"Parliamentary committees are the workhorses of Parliament, yet their use has been episodic." Examine this with reference to the recent referral of bills to Joint Parliamentary Committees.

Parliamentary committees are small cross-party groups of MPs, often called mini-Parliaments, that examine bills in detail. The floor of the House cannot do this work. But sending a bill to a committee is at the discretion of the presiding officer or the House. As a result, referrals rise and fall with political will. The share of bills referred fell from 71% in the 15th Lok Sabha to 25% in the 16th [1] and 16% in the 17th [2]. The recent run of JPC referrals is welcome, but it is selective, not a settled practice.

Why committees are workhorses

• Sustained scrutiny: committees held about 1,700 meetings in the 17th Lok Sabha [2]. They examine bills clause by clause, which floor debate cannot do.
• Stakeholder voice: they take evidence from experts and citizens and build consensus across parties [1].
• Less partisanship: members meet in closed sittings where no whip applies, so they can deliberate freely.

Evidence of episodic use

• No mandatory referral: only four bills went to JPCs in the entire 17th Lok Sabha [2].
• Revival in the 18th Lok Sabha:
• The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 was referred to a JPC on the day it was introduced [3].
• The One Nation One Election Bill was referred to a JPC in December 2024 [4].

• The FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026 was referred in August 2026, almost five months after its introduction [5].

• Reactive, not routine: referral usually happens only for contested bills. It works as a political safety valve rather than a standard step.

• Compressed scrutiny: Opposition members of the FCRA JPC have asked for at least four weeks for public comments [6]. The Bill creates a Designated Authority that can take over assets of NGOs whose registration ends [5], so the groups affected need time to respond.
• Advisory outcome: JPC reports are not binding, and the ruling majority dominates the committee.

Way forward

• Default referral: send every bill to a committee unless the government records its reasons for skipping this step.
• Consult before introduction: enforce the Pre-Legislative Consultation Policy, 2014, which asks for a 30-day public comment period on draft bills [7].
• Realistic deadlines: give committees enough time, research staff and published evidence.

Committees are Parliament's most effective scrutiny tool, but they cannot work well while their use depends on political will. Making referral a regular, rule-based step would strengthen the legislative accountability that the Constitution's parliamentary model requires.