UPSC foundations · Note 094
The Speaker and Deputy Speaker: election, impartiality and the casting vote
Study context: GS II — Indian Constitution — historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.
Article 93 requires the Lok Sabha to choose two members as Speaker and Deputy Speaker as soon as may be after its first sitting. The Speaker presides over sittings, maintains order, decides points of order, puts questions to the House and announces results. The Speaker also certifies Money Bills under Article 110 and decides disqualification questions under the Tenth Schedule. The Deputy Speaker presides when the Speaker is absent or when the Speaker's office is vacant, and performs the Speaker's duties in those circumstances.
The Speaker is elected by the House, and by convention the ruling party or coalition proposes a candidate who is then elected, often without a contest, while the Deputy Speaker has by convention come from the opposition in some periods, although that convention has not always been followed. The Speaker does not vote in the first instance, but has a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes. The Speaker may resign by writing to the Deputy Speaker, and may be removed by a resolution passed by a majority of all the then members of the House, after at least fourteen days' notice of the intention to move the resolution.
The office is expected to be impartial once elected, even though the Speaker remains a member of a party. This tension is built into the design: the Speaker is chosen by a political House but must protect the rights of all members, including the opposition, by allowing debate, admitting motions and ensuring that the government is questioned. The Speaker's conduct therefore affects the quality of parliamentary scrutiny more directly than almost any other procedural office.
The Speaker's role in disqualification cases adds a further tension, because the same office that must be impartial in debate also decides whether a member keeps a seat after an alleged defection. That is why delays in deciding disqualification petitions and the Speaker's party background attract criticism. A useful test for the office is practical: does the Speaker's ruling protect the House as a whole, or only the majority of the moment?
Key takeaways
- Article 93 requires the Lok Sabha to choose a Speaker and Deputy Speaker as soon as may be after its first sitting.
- The Speaker does not vote in the first instance but has a casting vote on equality, and may be removed by a majority of all then members after fourteen days' notice.
- The Speaker certifies Money Bills and decides Tenth Schedule disqualification questions, which makes impartiality central to the office.
Why it matters for civil studies
The Speaker's office tests whether a political House can create its own impartial referee — and what happens when that referee is also a party member.
Think it through
Should the Speaker resign from party membership on election, as happens in some other parliaments, or would that weaken the Speaker's standing in the House?
From the Public Notes companion study collection. Editorial context and corrections.