LOK SABHA SPEAKER

Introduction
The Speaker of House of the People (Lok Sabha) is the presiding officer of the House of the People of
the Parliament of India. The Speaker is elected in the first meeting of the Lok Sabha through general
elections. The Speaker is chosen from amongst the sitting members of Lok Sabha. The Speaker of the
Parliament is responsible for ensuring the smooth functioning of the House. The Speaker is
considered to be the true guardian of the Indian parliamentary democracy holding the complete
authority of the Lok Sabha. The Speaker is vested with wide administrative and discretionary powers
as enumerated under the Constitution.
Article 93
As per Article 93 of Indian Constitution, the Lok Sabha has a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker. In the
Lok Sabha, both presiding officers—the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker- are elected from among its
members by a simple majority of members present and voting in the House. No specific qualifications
are prescribed for being elected Speaker; the Constitution only requires that Speaker should be a
member of the House.
Article 94 - Vacation and resignation of, and removal from, the offices of Speaker and Deputy
Speaker
As per Article 94 of Indian Constitution, a Speaker or a Deputy Speaker should vacate his/her office,
a) if he/she ceases to be a member of the House of the People,
b) he/she resigns, or
c) is removed from office by a resolution of the House passed by a majority.
Article 95 - Power of the Deputy Speaker or other person to perform the duties of the office of,
or to act as, Speaker
Article 95 (1) states that on occasions wherein the office of the Speaker remains vacant the Deputy
Speaker shall take over the charge and act as a Speaker and perform the duties accordingly for the
said vacant period. On the other hand, if the office of Deputy Speaker is also vacant, then it is the
President who appoint any member from the House to act as a speaker.
Article 95 (2) states that if the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are absent when they are required to
sit and preside over the House, a member from the House who is present then shall be determined by
the House according to its rules and procedures. And on non-availability of such member then any
other person for the purpose shall be chosen.
Article 96 - The Speaker or the Deputy Speaker not to preside while a resolution for his removal
from office is under consideration
Article 96 emphasis that on removal of a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker by the passing of a resolution
by the majority of the members of the House of the People and that while such resolution is under
consideration and a final opinion is not yet arrived at, the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker are
restrained from presiding over the House.
If the resolution under consideration is for the removal of the Speaker and even though he is present
in the House, but it shall be the Deputy Speaker who shall preside. However, he can present himself in
the House and take part in the proceedings. He can also vote in the first instance on such resolution.
And if the resolution under consideration is for the removal of the Deputy Speaker, the Deputy
Speaker shall not preside, although he is present and the Speaker is absent.
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS
1. The Speaker of Lok Sabha is both a member of the House and its Presiding Officer.
2. He/she decides whether a bill is a money bill or not.
3. He/she maintains discipline and decorum in the house and can punish a member for their unruly
behavior by suspending them.
4. He/she permits the moving of various kinds of motions and resolutions like the motion of no
confidence, motion of adjournment, motion of censure and calling attention notice as per the
rules.
5. The Speaker decides on the agenda to be taken up for discussion during the meeting.
6. It is the Speaker of the Lok Sabha who presides over joint sittings called in the event of
disagreement between the two Houses on a legislative measure.
7. Though a member of the House, the Speaker does not vote in the House except on those rare
occasions when there is a tie at the end of a decision. Till date, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha has
not been called upon to exercise this unique casting vote.

While the office of Speaker is vacant due to absence/resignation/removal, the duties of the office
are performed by the Deputy Speaker or, if the office of Deputy Speaker is also vacant, by such
member of the House of the People as the President may appoint for the purpose.
The Lok Sabha has also a separate non-elected Secretariat staff.