair procedure before punishment. In the Moitra case, the member could not cross-examine (question) her accusers [4].
• Decisions on party lines. The committee and the House are made up of party members, so the majority can decide the outcome [4].
• Courts can step in only a little. Under Art. 122, courts cannot question House proceedings for procedural irregularity, meaning a failure to follow the House's own procedure. They can still review an expulsion for gross illegality, irrationality or unconstitutionality (Raja Ram Pal, 2007).

In the Constitution and practice

• No article of the Constitution names the Ethics Committee. It comes from each House's own rules.
• Constitutional base:
• Art. 118: each House makes its own rules of procedure.
• Art. 105(3): the House's powers, including the power to punish its members. These powers are still uncodified, because Parliament has never passed a law listing them.

• Raja Ram Pal v. Speaker (2007): the Houses have the power to expel members, subject to limited judicial review.

• Mahua Moitra case (2023), the key instance:

• The Lok Sabha Ethics Committee's First Report found two charges [3][4]:
  • "unethical conduct" and "contempt of the House": she shared her Lok Sabha Members' Portal login with an unauthorised person, with possible effects on national security;
  • conduct unbecoming of an MP: she accepted gifts and other benefits from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to further his interests.
• On 8 December 2023, the Lok Sabha passed a motion expelling her from the 17th Lok Sabha [3][4].
• She was not allowed to speak, and opposition MPs walked out [4].

• Her objections [4]:

  • there was no proof that money changed hands;
  • she could not cross-examine her accusers;
  • she was punished under an ethics code that did not exist.

• Background: the cash-for-query sting of 2005. Members were caught on camera taking money to ask questions. 11 MPs were expelled, 10 from the Lok Sabha and 1 from the Rajya Sabha [2]. NCERT Class 11 uses this case to discuss members' conduct.

Don't confuse with

• Committee of Privileges: it deals with breach of privilege and contempt of the House. It is quasi-judicial (it works somewhat like a court). It has 15 members in the Lok Sabha and 10 in the Rajya Sabha, and the Rajya Sabha committee is headed by the Deputy Chairman. The Ethics Committee deals with moral and ethical conduct, which may not be a breach of privilege at all.
• Breach of privilege: this is the violation of a specific privilege, such as arresting a member inside the House's buildings without permission. Unethical conduct is wider and is not tied to any listed privilege.
• Code of Conduct: this is the rulebook, while the Ethics Committee is the body that applies it. The Rajya Sabha has a Code of Conduct [2]. The Lok Sabha has no written code, and this was a central objection in the Moitra case [4].
• Sita Soren v. Union of India (2024): this is about criminal prosecution in court for bribery. A legislator cannot claim immunity under Art. 105 or 194 [1]. Ethics Committee action is internal discipline by the House, not a criminal trial.

Prelims Hooks

• Ethics Committee set up: Rajya Sabha in 1997 [2]; Lok Sabha in 2000, as an ad hoc committee at first.
• The Rajya Sabha Ethics Committee oversees a Code of Conduct for members [2].
• Mahua Moitra was expelled from the 17th Lok Sabha on 8 December 2023, based on the First Report of the Lok Sabha Committee on Ethics [3].
• Trap: the Ethics Committee only recommends. The House expels a member, by passing a motion.
• Trap: the Ethics Committee and the Committee of Privileges are separate bodies. Privilege rules are Rules 222–228 in the Lok Sabha and Rules 187–203 in the Rajya Sabha [2].
• Raja Ram Pal (2007) upheld the House's power to expel. Courts can review an expulsion only for gross illegality, irrationality or unconstitutionality. Art. 122 protects only procedural irregularity.

Mains Points

• Due process in ethics inquiries.
• The 2023 Moitra expulsion raised three concerns: no cross-examination, no written code of conduct, and a decision taken along party lines [4].

• When the House punishes its own member, it acts as both accuser and judge. Fair procedure is therefore essential.

• Reform options.

• A written, statutory code of conduct for Lok Sabha members.
• The right to legal representation and cross-examination.

• Committees with members from all parties, or an independent ethics commissioner like the UK's Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.

• Accountability vs. autonomy.

• Ethics Committees help keep members honest and protect public trust. This matters after the 2005 cash-for-query sting and the Sita Soren (2024) necessity test (a privilege exists only if the House needs it to do its work) [1].
• But the power to expel members can be misused against opposition members. Clear rules and limited judicial review (Raja Ram Pal, 2007) keep the two in balance.

Related concepts

• Parliamentary privileges
• Individual privileges
• Collective privileges
• Bar on courts inquiring into parliamentary proceedings
• Breach of privilege
• Contempt of the House
• Privilege motion
• Committee of Privileges
• Keshav Singh case
• Raja Ram Pal case

Read more

• Parliamentary privileges, contempt and ethics