What is a Guillotine?
- A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading.
- It consists of a large, weighted blade that is raised to the top of a tall, erect frame and released to fall on the neck of a condemned person secured at the bottom of the frame, executing them in a single, clean pass.
- The origin of the exact device as well as the term can be found in France.
- The design of the guillotine was intended to make capital punishment more reliable and less painful in accordance with new Enlightenment ideas of human rights.
Guillotine Motion in Parliament
- In legislative parlance, to “guillotine” means to bunch together and fast-track the passage of financial business.
- It is a fairly common procedural exercise in Lok Sabha during the Budget Session.
- After the Budget is presented, Parliament goes into recess for about three weeks, during which time the House Standing Committees examine Demands for Grants for various Ministries, and prepare reports.
- After Parliament reassembles, the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) draws up a schedule for discussions on the Demands for Grants.
- Given the limitation of time, the House cannot take up the expenditure demands of all Ministries; therefore, the BAC identifies some important Ministries for discussion.
- It usually lists Demands for Grants of the Ministries of Home, Defence, External Affairs, Agriculture, Rural Development and Human Resource Development.
Why use such a motion?
- Members utilize the opportunity to discuss the policies and working of Ministries.
- Once the House is done with these debates, the Speaker applies the “guillotine”, and all outstanding demands for grants are put to vote at once.
- This usually happens on the last day earmarked for the discussion on the Budget.
- The intention is to ensure the timely passage of the Finance Bill, marking the completion of the legislative exercise with regard to the Budget.