What is the difference between Adjournment and Adjournment Sine Die?

When the sitting of Parliament in a House is adjourned for the day and the time, day, and date, of the next sitting, is announced, it is called the Adjournment. In contrast, when the sitting is adjourned without determining the day and time of the subsequent meeting, it is named Adjournment Sine Die.

What is an example of an Adjournment?

Adjourn is described as moving to a different location or retreating to another place. An example of adjourning is when you and your friends leave the kitchen to drink outdoors.

Who can use the device Adjournment Sine Die in Parliament?

The presiding officer of the Parliament House can use Adjournment Sine Die for the sitting of the Parliament.

What does failed Sine Die mean?

When Adjournment Sine Die is invoked for a sitting, the meeting is suspended for an unspecified time. Thus, all the bills which could not proceed to the status of Enacted, Vetoed, or Failed due to the early suspension are said to be Sine Die – failed.

What is the sine death law?

Sine Die law is the Latin for "without a day." The phrase represents an adjournment when the date to reassemble is not fixed when Congress plans to leave town for the last time in a year.

What is the difference between adjournment sine die and prorogation?

An adjournment closes a sitting, whereas prorogation finishes a session of the House. These sitting of the Parliament can be terminated by using Adjournment or prorogation, and there are two more adjournments: sine die and dissolution.

What does Sine Die represent for a legislative body?

Sine Die means the end of a session "without day" from a legislative point of view. The adjournments are used to denote the final Adjournment of an annual meeting of a legislative house.

Who declares the House Adjourned Sine Die when the business of the session is completed?

The power to declare the House Adjourned Sine Die lies with the House's presiding officer when the session's business is completed.

Home/
IAS/
Article

Adjournment Sine Die in India – Definition, Application, and Examples

Q: What is adjournment sine die?

Sine Die is the Latin term translated to 'without day.' The Sine Die meaning is the postponing or Adjournment of a meeting for an indefinite period. In this case, a meeting is adjourned without a day specified for future proceedings.

By BYJU'S Exam Prep

Updated on: November 14th, 2023

Adjournment Sine Die is a legal term used in Parliament and courts regarding an ongoing issue. The term is made of three words, two of which are Latin. The literal Adjournment Sine Die meaning is Adjournment without day.

It refers to adjourning a meeting or session of Parliament or a case in the court for an indefinite period when it is to be terminated without announcing the next specific day and date.

Table of content

1. What is Adjournment Sine Die Meaning?
2. Application of Adjournment Sine Die
3. Example of Sine Die Adjournment
4. Difference Between Adjournment, Adjournment Sine Die, and Prorogation

What is Adjournment Sine Die Meaning?

Adjournment sine die means releasing a Parliament sitting for an unidentified period. Adjournment Sine Die is understood when the Parliament House is discontinued without selecting a day for reuniting or reassembly.

Adjournment Sine Die PDF

The House’s presiding officer has the power to declare a meeting as Adjournment and Adjournment Sine Die. The officer can call a House sitting at any time, even before the time or date of its discontinuation. He can also summon the sitting any moment after the Parliament House has been adjourned sine die.

Application of Adjournment Sine Die

There should be serious reasons to call Adjournment Sine Die by the assigned authorities. The following reasons can be the reason for such an adjournment:

Suppose the cases or the court proceedings are not feasible in the future. (Example, if the defendant cannot participate in future legal proceedings because he is in jail.)
In case the wrong procedure is followed.

Example of Sine Die Adjournment

In the Winter Session 2021, a deadlock was seen between the Government and the Opposition over the suspension of several MPs in the previous Monsoon Session due to alleged unruly behavior in Rajya Sabha.

The suspended MPs were demonstrating every day in front of the Gandhi Statue in the Parliament complex.
This demonstration was led by the support of Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge and other MPs.
Due to this, Adjournment Sine Die was invoked a day before the predetermined day.
Adjournment Sine Die is a powerful device that impacts the working of Parliament and affects the productivity of the Sessions of the Houses.
It simply is the consequence of the unruly behavior of the members of Parliament or wrong measures used by them to proceed with sittings in Parliament.

Difference Between Adjournment, Adjournment Sine Die, and Prorogation

Listed are the meaning and differences between Adjournment, Prorogation, and Adjournment Sine Die.

Adjournment:

An adjournment stops the task in a sitting for a restricted time, which may be weeks, days, or hours.
The reassembly time is defined.
An adjournment does not end a session of the Parliament House and only ends a sitting.
The management of Adjournment lies with the House of Parliament’s presiding officer.

Adjournment Sine Die:

Adjournment sine die means releasing a sitting of Parliament for an uncertain period.
Adjournment Sine Die is when the Parliament House is adjourned without designating a time or specific date for reuniting.
The presiding officer of the Parliament House has the power to declare Adjournment Sine Die.

Prorogation:

Prorogation implies closing a Parliament House session by an order given by the President under article 85(2)(a) of the Constitution of India.
Prorogation closes both the sitting and session of the Parliament House.
After the presiding officer declares Parliament House as Adjourned Sine Die, the President publishes a notice of the session prorogation within a few days.
The President has the command to postpone the House while in session.

Important Notes for UPSC
Aravalli Range	Arbitration Council of India
Aditya L1 Mission	Adjournment Motion
Consumer Price Index	Dams in India
Difference Between NSE and BSE	Difference between Western Coastal Plains and Eastern Coastal Plains