Democracy needs impartial House Speakers

The office of the Speaker requires full independence and impartiality, something hard to find now.

 Democracy needs impartial House Speakers

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• The story: India's parliamentary democracy rests on some assumptions, a key one being the integrity and independence of the Parliamentary Speakers.
• House icon: It is clear that while the members of Parliament (MPs) represent the individual constituencies, the Speaker represents the full authority of the House itself. He/She symbolises the dignity and power of the House over which he/she is presiding. It is expected that the holder of this Office of high dignity has to represent the House in all its manifestations, without any partisanship. Sadly that's not true.
• Block the work: Paralysing Parliament seems to have become the standard operating procedure of every Opposition party. The misuse of the post of speaker in the functioning of India’s Parliament — and state assemblies as well — is a reason for dropping productivity.
• Speaker’s independence: In the Lok Sabha, the Speaker is the supreme authority with vast powers, and his primary duty is to ensure the orderly conduct of the business. Once, PM Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had referred to the Speaker as “the symbol of the nation’s freedom and liberty” and emphasised that Speakers should be men of “outstanding ability and impartiality”. Later, MN Kaul and SL Shakdher referred to the speaker as the conscience and guardian of the House.
• What he does: The Speaker decides what issues will be taken up for discussion. As the final interpreter of the provisions of the Constitution of India, he decides the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of Lok Sabha and the parliamentary precedents, within the House. He/She presides over a joint sitting of the two Houses of Parliament.

1. Adjournment Motion - He has the sole discretion to permit an adjournment motion to be tabled or to admit a calling attention notice, if the issue is of urgent public importance.
2. Money Bill - He/She decides whether a bill is a money bill or not, and his/her decision on this question is final. Since 2015, various laws have been passed that were brought in as Money Bills, which they truly weren't. A striking example is the Aadhar Act.
3. Disqualifying members - The speaker decides the questions of disqualification of a member of the Lok Sabha, arising on the ground of defection under the provisions of the Tenth Schedule.
4. Committees - The Committees of the House are constituted by the speaker and function under the speaker’s overall direction. The Chairmen of all Parliamentary Committees are nominated by him/her.

• Problems seen with the speakers: The judiciary found faults with many judgments on the anti-defection law. A common factor quoted by the judiciary was the blatantly partisan conduct of speakers (in various state assemblies). It seems India has run out of independent-minded speakers.

1. The Speaker continues as an active member of the ruling party and refuses to allow any debate or discussion that may be essential in national interest but may embarrass the ruling party. This kills the democratic tradition.
2. Partisan conduct of the speaker and apathy towards opposition parties’ demands may lead to constant disruption of Parliament by the Opposition.
3. Disruptions inside Parliament cause damage not only to the prestige of the House, but also harms the primary function of any legislature.
4. In the 2021 monsoon session, not a single bill was referred to any select committee. This harms the quality of laws being made in India, as observed by the Supreme Court itself.

• An ideal speaker: Independence and impartiality are the hallmarks of an ideal Speaker. Since "separation of powers" is part of the basic structure of the Constitution, Speakers must ensure that they live upto it. He/she must resign from the party to honour the constitutional obligation of independence and impartiality. In 1967, late N Sanjiva Reddy resigned from his party when he became the Speaker. In 1951, a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court (In Re Delhi Laws Act Case) held that essential legislative functions cannot be delegated to the bureaucracy; law-making must remain the domain of the legislature.
• So the speaker must ensure that the legislature meets continuously and debate the bills. Shri GV Mavalankar, the first Speaker of LS, had said that once a person is elected Speaker, he should rise above parties, and above politics. That does not happen now!
  

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