Chapter III - SPEAKER, DEPUTY SPEAKER AND PANEL OF CHAIRMEN

9. Election of Speaker.– (1) At the first sitting of the Assembly following a general election, after the members present have made oath and before the transaction of any other business, the Assembly shall proceed to elect a Speaker by secret ballot in accordance with this rule.

(2) The sitting of the Assembly for the election of the Speaker shall be presided at by the out-going Speaker or, in his absence, by the person nominated by the Governor under sub-rule (2) of rule 6 (hereinafter in this rule referred to as the Presiding Officer).

(3) No member shall preside at the sitting for the election in which he himself is a candidate.

(4) At any time before 5.00 p.m., on the day preceding the day on which the election is to be held, a member may propose another member for election as Speaker by delivering to the [2][Secretary General] a nomination paper [3][set out in Part A & C of First Schedule] signed by him and accompanied by a statement by the member whose name is proposed that he is willing to serve as Speaker, if elected.

(5) A member who has been nominated may, in writing, withdraw his candidature at any time before the Assembly proceeds to elect a Speaker.

(6) On the day of election, the Presiding Officer shall read out to the Assembly the names of the members who have been duly nominated and have not withdrawn their candidature, as also the names of their proposers, and, if there is only one such member, shall declare that member to have been elected.

(7) Where, after withdrawals, if any, there remain only two candidates for election, a ballot shall be held between them and the candidate who secures more votes than the other shall be declared to have been elected. If both the candidates secure an equal number of votes, a fresh ballot shall be held between them until one of them secures more votes than the other, and the candidate securing more votes shall be declared to have been elected.

(8) Where, after withdrawals, if any, there remain more than two candidates for election, the candidate obtaining more votes than the aggregate of votes secured by the other candidates shall be declared to have been elected. If no candidate secures more votes than the aggregate votes secured by the other candidates, there shall be a fresh ballot at which the candidate who secured the lowest number of votes at the last ballot shall be excluded from the election, and the balloting shall, in like manner, proceed until one candidate secures more votes than the remaining candidates or, as the case may be, the remaining candidates in the aggregate, and such candidate shall be declared to have been elected.

(9) Where, at any ballot any two of the three or more candidates secure an equal number of votes and one of them has to be excluded from election under sub-rule (8), the question as to which one of such candidates is to be excluded shall be determined by the casting vote of the Presiding Officer if he is an elected member, and, by drawing of lots, in any other case.

(10) The member elected as Speaker shall, before entering upon office, make before the Assembly oath in the form set out in the Third Schedule to the Constitution.

10. Election of Deputy Speaker.– (1) Immediately after the election of Speaker, the Assembly shall proceed to elect a Deputy Speaker and the procedure prescribed in rule 9 for the election of Speaker, shall apply to the election of Deputy Speaker as if references therein to Speaker were references to Deputy Speaker and references to the Presiding Officer were references to Speaker.

(2) A person elected as Deputy Speaker shall, before entering upon office, make before the Assembly oath in the form set out in the Third Schedule to the Constitution.

11. Vacancy in the office of Speaker or Deputy Speaker.– (1) Whenever the office of Speaker becomes vacant, the Governor shall fix a date for the election of a new Speaker, if the Assembly is in session, as soon as possible during that session, and if the Assembly is not in session, at the commencement of the next session and the election shall be held in accordance with rule 9.

(2) Whenever the office of the Deputy Speaker becomes vacant, the Speaker shall fix a date for the election of a new Deputy Speaker and the election shall be held as soon as possible, if the Assembly is in session, during that session, and if the Assembly is not in session, at the commencement of the next session and the election shall be held in accordance with rule 10.

12. Removal of Speaker or Deputy Speaker.– (1) A member may give to the [4][Secretary General] notice in writing of a motion for leave to move a resolution under paragraph (c) of clause (7) of Article 53 read with Article 127 of the Constitution for the removal from office of the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker and the [5][Secretary General] shall forthwith circulate the notice to the members.

(2) The motion for leave to move the resolution shall be entered in the name of the member concerned in the List of Business for the first working day after the expiry of seven days of the receipt of the notice under sub-rule (1).

(3) No other item shall be included in the List of Business for the day fixed for a motion for leave to move a resolution under sub-rule (2).

(4) The Speaker or the Deputy Speaker shall not preside at a sitting of the Assembly when a resolution for his removal is being considered.

(5) Immediately after the motion referred to in sub-rule (2) has been moved, the Presiding Officer shall call such of the members as may be in favour of the leave being granted to rise in their seats and, if at least one-fourth of total membership of the Assembly does not so rise, he shall declare that the member has not the leave of the Assembly, or, if such membership so rises, call upon the member to move the resolution.

[6][(6) The discussion on the resolution shall be strictly confined to the grounds stated therein:

Provided that the member who actually moves resolution in the Assembly and the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Deputy Speaker, against whom the resolution has been moved, may speak for fifteen minutes or such longer time as the Presiding Officer may allow:

Provided further that the Presiding Officer may allow the other signatories of the resolution, or any other member to speak on the resolution, for which he may fix the time limit.]

(7) The Assembly shall not be adjourned until the motion for leave is disposed of or, if leave is granted, the resolution has been voted upon.

(8) The voting on the resolution shall be by secret ballot and shall be held in such manner as the Presiding Officer may direct.

(9) If the session during which notice has been given under sub-rule (1) has been summoned by the Speaker in pursuance of clause (3) of Article 54 read with Article 127 of the Constitution, the Assembly shall not be prorogued until the motion has been disposed of or, if leave is granted, the resolution has been voted upon.

(10) The Speaker or, as the case may be, the Deputy Speaker, shall stand removed from office on the resolution being passed by majority of the total membership of the Assembly.

[7][13. Panel of Chairpersons.– (1) The Speaker shall, at the commencement of the Session or from time to time, as the case may be, nominate in order of precedence, from amongst members a panel of not more than [8][six] Chairpersons and in the absence of the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker, the member having precedence amongst those present at the sitting shall take the Chair.

(2) If at any time at a sitting of the Assembly neither the Speaker nor the Deputy Speaker nor any member on the Panel of Chairpersons is present, the [9][Secretary General] shall so inform the Assembly and the Assembly shall, by a motion, elect one of the members present to preside at the sitting.]

14. Powers and functions of the Speaker.– (1) In addition to the specific functions and powers provided by these rules and subject to sub-rule (4) of rule 12, the Speaker shall take the Chair at every sitting of the Assembly at the hour to which the Assembly was adjourned at the last sitting or at the hour at which the Assembly has been summoned to meet.

(2) The Speaker shall call the sitting to order.

(3) The Speaker shall preserve order and decorum, shall have all powers necessary for the purpose of enforcing his decisions and, in case of disturbance or disorder in the galleries, may cause them to be cleared.

(4) The Speaker shall decide all points of order.

[10][(4A) The Speaker shall have the powers to withdraw his consent at any stage in respect of [11][any notice] if some fresh material is furnished to him on account of which he is satisfied that the withdrawal of the consent is necessary.]

(5) Subject to sub-rule (4) of rule 12, in the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker shall take the Chair at a sitting.

15. Delegation of powers of the Speaker.– The Speaker may, by an order in writing, delegate to the Deputy Speaker any of his powers under these rules.

16. Power of the member presiding at a sitting.– The Presiding Officer shall have the same powers as the Speaker has when presiding at a sitting; and, all references in these rules to the Speaker shall be deemed to include a reference to the Presiding Officer.