The Speaker of the Lok Sabha ( IAST: ) is the presiding officer and the highest authority of the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

, the

lower house A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicameral legislature, where the other chamber is the upper house. Although styled as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise e ...

of the

Parliament of India The Parliament of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of India, Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameralism, bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok ...

. The speaker is elected generally in the first meeting of the Lok Sabha following a general election. The speaker does not enjoy security of tenure and their term is subject to the pleasure of the house i.e. they can be removed anytime by a resolution of the

by a majority of the all the Members of the house. The longest-serving speaker was Balram Jakhar, whose tenure lasted 9 years and 329 days.

Election of the speaker

Newly elected Members of Parliament from the

elect the Speaker among themselves. The Speaker should be someone who understands how the Lok Sabha functions and the speaker should be someone accepted among the ruling and opposition parties. After the general elections, the President of India notifies the first meeting of the Lok Sabha as well as the date for the election of the Speaker. Generally either on the day of the election of the Speaker or a day before it, the Prime Minister or the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs proposes the name of the candidate. Any other candidate may also submit their names . There have been four instances viz. 1952, 1967, 1976, and 2024 when there were elections to the speaker post. If only one name is proposed, the Speaker is elected without any formal vote. However, if more than one nomination is received, a division is called through voice voting by all members. The successful candidate is elected as Speaker of the Lok Sabha.

Powers and functions of the speaker

The Speaker of the Lok Sabha conducts the business in house, and decides whether a bill is a money bill or not. They maintain discipline and decorum in the house and can punish a member for unruly behaviour with respect to law after suspending them. They also permit the moving of various kinds of motions and resolutions such as a

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

, motion of adjournment, motion of censure 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 President. Further, all comments and speeches made by members of the House are addressed to the Speaker. The Speaker also presides over the joint sitting of both houses of the

. The counterpart of the Speaker in the

Rajya Sabha Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is the upper house of the Parliament of India and functions as the institutional representation of India’s federal units — the states and union territories.https://rajyasabha.nic.in/ It is a key component o ...

(Council of the States) is its Chairperson; the Vice-President of India is the ''

ex-officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term ''List of Latin phrases (E)#ex officio, ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the off ...

'' chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. On the

order of precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of importance applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. For individuals, it is most often used for diplomats in attendance at very formal occasions. It can also be used in the context of ...

, the Speaker of Lok Sabha ranks sixth, along with the Chief Justice of India. 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. Lok Sabha Speaker can be elected by President on a nomination basis. All bills passed requires the speaker's signature to go to the Rajya Sabha for its consideration. The Speaker also has a casting vote in the event of a tie. It is customary for the Presiding Officer to exercise the casting vote in such a manner as to maintain the status quo.

Removal of the speaker

Speaker can be removed by the Lok Sabha by a resolution passed by the majority of all the then members of the house as per Constitution of India rticles 94 The Speaker is also removed on being disqualified for being

member under sections 7 and 8 of Representation of the People Act, 1951.

Pro tem speaker

After a general election and formation of a new government, a list of senior Lok Sabha members prepared by the Legislative Section is submitted to the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, who forwards the name to the

President of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

. The President of India appoints the Protem Speaker. The first meeting after the election when the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are selected by members of the Parliament is held under the ''pro tem'' Speaker. In absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker acts as Speaker and in the absence of both a committee of six members selected by the Speaker will act as Speaker according to their seniority. Eligiblilty for Speaker of the Lok Sabha include: * Being a citizen of India; * Not be less than 25 years of age; * Not holding any office of profit under the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

, or a

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...

; and * Not being a Criminal Offender.

List of pro tem speakers

List of speakers

Note: : Died in office : Resigned

References

External links

* {{Parliament of India * * Lists of political office-holders in India Lists of members of the Lok Sabha