Lok Sabha is an Indian constitutional organization and main backbone of indian constitution. Lok Sabha is also known as the lower house of the parliament and house of people. The house meeting is held in the Lok Sabha chambers of the Sansad Bhavan in New Delhi. Lok Sabha passes important decisions regarding matters affecting the life of people as well as country. Here we list top 15 facts about Lok Sabha every Indian citizen should know.
15. History
The Indian constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950.According to Article 79 of the constitution of India, Parliament of India consists of the President of India and two houses, council of states (Rajya Sabha) and House of people (LokSabha). The Lok Sabha was constituted for the first time on 17 April 1952 after the first General elections (25 Oct 1951- 21 Feb 1952). Indian congress won the elections with 75.99% of the votes.
14. Total seats
Lok Sabha can have maximum 552 members according to the constitution of India, which includes:
- Up to 530 members to represent the states
- Up to 20 members to represent the union territories
- Not more than 2 members from the Anglo- Indian community, to be nominated by the President if he believes that Anglo Indian community is not being represented properly
However, under the current situation the strength of LokSabha is 545, including the two Anglo Indian representatives. The total seats are distributed among the states on the basis of their population.131 seats are reserved for the representatives of scheduled caste (SC) and scheduled tribe(ST).
13. Eligibility
Article 84, Indian constitution lists eligibility criteria for being a Lok Sabha member:
#The age should not be less than 25 years
#The applicant should be an Indian citizen and must produce an oath in front of the election commission of India.
#The applicant should not be a convicted crime.
#The applicant must not hold any profitable post in any government offices.
#The applicant should have names in the electoral rolls in any part of the country.
A person can’t be a member of both houses at the same time
He must choose one.
12. Lok Sabha election system
Lok Sabha members are directly elected by the people of India on the basis of universal suffrage. The direct elections to Lok Sabha is done by dividing the states into territories and allocating the particular number of seats to each territory on the basis of population, obtained from latest population consensus.
11. Term of the house
The Lok Sabha generally continues for five years from its first meeting till the expiration of the five-year period. However, it can be dissolved sooner under certain circumstances and can also be prolonged for a year, according to the parliamentry law if the emergency is in operation. In May 2014 ,16th Lok Sabha was selected and is the latest to date.
10. Speaker and Deputy speaker
The chosen speaker and deputy speaker looks over the proceedings of the Lok Sabha. The list of business to be discussed is printed and passed over to each member in advance. There is a business advisory committee which advises the house on the timings to be allotted to each business. The speaker presides over sessions and regulates the procedure.
9. Sessions and time of sitting
The LokSabha has three sessions in a given year:
- Budget session: Feb to May
- Monsoon session: July to September
- Winter session: November to mid-December
Lok Sabha sittings take place, usually from 11 am to 1 pm and from 2-6 pm. However, on the days of important business lunch breaks are cancelled and it can go on even after 6pm. Lok Sabha is generally adjourned on weekends and on holidays.
8. LokSabha TV
The Lok Sabha has its own dedicated channel within the premises of Lok Sabha, which will provide you all the latest Lok Sabha happenings and you can watch live proceedings.
7. Question hour
The first hour of every sitting is called the question hour. TheLokSabha members have the right to ask direct questions to ministers on the behalf of common people regarding administration and government policies at the national and international level. Every minister has to stand up and answer the question. Questions are either starred, unstated and short notice. A starred question’s answer is to be given orally in the house. An unstated question is to be answered in writingin the allotted time. Ashort notice question is to be answered after question hour i.e.in the Zero hour.
6. Zero hour
The time immediately after the question hour is known as Zero hour. This begins at around 12 noon and members, with prior notice to speaker can raise important questions. Discussion on topics like budget, bills and important national issues can be discussed from 2 pm on wards.
5. Main business
The main business of the day can be consideration of a bill or financial business or consideration of a motion or resolution. Every bill has to pass through three readings and must be passed by both Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and by President to become a law. Bills can be either government bills or Private member’s bills.
4. Debates
When a member who has initiated a discussion on an item of business has given his views, the Speaker may call on other members to speak on that item of business one by one. Only one member speaks at a time and speeches are directed to the chair. Three versions of the debate are prepared by the Lok Sabha: Hindi, English and original.
3. Division
If a matter is to be decided by the house, the division is done if the the member challenges the decision made on the basis of the majority of voices saying yes or no. A division bell is rung and in three and half minutes’ bells are installed everywhere. Members and ministers rush to the chamber which becomes closed till the decision is made. The chair puts the question in the closed chamber and makes his decision on the basis of voices saying yes or no.
2. Automatic vote recording system
If the decision by the division is challenged by the member, the automatic vote recording system is used and after the speaker’s announcement secretary general presses a keyboard button. A gong sounds at the beginning and the end of the procedure. The members have to press a switch and operate one of the three push buttons for 10 seconds. There are indicator boards on either side of the speaker’s chair and the votes are totaled mechanically.
1. Power
Motion of no confidence can only be introduced in Lok Sabha. Prime minister and other council of ministers must resign from their posts if it is passed. Lok Sabha is given equal power in the passing of a bill as well as in the impeachment of President and judges of the supreme court.
We hope you found this article informative and useful. Here we listed top 15 things about Lok Sabha. Every Indian citizen should know what is going on in his country and be aware of the intricacies of Lok Sabha and other Parliamentry bodies.
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