යෝජිත නව ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව (Third Republic Constitution) Chapter XIV

 CHAPTER XIV

 

 

THE PARLIAMENT

 

93.       There shall be a Parliament which shall consist of one hundred and ninety Members elected in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

 

94.       Unless Parliament is sooner dissolved, every Parliament shall continue for four years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer, and the expiry of the stipulated period of four years shall operate as dissolution of Parliament.

 

95.       (1) Parliament shall, at its first meeting after a General Election, meet in the House chaired by the incumbent President.

 

       (2) All the elected members shall take and subscribe to the Oath in the Fourth Schedule, before President.

 

       (3) In subsequent sittings, new Members of Parliament, if any, shall take and subscribe to that Oath before Speaker.

 

       (4) No Member shall sit or vote in Parliament until he has taken and subscribed to such Oath.

 

      (5) Parliament, at its first meeting after a General Election, and after taking and subscribing to the Oath, shall elect three Members to be respectively the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees (hereinafter referred to as the “Deputy Speaker”), and the Deputy Chairman of Committees thereof.

 

      (6) Speaker or in his absence Deputy Speaker or in their absence Deputy Chairman of Committees or in their absence a Member elected by Parliament for the sitting shall preside at the sitting of Parliament.

96.       (1) Speaker, Deputy Speaker, or Deputy Chairman of Committees shall, unless resigns his office by writing under his hand addressed to President or ceases to be a Member of Parliament or is impeached, vacate his office on the dissolution of Parliament.

 

        (2) Whenever the office of Speaker, Deputy Speaker or Deputy Chairman of Committees becomes vacant otherwise than as a result of dissolution of Parliament, Parliament shall at its first meeting after the occurrence of the vacancy elect another Member to such office.

 

       (3) If Parliament, after having been dissolved is summoned under paragraph 307(1), each of the Members mentioned in paragraph (1) of this Article shall notwithstanding anything therein, resume and continue to hold office while that Parliament is kept in session.

97.       (1) There shall be a Secretary General of Parliament who shall, subject to the provisions of paragraph 185(1), be appointed by President and shall hold office during good behavior.

 

        (2) He shall have sufficient staff.

        (3) The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the Secretary General and his staff.

98.       (1) Members who do not collectively constitute the Government shall be known as Opposition Members, and the Member who obtains the most confidence of the Opposite Members shall become the Opposition Leader.

(2) The Opposition Leader (OL) shall have the same privileges as a Cabinet Minister.

(3) Opposition Leader may be removed by operation of, mutatis mutandis, the provisions of Article 58, or by Speaker with a Simple Majority of votes in favor of such removal of Opposition Members.

99.       The seat of a Member of Parliament shall become vacant:

 

(1) by operation of the provisions of Article 58, mutatis mutandis;

 

(2) upon the dissolution of Parliament;

 

(3) if, without the leave of Parliament first obtained, he absents himself from the sittings of Parliament during a continuous period of three months;

 

(4) if he subsequently becomes a member of Public Service or an employee of a public corporation;

 

                  (5) if he changes his political party after he has been elected; and

                 (6) if he crosses over to the Government side from the Opposition side.

100.       The privileges, immunities, and powers of Parliament and State Assembly and of their Members, subject to the provision of this Constitution and the common law may be determined and regulated by law in State Assembly.

 

101.       (1) The provisions of Article 62 of this Constitution shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Deputy Chairman of Committees, and Members of Parliament.

(2) Member of Parliament, Minister, Deputy Minister, Chief Minister, Governor, Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Deputy Chairman, Local Chairman, and Local Member shall not be entitled to a pension; only President and Vice President shall have a pension.

 

102.   Parliament shall have power to act notwithstanding any vacancy in its membership and its proceedings shall be valid notwithstanding that it is discovered subsequently that a person who was not entitled so to do sat or voted or otherwise took part in the proceedings.

