Explain the structure of the Parliamentary Committee system. How far have the financial committees helped in the…

The Parliamentary Committee system, deriving its authority from Articles 105 (privileges) and 118 (rules of procedure), functions as an institutional mechanism to ensure continuous legislative scrutiny and executive accountability.

Structure of the Committee System

Parliamentary committees are classified into two broad categories:

1. Ad-hoc Committees: Temporary bodies constituted for specific tasks, such as Select or Joint Committees on specific Bills or inquiry matters, which dissolve upon report submission.
2. Standing Committees: Permanent bodies reconstituted annually. These comprise 24 Department-related Standing Committees (DRSCs) that oversee line ministries, Administrative and House committees, and three specialized Financial Committees: the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the Estimates Committee, and the Committee on Public Undertakings (CoPU).

Role of Financial Committees in Institutionalisation

Financial committees have institutionalised accountability by establishing continuous, non-partisan financial oversight mechanisms beyond plenary floor debates:

• Executive Accountability via Audit Scrutiny: The PAC (22 members, conventionally chaired by a senior Opposition member) examines the CAG’s audit reports to check financial irregularities and executive overreach. Its reports on the CAG audits of 2G, the Commonwealth Games and coal-block allocation exemplify this role.
• Policy and Efficiency Oversight: The Estimates Committee (30 Lok Sabha members, chaired by the ruling party) conducts post-budget scrutiny to suggest administrative economies, while the CoPU assesses the commercial efficiency and governance of public sector enterprises.

Limitations and Way Forward

Despite these contributions, institutionalisation remains incomplete. The committees' findings are strictly advisory, and their implementation is often weak. Furthermore, their post-mortem nature, declining sitting days, and growing partisan contestation dilute their impact. Unlike the UK PAC, which exercises stronger conventions and institutionalized Treasury responses, the Indian system lacks statutory enforcement. To deepen parliamentary institutionalisation, Parliament should introduce mandatory timelines for Action Taken Reports (ATRs) and empower committees with proactive, pre-expenditure scrutiny powers.