Who presides over the joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament during absence of the Speaker of Lok Sabha ?

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 3:

The correct option is 3: **Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha**.

Students, this question relates to the constitutional procedures governing joint sittings of the Indian Parliament, as defined under Article 108 of the Constitution. A joint sitting is an extraordinary mechanism invoked by the President to resolve a deadlock between the two Houses—the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and the Rajya Sabha (Council of States)—on an ordinary bill. The authority hierarchy for presiding over such a session is clearly defined. The default presiding officer is always the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, regardless of which House the bill originated in. This primacy is accorded to the Speaker because the Lok Sabha, representing the people directly, has a much larger membership, and a joint sitting is effectively governed by the rules of procedure of the Lok Sabha.

In the Speaker's absence, the constitutional provision mandates that the **Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha** takes the chair. This ensures continuity and maintains the hierarchy, placing the responsibility squarely on an elected officer of the Lok Sabha. Only if both the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are absent does the responsibility fall to the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. If even the Deputy Chairman is absent, then a member of the house, chosen by the joint sitting, presides. Thus, the Deputy Speaker is the immediate substitute for the Speaker in presiding over the joint sitting.

The incorrect option is 1:

The incorrect option is 1: **Chairman of Rajya Sabha**. The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is the Vice-President of India, who is the head of the Upper House. Although highly ranking, the Chairman cannot preside over a joint sitting of the two Houses for a fundamental constitutional reason: he is not a member of either House of Parliament (as he is the Vice-President). In contrast, the Speaker and Deputy Speaker are elected members of the Lok Sabha. The only person from the Rajya Sabha who presides over a joint sitting is the Deputy Chairman, and only in the absence of both the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Therefore, the Chairman is excluded from the list of officers who preside over a joint sitting.

The incorrect option is 2:

The incorrect option is 2: **Secretary General of Lok Sabha**. The Secretary General is a high-ranking administrative and non-political official who provides procedural and administrative support to the House. This officer is a civil servant, not a member of Parliament, and therefore does not hold the political or constitutional authority to preside over the proceedings of either House, much less a joint sitting. The role of presiding officer requires political impartiality, electoral legitimacy, and decision-making authority during legislative debates, which are responsibilities reserved for elected officials like the Speaker, Deputy Speaker, or Deputy Chairman, not for administrative staff.

The incorrect option is 4:

The incorrect option is 4: **Senior most member of Parliament**. While the principle of seniority sometimes plays a role in temporary arrangements (such as the Protem Speaker), it is not the designated rule for presiding over a joint sitting. The Constitution clearly specifies the order of precedence to avoid ambiguity: Speaker, then Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha, and finally the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha. Only if none of these officers are available would the joint sitting elect a member present to preside. Relying simply on the vague criterion of "Senior most member" would bypass the established constitutional hierarchy of the elected presiding officers and would be prone to debate and interpretation.