The Speaker is the presiding officer of the lower house of Parliament of India

Parliament of India

The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body in India. Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha...

. His/her role is similar to that of Speaker

Speaker (politics)

The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...

s elsewhere in other countries that use the Westminster system

Westminster System

The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....

 of government

Government

Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...

.

The speaker is elected in the very first meeting of the Lok Sabha

Lok Sabha

The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...

 after the general elections

Elections in India

India has a quasi federal government, with elected officials at the federal , state and local levels. On a national level, the head of government, the Prime Minister, is elected directly by the people, through a general election. All members of the federal legislature, the Parliament, are directly...

 for a term of 5 years from amongst the members of the Lok Sabha. He/she is supposed to resign from his/her original party because as a speaker, he/she has to remain impartial.

Powers and functions of the Speaker

The Speaker presides over the sessions of the Lok Sabha and conducts the business in the house. He/she decides whether a bill is a money bill

Money bill

In the Westminster system , a money bill or supply bill is a bill that solely concerns taxation or government spending , as opposed to changes in public law.- Conventions :...

 or a non money bill. He/she maintains discipline and decorum in the house and can punish a member for their unruly behaviour by suspending them. He/she permits the moving of various kinds of motions and resolutions like the motion of no confidence

Motion of no confidence

A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...

, motion of adjournment

Adjournment debate

In the Westminster system, an adjournment debate is a debate on the motion, "That this House do now adjourn." In practice, this is a way of enabling the House to have a debate on a subject without considering a substantive motion.- Types of debate :...

, 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 speaker is fixed by the President.

