Legislative Privileges under Articles 105 and 194

Legislative privileges are special rights and immunities that enable legislatures and their members to perform their functions without improper interference. Articles 105 and 194 provide parallel protections for Parliament and State Legislatures respectively, including freedom of speech, immunity for legislative speech and votes, and certain collective powers of each House.

Freedom of speech and immunity

These articles protect legislative deliberation, but they do not give members unrestricted freedom of speech everywhere.

• Under Articles 105(1) and 194(1), members enjoy freedom of speech in the legislature, subject to the Constitution and the rules and standing orders regulating legislative procedure.
• Under Articles 105(2) and 194(2), members cannot face proceedings in any court for anything said or any vote given in the legislature or its committees.
• No person is liable to court proceedings for publishing any report, paper, votes or proceedings by or under the authority of the relevant House.
• Under Articles 105(4) and 194(4), these protections also extend to persons constitutionally entitled to speak in, and otherwise participate in, legislative or committee proceedings.

Other privileges and their determination

Articles 105(3) and 194(3) empower the respective legislatures to define their other powers, privileges and immunities by law.

• Until defined by law, these remain those existing immediately before the relevant provisions of the 44th Constitutional Amendment came into force.
• Collective privileges include the authority to regulate internal proceedings and punish a breach of privilege or contempt that obstructs legislative functioning.
• Privilege protects the House's institutional functioning; it is not a general exemption of legislators from ordinary law.

Constitutional limits and judicial scrutiny

Legislative autonomy operates within constitutional supremacy, rather than outside it.

• Articles 122 and 212 prevent courts from questioning legislative proceedings merely on the ground of procedural irregularity.
• This protection does not exclude judicial review where legislative action suffers from substantive illegality or unconstitutionality.
• In Sita Soren v. Union of India (2024), the Supreme Court held that the immunity under Articles 105(2) and 194(2) does not protect legislators from prosecution for bribery connected with a legislative speech or vote.