With respect to the Public Accounts Committee of the Parliament of India, which of the following statements is/are correct ?
- 1. The committee came into existence in the year 1921
- 2. It was not a Parliamentary Committee under the control of the Speaker at the time of its inception
Select the correct answer using the code given below :
1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2
Answer is Right!
Answer is Wrong!
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CISF-AC-EXE – 2023
Statement 1: “The committee came into existence in the year 1921.” This statement is correct. The PAC was constituted for the first time in 1921 under the provisions of the Government of India Act, 1919, following the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms.
Statement 2: “It was not a Parliamentary Committee under the control of the Speaker at the time of its inception.” At its inception in 1921, it was a committee of the Central Legislative Assembly. The President (Speaker) of the Central Legislative Assembly exercised control over the functioning of its committees. The term “Parliamentary Committee” strictly refers to committees of the Parliament of India formed after the Constitution came into effect. So, while it was not a ‘Parliamentary’ Committee in the post-independence sense, it was a committee of the legislature and was under the control of the presiding officer (Speaker/President). The statement says it was *not* both. Since it *was* under the control of the Speaker (President of the Assembly), the second part of the implied joint condition (“not under the control of the Speaker”) is false. The statement as a whole, implying absence of both qualities, is incorrect. Therefore, Statement 2 is incorrect.
Based on the analysis, only Statement 1 is correct.
– Committees of the legislature function under the overall guidance and control of the presiding officer (Speaker in the Lok Sabha, Chairman in the Rajya Sabha).