AS INTRODUCED IN THE RAJYA SABHA
Bill No. XXIX of 2019
THE JAMMU AND KASHMIR REORGANISATION BILL, 2019
A
BILL
to provide for the reorganisation of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—
PART-I
PRELIMINARY
1. Short title
This Act may be called the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
2. Definitions.
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “appointed day” means the day which the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint;
(b) “article” means an article of the Constitution;
(c) “assembly constituency” and “parliamentary constituency” have the same meanings as in the Representation of the People Act, 1950 (43 of 1950);
(d) “Election Commission” means the Election Commission appointed by the President under article 324;
(e) “existing State of Jammu and Kashmir” means the State of Jammu and Kashmir as existing immediately before the appointed day, comprising the territory which immediately before the commencement of the Constitution of India in the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir;
(f) “law” includes any enactment, ordinance, regulation, order, bye-law, rule, scheme, notification or other instrument having, immediately before the appointed day, the force of law in the whole or in any part of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir;
(g) “Legislative Assembly” means Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir;
(h) “Lieutenant Governor” means the Adminstrator of the Union territory appointed by the President under artcle 239;
(i) “notified order” means an order published in the Official Gazette;
(j) “population ratio”, in relation to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, and Union territory of Ladakh means the ratio as per 2011 Census;
(k) “Scheduled Castes” in relation to the Union territory means such castes, races or tribes or parts of groups within such castes, races or tribes as are deemed under article 341 to be Scheduled Castes in relation to that Union territory;
(l) “Scheduled Tribes” in relation to the Union territory means such tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under article 342 to be Scheduled Tribes in relation to that Union territory;
(m) “sitting member”, in relation to either House of Parliament or of the Legislature of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir, means a person who immediately before the appointed day, is a member of that House;
(n) “Union territory”, in relation to the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir, means the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or Union territory of Ladakh, as the case may be;
(o) “transferred territory” means the territory which on the appointed day is transferred from the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir to Union territories formed under sections 3 and 4 of this Act; and
(p) any reference to a district, tehsil or other territorial division of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall be construed as a reference to the area comprised within that territorial division on the appointed day.
PART II
REORGANISATION OF THE STATE OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR
3. Formation of Union territory of Ladakh without Legislature.
On and from the appointed day, there shall be formed a new Union territory to be known as the Union territory of Ladakh comprising the following territories of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir, namely:—
“Kargil and Leh districts”,
and thereupon the said territories shall cease to form part of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir.
4. Formation of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir with Legislature.
On and from the appointed day, there shall be formed a new Union territory to be known as the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir comprising the territories of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir other than those specified in section 3.
5. Governor of existing State of Jammu and Kashmir to be common Lieutenant Governor.
On and from the appointed day, the Governor of the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall be the Lieutenant Governor for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, and Union territory of Ladakh for such period as may be determined by the President.
6. Amendment of First Schedule to the Constitution.
On and from the appointed day, in the First Schedule to the Constitution, under the heading—“I. THE STATES”,—
(a) entry 15 shall be deleted.
(b) entries from 16 to 29 shall be renumbered as 15 to 28.
(c) under the heading —“II. UNION TERRITORIES”,—
after entry 7, the following entries shall be inserted, namely:—
“8. Jammu and Kashmir: The territories specified in section 4 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019”.
“9. Ladakh: The territories specified in section 3 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019”.
7. Saving powers of the Government of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Nothing in the foregoing provisions of this Part shall be deemed to affect the power of the Government of successor Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir to alter, after the appointed day, the name, area or boundaries of any district or other territorial division in that Union territory.
PART III
REPRESENTATION IN THE LEGISLATURES
The Council of States
8. Amendment of Fourth Schedule to Constitution
On and from the appointed day, in the Fourth Schedule to the Constitution, in the Table,—
(a) entry 21 shall be deleted;
(b) entries 22 to 31 shall be renumbered as entries 21 to 30, respectively;
(c) after entry 30, the following entry shall be inserted, namely:—
“31. Jammu and Kashmir ……………………4”
9. Allocation of sitting members.
(1) On and from the appointed day, four sitting members of the Council of States representing the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir shall be deemed to have been elected to fill the seats allotted to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, as specified in the First Schedule to this Act.
