The Public Accounts Committee

In one line

The Public Accounts Committee is a committee of Parliament that examines the audited accounts of the Union and the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, and asks the officials who spent the money to explain themselves in person.

In the wording a student can write in an exam: the Public Accounts Committee is a financial standing committee of Parliament, constituted annually, consisting of twenty-two members, fifteen elected by the House of the People and seven by the Council of States, by the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote; its Chairman is appointed by the Speaker and by convention is drawn from the Opposition; and it examines the appropriation accounts of the Union and the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General presented to Parliament under article 151.

What it is, and what it is not

It is a committee of Parliament, not a statutory body and not a court. It derives its existence from the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the House rather than from a statute.

It is not a Government body. A Minister may not be a member, and the Chairman is by convention a member of the principal Opposition party, which is the single most important thing about it: it is the one financial oversight body in this module whose head is not chosen by the Government.

It does not audit. The Comptroller and Auditor General audits; the Committee examines the audit.

And it does not punish. It reports to the House, and the executive responds with action taken notes.

Composition and working

Twenty-two members: fifteen elected by the House of the People and seven by the Council of States, each for a term of one year, elected by proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote, so that every party is represented in proportion to its strength.

The Chairman is appointed by the Speaker from among the members of the House of the People, and by a convention observed since 1967 he is a member of the Opposition.

A Minister is not eligible to be a member. If a member is appointed a Minister he ceases to be a member of the Committee.

How it works. It takes up the audit reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General laid before Parliament, selects paragraphs for detailed examination, calls for written explanations from the Ministries, and then examines the Secretary of the Ministry as the accounting officer, in person and on the record. Its reports are presented to the House, and the Ministry is required to furnish action taken notes.

What it examines

The appropriation accounts, that is whether the money granted by Parliament was spent for the purpose for which it was granted, within the amount granted, and under the authority governing it.