In the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, the various central and state legislatures are presided by either a

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

or a

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

. The Speaker is elected in the very first meeting of the

Punjab Legislative Assembly The Punjab Legislative Assembly or the Punjab Vidhan Sabha is the unicameral legislature of the state of Punjab in India. The Sixteenth Punjab Legislative Assembly was constituted in March 2022. At present, it consists of 117 members, directl ...

after the

General elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

for a term of 5 years from amongst the members of the Vidhan Sabha. The Speaker holds office until either he ceases to be a member of the Vidhan Sabha or he himself resigns. The Speaker can be removed from office by a resolution passed in the Vidhan Sabha by an effective majority of its members. In the absence of a Speaker, the meeting of

is presided over by the Deputy Speaker. The incumbent Speaker is Rana Kanwar Pal Singh and the deputy speaker is

Ajaib Singh Bhatti Ajaib Singh Bhatti was deputy speaker of the Punjab Legislative Assembly from 2017 to 2022. Early life A. S. Bhatti started his career as a teacher in rural areas of Bathinda besides working as a Block Development and Panchayat Officer (BDPO) ...

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

Powers and functions of the Speaker

Following are the functions and position of Speakers. *The Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha conducts the business in house, and decides whether a bill is a

money bill In the Westminster system (and, colloquially, in the United States), a money bill or supply bill is a bill that solely concerns taxation or government spending (also known as appropriation of money), as opposed to changes in public law. Conv ...

or not. *They maintain discipline and decorum in the house and can punish a member for their unruly behaviour by suspending them. *They also permit the moving of various kinds of motions and resolutions such as a

motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

, motion of adjournment,

motion of censure A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

and calling attention notice as per the rules. *The speaker decides on the agenda to be taken up for discussion during the meeting. *The date of election of the speaker is fixed by the Governor of Punjab. Further, all comments and speeches made by members of the House are addressed to the speaker. *The speaker is answerable to the house. *Both the speaker and deputy speaker may be removed by a resolution passed by the majority of the members. *Speaker also gives recognition to the main opposite party as an

Official Opposition Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

and to the leader of that party in assembly as the

Leader of Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Speaker

Deputy Speaker

The Deputy Speaker is the vice-presiding officer of the

Vidhan Sabha The State Legislative Assembly, or Vidhan Sabha, or also Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in the states and union territories of India. In the 28 states and 3 union territories with a unicameral state legislature, it is the sole legislati ...

. Acts as the presiding officer in case of leave or absence caused by death or illness of the Speaker.

List of Deputy Speakers

Color keys for the Party of Deputy Speaker * * * * * * *

Pro tem Speaker

After a general election and the formation of a new government, a list of senior Members in

prepared by the Legislative Section is submitted to the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, who selects a pro tem speaker who holds the office of Speaker until a full time speaker is elected. However,, in Punjab mostly the pro tem speaker become the full time Speaker. The appointment has to be approved by the Governor. The first meeting after the election when the speaker and the deputy speaker are selected by members of the Vidhan Sabha is held under the pro tem Speaker. In the absence of the speaker, the deputy speaker acts as speaker. In the absence of both, a committee of six members selected by the speaker will act as speaker according to their seniority. The Speaker of the Assembly must: * Be a citizen of India; * Not be less than 25 years of age; and * Not hold any office of profit under the

Government of Punjab, India The Government of Punjab, also known as the State Government of Punjab or locally as the State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Punjab and its 23 districts. It consists of an executive, led by the Governor ...

. In Punjab Legislative Assembly mostly Pro-tem speaker is elected as Speaker.

List of Pro tem Speakers

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" , - !Sr. no. !Year !Pro-tem SpeakerPro tem speaker
/ref> !Elected Speaker , - , 1 , 1952 , colspan=3, Satyapal , - , 2 , 1957 , colspan=2, Gurdial Singh Dhillon , - , 3 , 1962 , colspan=2, Prabodh Chandra , - , 4 , 1967 , Lal Chand Sabharwal , Joginder Singh Mann , - , rowspan=2, 5 , 1969 , rowspan=2 colspan=2, Darbara Singh , - , 1972 , - , 6 , 1977 , colspan=2, Ravi Inder Singh , - , 7 , 1980 , Gurdarshan Singh , Brij Bhushan Mehra , - , (6) , 1985 , colspan=2, Ravi Inder Singh , - , 8 , 1992 , colspan=2, Harcharn Singh Ajnala , - , 9 , 1997 , colspan=2, Charnjit Singh Atwal , - , 10 , 2002 , colspan=2, Kewal Krishan , - , 11 , 2007 , colspan=2, Nirmal Singh Kahlon , - , (9) , 2012 , colspan=2, Charnjit Singh Atwal , - , 12 , 2017 , colspan=2, Rana Kanwar Pal Singh , - , 13 , 2022 , Inderbir Singh Nijjar , Kultar Singh Sandhwan

References

Lists of legislative speakers in India Speakers of the Punjab Legislative Assembly Lists of people from Punjab, India