(2) The term of office of such sitting members shall remain unaltered.
The House of the People
10. Representation in House of the People.
On and from the appointed day, there shall be allocated five seats to the successor Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and one seat to Union territory of Ladakh, in the House of the People, and the First Schedule to the Representation of the People Act, 1950 (43 of 1950) shall be deemed to be amended accordingly.
11. Delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies.
Delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies Order 1976
(1) On and from the appointed day, the Delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies Order, 1976 shall stand amended as directed in the Second Schedule of this Act.
(2) The Election Commission may conduct the elections to the House of the People for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union territory of Ladakh as per the allocation of seats specified in the Delimitation of Parliamentary Constituencies Order, 1976 as amended by this Act.
12. Provision as to sitting members.
(1) Every sitting member of the House of the People representing a constituency which, on the appointed day by virtue of the provisions of section 10, stands allotted, with or without alteration of boundaries, to the successor Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or Union territory of Ladakh, as the case may be, shall be deemed to have been elected to the House of the People by that constituency as so allotted.
(2) The term of office of such sitting members shall remain unaltered The Lieutenant Governor and The Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir
13. Applicability of article 239A of Constitution.
On and from the appointed day, the provisions contained in article 239A, which are applicable to “Union territory of Puducherry”, shall also apply to the “Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir”.
14. Legislative Assembly for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and its composition.
(1) There shall be an Administrator appointed under article 239 of the Constitution of India for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and shall be designated as Lieutenant Governor of the said Union territory.
(2) There shall be a Legislative Assembly for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
(3) The total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir to be filled by persons chosen by direct election shall be 107.
(4) No with standing anything contained in sub-section (3), until the area of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir under the occupation of Pakistan ceases to be so occupied and the people residing in that area elect their representatives—
(a) twenty four seats in the Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall remain vacant and shall not be taken into account for reckoning the total membership of the Assembly; and
(b) the said area and seats shall be excluded in delimiting the territorial constituencies as provided under PART V of this Act.
(5) On and from the appointed day, the Delimitation of Assembly Constituencies Order, 1995, as applicable to Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, shall stand amended as directed in the Third Schedule of this act.
(6) Seats shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
(7) The number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir under sub-section
(6) shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats in the Assembly as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or of the Scheduled Tribes in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, in respect of which seats are so reserved, bears to the total population of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Explanation: In this sub-section, the expression “population” means the population as ascertained at the last preceding census of which the relevant figures have been published:
Provided that the reference in this Explanation to the last preceding census of which the relevant figures have been published shall, until the relevant figures for the first census taken after the year 2026 have been published, be construed as a reference to the 2011 census.
(8) Notwithstanding anything in sub-section (6), the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall cease to have effect on the same date on which the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes in the House of the People shall cease to have effect under article 334 of the Constitution of India:
(9) In the Second Schedule to the Representation of the People Act, 1950, under the heading :—“I. THE STATES:”
“(a) entry 10 shall be deleted”.
“(b) entries 11 to 29 shall be renumbered as 10 to 28”.
(10) In the Second Schedule to the Representation of the People Act, 1950 , under the heading :—“II. Union Territories”
(a) after entry 4, the following entries shall be inserted, namely:—
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| ‘‘5. Jammu and Kashmir | 83 | 6 | …. | 83 | 6 | …..’’ |
(11) The provisions of articles 324 to 327 and 329 of the Constitution of India, shall apply in relation to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the Legislative Assembly and the members thereof as they apply, in relation to a State, the Legislative Assembly of a State and the members thereof respectively; and any reference in articles 326 and 329 to “appropriate Legislature” shall be deemed to be a reference to Parliament.
15. Representation of women.
Notwithstanding anything in sub-section (3) of section 14 the Lieutenant Governor of the successor Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir may nominate two members to the Legislative Assembly to give representation to women, if in his opinion, women are not adequately represented in the Legislative Assembly.
