Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC): How-When and Why?
Recently, opposition parties have been demanding an inquiry into the allegations of the Hindenburg Research hedge fund against a corporate house, either by a joint parliamentary committee headed by the Supreme Court, or under the supervision of the Chief Justice of India.
About JPC
- A Joint Parliamentary Committee (PC) is set up by the Parliament for a specific purpose, such as detailed examination of a subject or bill.
- It is an ad-hoc committee i.e. it is constituted as and when the need arises and it is dissolved after the expiry of its term or completion of its work.
- The JPC consists of members from both houses and both the ruling party and the opposition.
- The JPC is constituted after one House of Parliament passes a resolution and the other House agrees to it. The members of the JPC are decided by the Parliament.
- The number of members can vary – i.e. there is no fixed number of JPC members.
- In carrying out its mandate, the JPC can examine documents and summon people for questioning. It then submits a report and makes recommendations to the government.
- The recommendations of the JPC are not binding on the government. Based on the recommendation of the JPC, the government may choose to initiate further investigation, but it cannot be compelled to do so.
Six JPCs have been constituted so far. These are-
- J PC to examine matters relating to allocation and pricing of telecom licenses and spectrum;
- JPC on pesticide residues and safety standards in soft drinks, fruit juices and other beverages;
- JPC on Stock Market Scam and matters related thereto;
- JPC on investigation of irregularities in securities and banking transactions;
- JPC on Bofors deal probe;
- JPC to examine the constitutional and legal position relating to the office of profit.
Source – Live Mint
