UPSC Prelims 2024 Q68: Money Bill Procedure (Art 109/110) — Explained
Which of the following statements are correct in respect of a Money Bill in the Parliament?
1. Article 109 mentions special procedure in respect of Money Bills.
2. A Money Bill shall not be introduced in the Council of States.
3. The Rajya Sabha can either approve the Bill or suggest changes but cannot reject it.
4. Amendments to a Money Bill suggested by the Rajya Sabha have to be accepted by the Lok Sabha.
Select the answer using the code given below:
- 1 and 2 only
- 2 and 3 only
- 1, 2 and 3
- 1, 3 and 4
Answer: (c) 1, 2 and 3
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: correct — Article 109 of the Constitution is titled 'Special procedure in respect of Money Bills'. It sets out where a Money Bill can be introduced, the 14-day limit for the Rajya Sabha, and what happens to its recommendations. Article 110 is a different provision: it defines what a Money Bill is.
- 2: correct — Article 109(1) says: 'A Money Bill shall not be introduced in the Council of States.' Article 117(1) repeats this bar and adds that such a Bill needs the President's recommendation before it is introduced. A Money Bill therefore always starts in the Lok Sabha.
- 3: correct — Under Article 109(2), the Rajya Sabha must return a Money Bill within 14 days with its recommendations. It cannot amend the Bill or reject it. If it does not return the Bill within 14 days, Article 109(5) treats the Bill as passed by both Houses in the form the Lok Sabha passed it, so the Rajya Sabha has no veto.
- 4: incorrect — Article 109(2) says the Lok Sabha 'may either accept or reject all or any of the recommendations' of the Rajya Sabha. Accepting them is optional. If the Lok Sabha rejects them all, Article 109(4) treats the Bill as passed by both Houses in the Lok Sabha's form.
How to eliminate
Statement 4 is the easiest to judge. The whole point of the Money Bill procedure is that the Lok Sabha has the final word, so a rule that the Lok Sabha 'has to' accept the Rajya Sabha's amendments goes against basic knowledge. That rules out the only option with 4 in it. Statement 2 is a well-known fact (Money Bills start only in the Lok Sabha), and it is missing from just one of the remaining options. That leaves the options built on 1 and 2, and on 2 and 3. Statement 3 follows from the same idea that the Rajya Sabha has no veto. It can only recommend, and the Bill is treated as passed after 14 days anyway. Statement 1 is the one you must simply know: Article 109 gives the procedure, and Article 110 gives the definition. A common trap is to swap the two article numbers.
Know more
Money Bill: the constitutional framework
A Money Bill deals only with the matters listed in Article 110(1): taxes, government borrowing and guarantees, custody of the Consolidated and Contingency Funds, appropriation from or charging of expenditure on the Consolidated Fund, receipts into the Consolidated Fund or Public Account, and matters incidental to these. A Bill is not a Money Bill just because it imposes fines or fees, or deals with local-body taxes (Article 110(2)).
| Article | What it does |
|---|---|
| 109 | Special procedure: introduced only in the Lok Sabha; Rajya Sabha returns it within 14 days with recommendations; Lok Sabha may accept or reject them |
| 110 | Definition; Speaker's decision on whether a Bill is a Money Bill is final (110(3)); Speaker's certificate endorsed on it (110(4)) |
| 111 | President may assent or withhold assent, but cannot return a Money Bill for reconsideration |
| 117 | Financial Bills: Category I (Money Bill matters plus other matters) follows the Money Bill rules on introduction, but the Rajya Sabha can amend or reject it; Category II needs the President's recommendation only for consideration |
| 108 | Joint sitting: not available for Money Bills, because the Lok Sabha prevails anyway |
Money Bill vs Ordinary Bill
| Feature | Money Bill | Ordinary Bill |
|---|---|---|
| Where it can be introduced | Lok Sabha only | Either House |
| President's recommendation | Required | Not required |
| Rajya Sabha's power | Recommend only, within 14 days | Amend or reject |
| Deadlock | Not possible | Joint sitting under Article 108 |
The certification debate: Because the Speaker's certificate shuts the Rajya Sabha out, using the Money Bill route for laws like the Aadhaar Act, 2016 was challenged in court. In K.S. Puttaswamy (2018), the Supreme Court upheld the Aadhaar Act as a Money Bill. In Rojer Mathew (2019), it referred the scope of judicial review over the Speaker's certification to a larger bench.
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Money Bill: Every statement depends on what counts as a Money Bill under Article 110 and how that sets it apart from other bills.
- Speaker's certification of money bills: The Speaker's final certification under Article 110(3) is what brings a Bill under the Article 109 procedure tested here.
- Financial bill (Category I): Financial Bills share some Money Bill rules but not others, a common source of confusion about the Rajya Sabha's powers.
- Exclusive powers of the Lok Sabha: The Lok Sabha's exclusive financial powers explain how the two Houses' roles in statements 2 to 4 differ.