List of Speakers

#	Name	Term	Party	Coalition in Power
1	G.V. Mavlankar Ganesh Vasudev Mavlankar Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar popularly known as Dadasaheb was an independence activist, the President of the Central Legislative Assembly, then Speaker of the Constituent Assembly of India, and later the first Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India.-Early...	15 May 1952 - 27 February 1956	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
2	M. A. Ayyangar	8 March 1956 - 16 April 1962	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
3	Sardar Hukam Singh Sardar Hukam Singh Sardar Hukam Singh was an Indian politician and the speaker of the Lok Sabha from 1962 to 1967. He was also governor of Rajasthan from 1967 to 1972.-Early life:...	17 April 1962 - 16 March 1967	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
4	N. Sanjiva Reddy	17 March 1967 - 19 July 1969	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
5	G. S. Dhillon	8 August 1969 - 1 December 1975	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
6	Bali Ram Bhagat Bali Ram Bhagat Bali Ram Bhagat was an Indian politician. He was born in Patna, Bihar. He served as the Speaker of Lok Sabha from 1976 to 1977, during the turbulent final year of Indira Gandhi’s first reign as prime minister. He served as Minister for External Afairs of India under Indira’s son, Rajiv Gandhi,...	15 January 1976 - 25 March 1977	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
7	N. Sanjiva Reddy	26 March 1977 - 13 July 1977	Janata Party Janata Party The Janata Party was an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the state of emergency imposed by the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Indian National Congress...	JP+ Janata Party The Janata Party was an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the state of emergency imposed by the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Indian National Congress...
8	K.S. Hegde K.S. Hegde Kawdoor Sadananda Hegde was an Indian jurist, politician and educationalist.Hegde served as a member of the Rajya Sabha from 1952 to 1957, holding office as its vice chairman between 1952 and 1953...	21 July 1977 - 21 January 1980	Janata Party Janata Party The Janata Party was an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the state of emergency imposed by the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Indian National Congress...	JP+ Janata Party The Janata Party was an amalgam of Indian political parties opposed to the state of emergency imposed by the government of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her Indian National Congress...
9	Balram Jakhar Balram Jakhar Dr. Balram Jakhar Dr. Balram Jakhar Dr. Balram Jakhar (Devanagari:बलराम जाखड, IAST: Balrām (born 23 August 1923) is a well-known Indian politician and parliamentarian and former Governor of Madhya Pradesh. -Early life and education:...	22 January 1980 - 18 December 1989	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
10	Rabi Ray Rabi Ray Rabi Ray is an Indian socialist politician, a former speaker of Lok Sabha and a former Union minister of India. He hails from Orissa...	19 December 1989 - 9 July 1991	Janata Dal Janata Dal Janata Dal is an Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Congress, and the Jan Morcha led by V. P...	NF National Front (India) The National Front was a coalition of political parties, led by the Janata Dal, which formed India's government between 1989 and 1990 under the leadership of N. T. Rama Rao as President and V. P. Singh as Convener. The coalition's prime minister was V. P. Singh...
11	Shivraj Patil Shivraj Patil Shivraj Vishwanath Patil is an Indian politician and current state Punjab governor and the Administrator of Union Territory of Chandigarh. Previously he had been the Speaker of the 11th Lok Sabha and served the Manmohan Singh cabinet as the Union Minister of Home Affairs...	10 July 1991 - 22 May 1996	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	INC+ Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
12	P.A. Sangma	25 May 1996 - 23 March 1998	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	UF United Front (India) The United Front was a coalition government of 13 political parties formed in India after the 1996 general elections. The coalition formed two governments in India between 1996 and 1998. The government was headed by two Prime Ministers from Janata Dal - H. D. Deve Gowda, and I. K. Gujral...
13	G.M.C. Balayogi	24 March 1998 - 3 March 2002	Telugu Desam Party Telugu Desam Party Telugu Desam Party or TDP is a regional political party in India's Andhra Pradesh state. It was founded by former Telugu film star N. T...	NDA National Democratic Alliance (India) The National Democratic Alliance is a centre-right coalition of political parties in India. At the time of its formation in 1998, it was led by the Bharatiya Janata Party and had thirteen constituent parties. Its convenor is Sharad Yadav, and its honorary chairman is former prime minister Atal...
14	Manohar Joshi Manohar Joshi Manohar Gajanan Joshi, is an Indian politician from the state of Maharashtra. He is one of the prominent leaders of the Shiv Sena political party. He was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 1995–1999.-Background and family:...	10 May 2002 - 2 June 2004	Shiv Sena Shiv Sena Shiv Sena , is a political party in India founded on 19 June 1966 by Balasaheb Thackeray. It is currently headed by Thackeray's son, Uddhav Thackeray...	NDA National Democratic Alliance (India) The National Democratic Alliance is a centre-right coalition of political parties in India. At the time of its formation in 1998, it was led by the Bharatiya Janata Party and had thirteen constituent parties. Its convenor is Sharad Yadav, and its honorary chairman is former prime minister Atal...
15	Somnath Chatterjee Somnath Chatterjee Somnath Chatterjee is an Indian politician who had been associated with the Communist Party of India for most of his life, though he is currently an independent...	4 June 2004 - 30 May 2009	Communist Party of India (Marxist) Communist Party of India (Marxist) The Communist Party of India is a political party in India. It has a strong presence in the states of Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura. As of 2011, CPI is leading the state government in Tripura. It leads the Left Front coalition of leftist parties in various states and the national parliament of...	UPA United Progressive Alliance The United Progressive Alliance is a ruling coalition of center-left political parties heading the government of India. The coalition is led by the Indian National Congress , which is currently the single largest political party in the Lok Sabha...
16	Meira Kumar Meira Kumar Meira Kumar is an Indian politician and a five time Member of Parliament. She was elected unopposed as the first woman Speaker of Lok Sabha on 3 June 2009.She is a lawyer and a former diplomat...	30 May 2009–present	Indian National Congress Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...	UPA United Progressive Alliance The United Progressive Alliance is a ruling coalition of center-left political parties heading the government of India. The coalition is led by the Indian National Congress , which is currently the single largest political party in the Lok Sabha...

External links

• Office of the Lok Sabha Speaker