16. Qualification for membership of Legislative Assembly.
A person shall not be qualified to be chosen to fill a seat in the Legislative Assembly unless he—
(a) is a citizen of India and makes and subscribes before some person authorised in that behalf by the Election Commission an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the Fourth Schedule of this Act;
(b) is not less than twenty-five years of age; and
(c) Possesses such other qualifications as may be prescribed in that behalf by or under any law made by the Parliament.
17. Duration of Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, unless sooner dissolved, shall continue for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer, and the expiration of the said period of five years shall operate as a dissolution of the Legislative Assembly:
Provided that the said period may, while a Proclamation of Emergency issued under clause (1) of article 352 is in operation, be extended by the President by order for a period not exceeding one year at a time and not extending in any case beyond a period of six months after the Proclamation has ceased to operate.
18. Sessions of Legislative Assembly, prorogation and dissolution.
(1) The Lieutenant Governor shall, from time to time, summon the Legislative Assembly to meet at such time and place as he thinks fit, but six months shall not intervene between its last sitting in one session and the date appointed for its first sitting in the next session.
(2) The Lieutenant Governor may, from time to time,—
(a) prorogue the House;
(b) dissolve the Legislative Assembly.
19. Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Legislative Assembly
(1) Legislative Assembly shall, as soon as may be, choose two members of the Assembly to be respectively Speaker and Deputy Speaker thereof and, so often as the office of Speaker or Deputy Speaker becomes vacant, the Assembly shall choose another member to be Speaker or Deputy Speaker, as the case may be.
(2) A member holding office as Speaker or Deputy Speaker of the Assembly—
(a) shall vacate his office if he ceases to be a member of the Assembly;
(b) may at any time by writing under his hand addressed, if such member is the Speaker, to the Deputy Speaker, and if such member is the Deputy Speaker, to the Speaker, resign his office;
(c) may be removed from his office by a resolution of the Assembly passed by a majority of all the then members of the Assembly:
Provided that no resolution for the purpose of clause (c) shall be moved unless at least fourteen days’ notice has been given of the intention to move the resolution:
Provided further that, whenever the Assembly is dissolved, the Speaker shall not vacate his office until immediately before the first meeting of the Assembly after the dissolution.
(3) While the office of Speaker is vacant, the duties of the office shall be performed by the Deputy Speaker or, if the office of Deputy Speaker is also vacant, by such member of the Legislative Assembly as may be determined by the rules of procedure of the Assembly.
(4) During the absence of the Speaker from any sitting of the Legislative Assembly, the Deputy Speaker, or, if he is also absent, such person as may be determined by the rules of procedure of the Assembly, or, if no such person is present, such other person as may be determined by the Legislative Assembly, shall act as Speaker.
(5) There shall be paid to the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, such salaries and allowances as may respectively be fixed by the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir by law and, until provision in that behalf is so made, such salaries and allowances as the Lieutenant Governor may, by order determine.
20. Speaker or Deputy Speaker not to preside while a resolution for his removal from office is under consideration.
(1) At any sitting of the Legislative Assembly, while any resolution for the removal of the Speaker from his office is under consideration, the Speaker, or while any resolution for the removal of the Deputy Speaker, from his office is under consideration, the Deputy Speaker, shall not, though he is present, preside, and the provisions of sub-section (4) of section 19 shall apply in relation to every such sitting as they apply in relation to a sitting from which the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Deputy Speaker, is absent.
(2) The Speaker shall have the right to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, the Legislative Assembly while any resolution for his removal from office is under consideration in the Assembly and shall, notwithstanding anything in section 25, be entitled to vote only in the first instance on such resolution or on any other matter during such proceedings but not in the case of an equality of votes.
21. Special address by Lieutenant Governor to Legislative Assembly.
(1) At the commencement of the first session after each general election to the Legislative Assembly and at the commencement of the first session of each year, the Lieutenant Governor shall address the Legislative Assembly, and shall inform the Legislative Assembly of the causes of its summons.
(2) Provision shall be made by the rules regulating the procedure of the Legislative Assembly for the allotment of time for the discussion of matters referred to in such address.
