Independence and Impartiality

As the office of the Speaker is vested with great prestige, position and authority, independence and impartiality becomes its sine qua non11 .

The following provisions ensure the independence and impartiality of the office of the Speaker:

1. He is provided with a security of tenure. He can be removed only by a resolution passed by the Lok Sabha by a special majority (ie, a majority of all the then members of the House) and not by an ordinary majority (ie, a majority of the members present and voting in the House). This motion of removal can be considered and discussed only when it has the support of at least 50 members.

2. His salaries and allowances are fixed by Parliament. They are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India and thus are not subject to the annual vote of Parliament.

3. His work and conduct cannot be discussed and criticised in the Lok Sabha except on a substantive motion.

4. His powers of regulating procedure or conducting business or maintaining order in the House are not subject to the

jurisdiction of any Court.

5. He cannot vote in the first instance. He can only exercise a casting vote in the event of a tie. This makes the position of Speaker impartial.

6. He is given a very high position in the order of precedence. He is placed at seventh rank, along with the Chief Justice of India. This means, he has a higher rank than all cabinet ministers, except the Prime Minister or Deputy Prime Minister.

In Britain, the Speaker is strictly a nonparty man. There is a convention that the Speaker has to resign from his party and remain politically neutral. This healthy convention is not fully established in India where the Speaker does not resign from the membership of his party on his election to the exalted office.