Approach:
- Introduction
- Discuss the role of Speaker in house.
- Conclusion
The presiding officer occupies a pivotal position in our parliamentary democracy. It has been said of the presiding officer that while the members of Parliament represent the individual constituencies, the presiding officer represents the full authority of the House itself. He symbolises the dignity and power of the House over which he/she is presiding. Lok Sabha is chaired by the Speaker and Rajya Sabha is chaired by the Chairman (Vice President).
Role of Speaker of Lok Sabha in securing effectiveness of the house:
- Speaker in the Chair: Insofar as the proceedings are concerned, the speaker is guided by the provisions of the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha.
- Regulating the Business of the House: The final authority for adopting rules for regulating its procedure rests with each House, but a perusal of the rules of the Indian Parliament would indicate that the Presiding Officers in the two Houses are given vast powers by the rules to secure effectiveness of the House.
- Speaker and the Committees: The Committees of the House function under the overall direction of the Speaker. Any procedural problems in the functioning of the Committees are referred to him/her for directions. He appoints the Chairmen of Parliamentary Committees, and himself chairs the Business Advisory Committee, Rules Committee and General Purpose Committee.
- Speaker and Members: The Speaker is at once a member of the House as also its Presiding Officer. It is always the Speaker’s task to ensure that parliamentary decorum is maintained under all circumstances. For this he/she is invested with wide-ranging disciplinary powers under the rules.
- Speaker’s Administrative Role: The Speaker is the head of the Lok Sabha Secretariat which functions under his/her ultimate control and direction. This secures the effectiveness of the House.
The Office of the Speaker in India is a living and dynamic institution which deals with the actual needs and problems of Parliament in the performance of its functions. The Speaker is the constitutional and ceremonial head of the House. He is the principal spokesperson of the House. It is in him/her that the responsibility of conducting the business of the House in a manner befitting the place of the institution in a representative democracy is invested.