22. Rights of Ministers and Advocate General as respects Legislative Assembly.
Every Minister and the Advocate-General for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall have the right to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, the Legislative Assembly, and to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, any committee of the Legislative Assembly of which he may be named a member, but shall not by virtue of this section be entitled to vote.
23. Rights of Lieutenant Governor to address and send messages to the Legislative Assembly.
(1) The Lieutenant Governor may address the Legislative Assembly and may for that purpose require the attendance of members.
(2) The Lieutenant Governor may also send messages to the Legislative Assembly whether with respect to a Bill then pending in the Legislative Assembly or otherwise, and when a message so sent, the Legislative Assembly shall with all convenient despatch consider any matter required by the message to be taken into consideration.
24. Oath or affirmation by members.
Every member of the Legislative Assembly shall, before taking his seat, make and subscribe before the Lieutenant Governor of the said Union territory, or some person appointed in that behalf by him, an oath or affirmation according to the form set out for the purpose in the Fourth Schedule of this Act.
25. Voting in Assembly, power of Assembly to act notwithstanding vacancies and quorum.
(1) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, all questions at any sitting of the Legislative Assembly shall be determined by a majority of votes of the members present and voting, other than the Speaker or person acting as such.
(2) The Speaker, or person acting as such, shall not vote in the first instance, but shall have and exercise a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.
(3) The Legislative Assembly shall have power to act notwithstanding any vacancy in the membership thereof, and any proceedings in the Legislative Assembly shall be valid notwithstanding that it is discovered subsequently that some person who was not entitled so to do, sat or voted or otherwise took part in the proceedings.
(4) The quorum to constitute a meeting of the Legislative Assembly shall be ten members or one- tenth of the total number of members of the Legislative Assembly, which ever is greater.
(5) If at any time during a meeting of the Legislative Assembly there is no quorum, it shall be the duty of the Speaker, or person acting as such, either to adjourn the Legislative Assembly or to suspend the meeting until there is a quorum
26. Vacation of seat.
(1) No person shall be a member both of Parliament and of the Legislative Assembly, and if a person is chosen a member both of Parliament and of such Assembly, then, at the expiration of such period as may be specified in the rules made by the President, that person’s seat in Parliament shall become vacant, unless he has previously resigned his seat in the Legislative Assembly of the said Union territory.
(2) If a member of the Legislative Assembly—
(a) becomes subject to any of disqualification mentioned in section 27 or section 28 for membership of the Legislative Assembly; or
(b) resigns his seat by writing under his hand addressed to the Speaker, and his resignation is accepted by the Speaker, his seat shall thereupon become vacant.
(3) If for a period of sixty days a member of the Legislative Assembly is without permission of the Assembly absent from all meetings thereof, the Assembly may declare his seat vacant:
Provided that in computing the said period of sixty days, no account shall be taken of any period during which the Assembly is prorogued or is adjourned for more than four consecutive days.
27. Disqualifications for membership.
(1) A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being, a member of the Legislative Assembly—
(a) if he holds any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State or the Government of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or the Government or administration of any other Union territory or other than an office declared by law made by Parliament or by the Legislative Assembly not to disqualify its holder; or
(b) if he is for the time being disqualified for being chosen as, and for being, a member of either House of Parliament under the provisions of sub-clause (b), subclause (c) or sub-clause (d) of clause (1) of article 102 or of any law made in pursuance of that article.
(2) For the purposes of this section, a person shall not be deemed to hold an office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State or the Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmiror the Government of any other Union territory by reason only that he is a Minister either for the Union or for such State or Union territory.
(3) If any question arises as to whether a member of the Legislative Assembly becomes subject to any of disqualification under the provisions of sub-sections (1) and (2), the question shall be referred for the decision of the Lieutenant Governor and his decision shall be final.
(4) Before giving any decision on any such question, the Lieutenant Governor shall obtain the opinion of the Election Commission and shall act according to such opinion.
28. Disqualification on ground of defection for being a member.
The provisions of the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution shall, subject to the necessary modifications (including modifications for construing references therein to the Legislative Assembly of a State, article 188, article 194 and article 212 as references, respectively, to the Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, as the case may be, section 24, section 30 and section 50 of this Act), apply to and in relation to the members of the Legislative Assembly of Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir as they apply to and in relation to the members of the Legislative Assembly of a State, and accordingly,—
(a) the said Tenth Schedule as so modified shall be deemed to form part of this Act; and
(b) a person shall be disqualified for being a member of the Legislative Assembly if he is so disqualified under the said Tenth Schedule as so modified.
