The Aadhaar Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha rejecting amendments recommended by the Rajya Sabha, but the Congress says the debate on whether it can be considered a Money Bill will continue.

Although Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said the party would not question the Speaker’s declaring the legislation a ‘Money Bill’, he did not rule out moving the Supreme Court on the matter.

Ramesh said a case was already pending before a five-judge bench in the apex court on Aadhaar. “The Money Bill debate will continue. There is a petition already before the Supreme Court, which has not yet given its final verdict. So, I am sure, there will be others who will take up this issue, but as far as we are concerned, we go by the Article 110 of the Constitution. The Speaker’s decision is final. The Speaker has declared it a Money Bill, it came as Money Bill, it was discussed as Money Bill, it was recommended as a Money Bill and finally passed as Money Bill and we cannot undo the history,” Ramesh said.

He said Article 110 sets certain “only-if” parameters for the a legislation to be declared a Money Bill. “The Aadhaar Bill had many other provisions…and most Constitutional experts have given the view that the Aadhaar Bill is not a Money Bill but the prerogative of declaring a Money Bill or not is that of the Speaker; and the Speaker’s decision is final; but the recommendation to the Speaker to consider making it a Money Bill is that of the government. It is the government that decides whether it is a Money Bill or not and the Speaker only certifies it as a Money Bill,” he claimed.

‘Govt disregarding RS’ He said top ministers of the NDA government, including Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, belong to the Rajya Sabha and yet the Centre wanted to bypass the Upper House. “This is against the Constitution and the democratic process,” Ramesh said and added: “This is an assault on the Rajya Sabha. The Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha are two equal wheels of the same chariot of Indian democracy and it is astonishing that this government’s Finance Minister, Defence Minister, Health Minister, Communication Minister, Petroleum Minister, Power Minister, Environment Minister, Human Resource Development Minister, Commerce Minister are all members of the Rajya Sabha. So, without the Rajya Sabha, these people would not be in the Parliament, they would not be Ministers. I think what the government has shown is utter contempt and utter disregard for the Rajya Sabha which derives its powers from the Constitution of India,” he said.

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