Of the recent crop of Supreme Court verdicts, the one that got the least media attention, striking down the merger and reconfiguration of assorted tribunals, was the most consequential for India’s democracy. If all that was required to make any bill a money bill was to have a Lok Sabha Speaker with a selfwilled ocular malfunction that sees every bill as a money bill, no substantial bill would be referred to the Rajya Sabha. Everything would be settled in the Lok Sabha itself.The Supreme Court has averted this travesty by refusing to accept the money bill as a beast that can carry a hefty non-money burden. Does this render the Aadhaar law, passed as a money bill, unlawful? It does not.The Supreme Court had earlier cleared the Aadhaar bill, restricting Aadhaar's use to transferring government funds to beneficiaries.

Source: Economic Times November 16, 2019 17:37 UTC