29. Penalty for sitting and voting before making oath or affirmation or when not qualified or when disqualified.
If a person sits or votes as a member of the Legislative Assembly before he has complied with the requirements of section 24 or when he knows that he is not qualified or that he is disqualified for membership thereof, or that he is prohibited from doing so by the provisions of any law made by Parliament or the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, he shall be liable in respect of each day on which he so sits or votes to a penalty of five hundred rupees to be recovered as a debt due to the said Union territory.
30. Powers, privileges, etc., of members.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act and to the rules and standing orders regulating the procedure of the Legislative Assembly, there shall be freedom of speech in the Legislative Assembly.
(2) No member of the Legislative Assembly shall be liable to any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said or any vote given by him in the Assembly or any committee thereof, and no person shall be so liable in respect of the publication by or under the authority of such Assembly of any report, paper, votes or proceedings.
(3) In other respects, the powers, privileges and immunities of the Legislative Assembly and of the members and the committees thereof shall be such as are for the time being enjoyed by the House of the People and its members and committees.
(4) The provisions of sub-sections (1), (2) and (3) shall apply in relation to persons who by virtue of this Act have the right to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, the Legislative Assembly or any committee thereof as they apply in relation to members of the Legislative Assembly.
31. Salaries and allowances of members.
Members of the Legislative Assembly shall be entitled to receive such salaries and allowances as may from time to time be determined by the Legislative Assembly by law and, until provision in that behalf is so made, such salaries and allowances as the Lieutenant Governor may, by order determine.
32. Extent of legislative power
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Legislative Assembly may make laws for the whole or any part of the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir with respect to any of the matters enumerated in the State List except the subjects mentioned at entries 1 and 2, namely “Public Order” and “Police” respectively or the Concurrent List in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India in so far as any such matter is applicable in relation to the Union territories.
(2) Nothing in sub-section (1) shall derogate from the powers conferred on Parliament by the Constitution to make laws with respect to any matter for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir or any part thereof.
33. Exemption of property of the Union from taxation.
The property of the Union shall, save in so far as Parliament may by law otherwise provide, be exempted from all taxes imposed by or under any law made by the Legislative Assembly or by or under any other law in force in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir:
Provided that nothing in this section shall, until Parliament by law otherwise provides, prevent any authority within the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir from levying any tax on any property of the Union to which such property was immediately before the commencement of the Constitution liable or treated as liable, so long as that tax continues to be levied in that Union territory.
34. Restrictions on laws passed by Legislative Assembly with respect to certain matters.
(1) The provisions of article 286, article 287 and article 288 shall apply in relation to any law passed by the Legislative Assembly with respect to any of the matters referred to in those articles as they apply in relation to any law passed by the Legislature of a State with respect to those matters.
(2) The provisions of article 304 shall, with the necessary modifications, apply in relation to any law passed by the Legislative Assembly with respect to any of the matters referred to in that article as they apply in relation to any law passed by the Legislature of a State with respect to those matters.
35. Inconsistency between laws made by Parliament and laws made by Legislative Assembly.
If any provision of a law made by the Legislative Assembly with respect to matters enumerated in the State List, in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution is repugnant to any provision of a law made by Parliament with respect to that matter, whether passed before or after the law made by the Legislative Assembly, or, if any provision of a law made by the Legislative Assembly with respect to any matter enumerated in the Concurrent List in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution is repugnant to any provision of any earlier law, other than a law made by the Legislative Assembly, with respect to that matter, then, in either case, the law made by Parliament, or, as the case may be, such earlier law shall prevail and the law made by the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory shall, to the extent of the repugnancy, be void:
Provided that if such law made by the Legislative Assembly has been reserved for the consideration of the President and has received his assent, such law shall prevail in the Union territory of Jammu & Kashmir:
Provided further that nothing in this section shall prevent Parliament from enacting at any time any law with respect to the same matter including a law adding to, amending, varying or repealing the law so made by the Legislative Assembly.
