Democratic Politics

The Indian Parliament is an important organ of the Central Government. Let us study its composition and powers.
Composition The Indian Parliament has two Houses. The Lower House is called the Lok Sabha or the House of the People and the Upper House is known as the Rajya Sabha or the Council of States. The total membership of the Lok Sabha is 551. Out of them the President of India can, however, nominate two members belonging to the Anglo-Indian community, if it is not adequately represented in the House. The total membership of the Rajya Sabha has been fixed at 250. Out of this number 238 are elected by the different 28 States and seven Union Territories while 12 are nominated by the President in order to give representation to eminent people in the field of literature, science, art or social service.
Essential Qualifications for the Members of the Parliament :
A person must have the following qualifications to become member of the parliament of India :
1. He should be a citizen of India.
2. He should be 25 years old for the Lok Sabha and 30 years old for the Rajya Sabha.
3. He should not hold any office of profit under the Government of India.
4. He should not be either an insolvent or a bankrupt and should not have served a sentence for an offence.
An M.P. gets a salary of Rs. 12000 per month in addition to many allowances [such as Daily Allowance (Rs. 500), Constituency Allowance (Rs. 10,000 per month) and office expenses (Rs. 14,000 per month)] etc.
Speaker of the Lok Sabha :
In order to conduct the business of the Lok Sabha at the center and Vidhan Sabha in the states in a proper manner, the Indian Constitution has made a provision for the office of the Speaker and the Deputy-Speaker. The Lok Sabha at the Centre and Vidhan Sabhas in the States elect the Speaker in their very first session from among its own members.
The Speaker is an important, or perhaps the most important member of the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha. He presides over the meetings of the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha and conducts its business. Resolutions or bills can be moved only with his permission. It is he who decides whether a bill is a money bill or not. It is he who adjourns meetings of the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha. All members, including Government members and ministers, have to obey his authority.