What are functions/role/powers of Speaker of Lok Sabha?
Q. Which of the following are functions of the Speaker?
1) Speaker is the chairman of the General-Purpose Committee.
2) He can allow a ‘secret’ sitting of Lok Sabha.
3) He acts as the ex-officio chairman of the Indian Parliamentary Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.- Published on 02 Mar 17a. 1, 3
b. 1, 2
c. 2, 3
d. All of the above
ANSWER: All of the above
- The Speaker is the head of the Lok Sabha, and its representative.
- He is the guardian of powers and privileges of the members, the House as a whole and its committees.
- His decision in all Parliamentary matters is final.
- He is thus much more than merely the presiding officer of the Lok Sabha.
- He is vested with vital responsibilities and enjoys great honor and supreme authority within the House.
The Speaker of the Lok Sabha derives his powers and duties from -
1. The Constitution of India;
2. the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of Lok Sabha; and
3. Parliamentary Conventions (residuary powers that are unwritten or unspecified in the Rules).
His powers and functions are -
1. He maintains order and decorum in the House for conducting its business and regulating its proceedings. This is his main responsibility and he has final power in this regard.
2. He is the final interpreter of the provisions of -
(a) the Constitution of India;
(b) the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of Lok Sabha; and
(c) the parliamentary precedents, within the House.
3. He adjourns the House or suspends the meeting in absence of a quorum.
4. He does not vote in the first instance. But he can exercise a ‘casting vote’ in the case of a tie.
5. He presides over a joint setting of the two Houses of Parliament.
6. Such a sitting is summoned by the President to settle a deadlock between the two Houses on a bill.
7. He can allow a ‘secret’ sitting of the House at the request of the Leader of the House.
8. When the House sits in secret, no stranger can be present in the chamber, lobby or galleries except with the permission of the Speaker.
9. He decides whether a bill is a money bill or not and his decision on this question is final.
10. When a money bill is transmitted to the Rajya Sabha for recommendation and presented to the President for assent, the Speaker endorses on the bill his certificate that it is a money bill.
11. He decides the questions of disqualification of a member of the Lok Sabha, arising on the ground of defection under the provisions of the Tenth Schedule.
12. In 1992, the Supreme Court ruled that the decision of the Speaker in this regard is subject to judicial review.
13. He acts as the ex-officio chairman of the Indian Parliamentary Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
14. He also acts as the ex-officio chairman of the conference of presiding officers of legislative bodies in the country.
15. He appoints the chairman of all the parliamentary committees of the Lok Sabha and supervises their functioning.
16. He himself is the chairman of the Business Advisory Committee, the Rules Committee and the General-Purpose Committee.