36. Special provisions as to financial Bills
(1) A Bill or amendment shall not be introduced into, or moved in, the Legislative Assembly except on the recommendation of the Lieutenant Governor, if such Bill or Amendment makes provision for any of the following matters, namely:—
(a) the imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax;
(b) the amendment of the law with respect to any financial obligations undertaken or to be undertaken by the Government of the Union territory;
(c) the appropriation of moneys out of the Consolidated Fund of the Union territory;
(d) the declaring of any expenditure to be expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of the Union territory or the increasing of the amount of any such expenditure;
(e) the receipt of money on account of the Consolidated Fund of the Union territory or the public account of the Union territory or the custody or issue of such money or the audit of the account of the Union territory:
Provided that no recommendation shall be required under this sub-section for the moving of an amendment making provision for the reduction or abolition of any tax.
(2) A Bill or Amendment shall not be deemed to make provision for any of the matters aforesaid by reason only that it provides for the imposition of fines or other pecuniary penalties, or for the demand or payment of fees for licences or fees for services rendered, or by reason that it provides for the imposition, abolition, remission, alteration or regulation of any tax by any local authority or body for local purposes.
(3) A Bill which, if enacted and brought into operation, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of Union territory shall not be passed by the Legislative Assembly of the Union territory unless the Lieutenant Governor has recommended to the Assembly, the consideration of the Bill.
37. Procedure as to lapsing of Bills.
(1) A Bill pending in the Legislative Assembly shall not lapse by reason of the prorogation of the Legislative Assembly.
(2) A Bill which is pending in the Legislative Assembly shall lapse on dissolution of the Legislative Assembly.
38. Assent to Bills
When a Bill has been passed by the Legislative Assembly, it shall be presented to the Lieutenant Governor and the Lieutenant Governor shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he withholds assent therefrom or that he reserves the Bill for the consideration of the President:
Provided that the Lieutenant Governor may, as soon as possible after the presentation of the Bill to him for assent, return the Bill if it is not a Money Bill together with a message requesting that the Assembly will reconsider the Bill or any specified provisions thereof, and, in particular, will consider the desirability of introducing any such amendments as he may recommend in his message and, when a Bill is so returned, the Assembly will reconsider the Bill accordingly, and if the Bill is passed again with or without amendment and presented to the Lieutenant Governor for assent, the Lieutenant Governor shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he reserves the Bill for
the consideration of the President:
Provided further that the Lieutenant Governor shall not assent to, but shall reserve for the consideration of the President, any Bill which,—
(a) in the opinion of the Lieutenant Governor would, if it became law, so derogate from the powers of the High Court as to endanger the position which that Court is, by the Constitution, designed to fill; or
(b) relates to any of the matters specified in clause (1) of article 31A; or
(c) the President may, by order, direct to be reserved for his consideration.
Explanation.—For the purposes of this section and section 39, a Bill shall be deemed to be a Money Bill if it contains only provisions dealing with all or any of the matters specified in sub-section (1) of section 36 or any matter incidental to any of those matters and, in either case, there is endorsed thereon the certificate of the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly signed by him that it is a Money Bill.
39. Bills reserved for consideration.
When a Bill is reserved by Lieutenant Governor for the consideration of the President the President shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he withholds assent therefrom:
Provided that where the Bill is not a Money Bill, the President may direct the Lieutenant Governor to return the Bill to the Legislative Assembly together with such a message as is mentioned in the first proviso to section 38 and, when a Bill is so returned, the Assembly shall reconsider it accordingly within a period of six months from the date of receipt of such message and, if it is again passed by the Assembly with or without amendment, it shall be presented again to the President for his consideration.
40. Requirements as to sanction and recommendations to be regarded as matters of procedure only.
No Act of the Legislative Assembly and no provision in any such Act, shall be invalid by reason only that some previous sanction or recommendation required by this Act was not given, if assent to that Act was given by the Lieutenant Governor, or, on being reserved by the Lieutenant Governor for the consideration of the President, by the President.
