A Private Member's Bill is a legislative provision introduced in either House of the Indian Parliament by a Member of Parliament (MP) who is not a Minister. This concept, retained after Independence, traces its origin to the British parliamentary tradition. It was established to allow non-executive MPs to initiate legislation, raise issues of public importance, and propose policy reforms that may not be on the government's agenda.
The mechanism is governed by the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the respective Houses, under the authority of Article 118 of the Constitution. An MP must give at least a one-month notice before introduction, and the admissibility is determined by the Speaker in the Lok Sabha or the Chairman in the Rajya Sabha. Private Member's Bills are typically taken up for discussion during the last two-and-a-half hours of business every Friday. They follow the same legislative stages as a Government Bill, requiring passage in both Houses and the President's assent to become an Act.
A related institution is the Committee on Private Members' Bills and Resolutions in the Lok Sabha, constituted under Rule 293, which allots time for discussion and classifies the Bills based on their urgency. Importantly, a Private Member's Bill cannot be a Money Bill (governed by Article 109 and Article 110) or a Financial Bill (under Article 117), as these require a Minister's introduction. Historically, the first such Bill to become law was the Muslim Wakfs Bill, 1952, introduced by Syed Mohammed Ahmad Kasmi. Only 14 Private Member's Bills have been enacted since Independence, with the last one being the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Bill in 1970. A procedural change after 1997 capped the number of Bills a member could introduce to three per session to address the backlog of undiscussed Bills.