 

103.   Parliament may adjourn from time to time as it may determine by resolution until it is prorogued or dissolved.

 

104.   If at any time during a meeting of Parliament the attention of the person presiding is drawn to the fact that there are fewer than fifty Members present, the person presiding shall, subject to any Standing Order, adjourn the sitting without question put.

 

105.   (1) Subject to the provisions of the Constitution, Parliament may by resolution make Standing Orders to provide for the regulation of its business, the preservation of order at its sittings and any other matter for which provision is required or authorized to be so made by the Constitution.

(2) Until Parliament otherwise provides by law or by resolution, the Standing Order of previous Parliament shall, mutatis mutandis, be the Standing Orders of Parliament, and State Assembly.

 

106.   (1) Save as otherwise provided in the Constitution, any question proposed for decision by Parliament shall be decided by the majority of votes of the members present and voting.

(2) The person presiding shall not vote in the first instance, but shall have and exercise a casting vote in the event of an equality of votes.

 

107.   Parliament shall have power to make laws in matters or subjects, as per the provisions of Chapter XI, reserved for the Central Government with Simple Majority votes:

Provided that Parliament shall not make any law:

       (a) to amend or repeal any provision of the Constitution;

(b) to add any provision to the Constitution;

(c) to suspend the operation of the Constitution or any part thereof;

(d) to repeal the existing Constitution and introduce a new Constitution therefor;

(e) to make laws having retrospective effect.

Any of the actions listed just above shall be effected by State Assembly.

108.   (1) Parliament and State Assembly shall be the only two parallel authorities which shall make laws for the whole country in accordance with the framework of devolution of power prescribed by the provisions of this Constitution.

 

(2) Parliament or State Assembly shall not abdicate or in any manner alienate its legislative powers and shall not set up any authority with any legislative power.

(3) Laws enacted by Parliament or State Assembly shall be common to every person, and there shall not be any personal law.

(4) It shall not be a contravention of the provisions of this Article for Parliament to make, in any law relating to public security, provision empowering President, on advice of Prime Minister, to make emergency regulations in accordance with such law.

(5) It shall not be a contravention of the provisions of this Article for empowering President to create legal persons in the interests of environment, education, social work, professions, or such non-profit causes by a Charter issued by President as per the provisions of subparagraph 59(1)(r) .

109.   (1) It shall be the duty of Attorney General to examine every Bill for any violation thereof with the Constitution, and Attorney General shall communicate in detail such opinion to President and Speaker; and Attorney General or any officer assisting Attorney General in the performance of his duties under this Article shall be afforded all facilities necessary for the performance of such duties.

(2) Parliament shall not proceed with such Bills unless inconsistencies have been removed as per the instructions given by Attorney General, and shall introduce a new amended Bill again following the normal procedure.

110.   (1) Every Bill shall be published in the Gazette at least seven days before it is placed on the Order Paper of Parliament, and any Citizen may challenge the Bill in Supreme Court during this period. Supreme Court in a Constitutional Bench of not less than seven Judges shall communicate their determination to President and Speaker, and Parliament shall be bound to accept the suggestions given in such determination.

 

(2) The passing of a Bill or a resolution by Parliament shall be in accordance with the Constitution and the Standing Orders of Parliament. Any one or more of the Standing Orders may be suspended by Parliament in the circumstance and in the manner prescribed by the Standing Orders.

(3) Speaker shall endorse on every Bill passed by Parliament a certificate in the following form:

“This Bill (here State the short title of the Bill) has been duly passed by (Parliament or State Assembly) with (number) in favor and (number) against.”

(4) Speaker shall submit such endorsed Bill to President for his signature for the Bill to become a law in the following form:

“This Bill (here State the short title of the Bill) has been endorsed by the Speaker, and hereinafter shall be a common law in the Republic.”

(5) Where a Bill becomes law upon the certificate of President, no court or tribunal shall inquire into, pronounce upon or in any manner call in question the validity of such Act on any ground whatsoever.