The Lok Sabha is the lower house of the Indian Parliament, situated in New Delhi. Originally, the Lok Sabha had 489 seats when it was first convened in 1952. Over time, the number of seats increased to 543 to accommodate the growing population and ensure proportional representation. The new Parliament building, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2023, has a seating capacity of over 800.
The first Lok Sabha session commenced on May 13, 1952, marking a significant milestone in India’s democratic journey. Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, addressed the inaugural session, setting the tone for parliamentary proceedings.
There are general elections held every five years that elect members of Parliament from 543 seats in the Lok Sabha. They are responsible for enacting laws, the most notable being the budget. The leader of the party with the largest number of MPs in the Lok Sabha forms the government at the Centre. The Speaker of the Lok Sabha is chosen by a simple majority of the assembly’s members and is ranked sixth in order of precedence.
1. This article provides a good analysis of what happened when BJP was opposition party. All parties have to share blame for disruption of Parliament proceedings. 2. I think there are absolutely no valid reasons for disruptions and therefore they can never be justified. But still we find that Members of Parliament (MPs) disrupt proceedings of both Houses very frequently. 3. Time has come for right-thinking and concerned citizens to come together and write to all MPs an open letter demanding a change in rules of conducting business of both houses of Parliament. Citizens should demand that an MP resorting to disruption of business of Parliament for any reason whatsoever should first be reprimanded for first act of disruption. For every subsequent act of disruption concerned MP would be awarded a ‘punishment’ in the form of his/her suspension from Parliament. 4. New Rules of conducting business of Parliament should be approved so that presiding officers of both houses of Parliament are empowered to suspend any MP /MPs for causing disruption of Parliament’s business. Period of suspension would be longer for frequent disruptions. I know that this is all utopian expectation but still I wish to write about it.