Food Security Ordinance: Constitutional Impropriety?

Published on Sat, Jul 13,2013 | 14:16, Updated at Sat, Jul 13 at 14:16Source : CNBC-TV18 | Watch Video :

4 years ago, in its 2009 election manifesto, the Congress party promised a Food Security Act along the lines of employment guarantee or NREGA. When it came to power later that year, the President of India, in her address to Parliament on 4th June, 2009, announced that a National Food Security Act will be enacted. 2 and a half years later, the National Food Security Bill was introduced in Lok Sabha on 22 Dec, 2011. The next month- 5 Jan, 2012- it was referred to the standing committee and one year later- 11 Jan, 2013- the committee presented its draft report. Subsequently the government made an attempt to discuss the Bill but a non-functioning parliament put paid to that. So this month the President of India promulgated the National Food Security ordinance.

Article 123 of the Indian constitution says 'if at any time, except when both houses of Parliament are in session, the President is satisfied that circumstances exist which render it necessary for him to take immediate action, he may promulgate such ordinances as the circumstances appear to him to require.'

What circumstances then, would warrant that a law, as socially and financially important as food security, be passed hurriedly via an ordinance by a party that has been in power for 9 years! Does this amount to a constitutional impropriety? To answer that I am joined by two veteran and renowned senior Supreme Court lawyers – Anil Diwan and Arvind Datar.