The Appropriation Bill is first passed by the Lok Sabha and then sent to the Rajya Sabha
Budget 2020: Appropriation Bill is a money bill that allows the government to withdraw funds from the Consolidated Fund of India to meet its expenses during the course of a financial year. As per article 114 of the Constitution, the government can withdraw money from the Consolidated Fund only after receiving approval from Parliament. To put it simply, the Finance Bill contains provisions on financing the expenditure of the government, and Appropriation Bill specifies the quantum and purpose for withdrawing money.
The government introduces the Appropriation Bill in the lower house of Parliament after discussions on Budget proposals and Voting on Demand for Grants.
The Appropriation Bill is first passed by the Lok Sabha and then sent to the Rajya Sabha.
The Rajya Sabha has the power to recommend any amendments in this Bill. However, it is the prerogative of the Lok Sabha to either accept or reject the recommendations made by the upper house of Parliament.
The unique feature of the Appropriation Bill is its automatic repeal clause, whereby the Act gets repealed by itself after it meets its statutory purpose. The Appropriation Acts that were passed before 2016 did not have the automatic repeal clause and had to be repealed through the enactment of an Appropriation Acts (Repeal) Act. Moreover, the it does not find any mention in any official list of central laws.
It is to be noted that state assemblies also have to pass appropriation bills as a part of their respective budget exercises, so as to be able to withdraw money from the Consolidated Fund of India.
Since India subscribes to the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy, the defeat of an Appropriation Bill (and also the Finance Bill) in a parliamentary vote would necessitate resignation of a government or a general election. This has never happened in India till date, though.
Source: NDTV Profit
