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Question 79 of 98 · Parliament
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SSC

In the absence of quorum, the duty to adjourn the House or suspend its sitting falls on the:

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Answer: Option D — Presiding officer (Speaker or Chairman)

Detailed Solution

If at any time during a meeting of a House there is no quorum, it is the duty of the presiding officer, that is, the Speaker or the Chairman, or the person acting as such, to adjourn the House or to suspend the meeting until there is a quorum.

Constitutional provisions:

  • Article 100(4) contains this rule for the Houses of Parliament.
  • Article 189(4) contains the same rule for the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council of a state.

Quorum in state legislatures:

The quorum for a meeting of a state Legislative Assembly or Council is ten members or one-tenth of the total number of members of the House, whichever is greater.

Quorum in Parliament:

The quorum is one-tenth of the total membership of each House, including the presiding officer.

Procedure when quorum is lacking:

  • A member can point out that there is no quorum.
  • The presiding officer then orders the quorum bell to be rung.
  • If a quorum is still not present after the bell is rung for the prescribed time, the presiding officer adjourns the House or suspends the sitting.

Why quorum matters:

  • It ensures that decisions are taken with a reasonable number of members present.
  • It prevents a small group from passing laws or resolutions when most members are absent.

Other powers of presiding officers:

  • Maintaining order and decorum in the House.
  • Deciding points of order.
  • Adjourning the House in case of grave disorder.
  • Suspending members who disregard the authority of the chair.
  • Casting a vote in case of a tie.

Practice:

In practice, quorum is not always strictly enforced, and Houses sometimes function with few members present until someone raises the issue.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗The Leader of the House, the Secretary-General and the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs do not have this power.

Quick tip

Remember: No quorum → presiding officer must adjourn or suspend the sitting (Article 100(4) for Parliament, Article 189(4) for states).

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Parliament — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Parliament, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers the Parliament of India: the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, their composition, powers and officers, sessions, the law-making process, money bills, joint sittings, parliamentary committees, and devices such as question hour, zero hour and the various motions. Typical questions ask about the maximum strength of each house, the minimum age for members, who certifies a money bill (the Speaker), who presides over a joint sitting, and which committee is chaired by a member of the opposition (the Public Accounts Committee, by convention). Note the special powers of the Rajya Sabha under Articles 249 and 312. Practise the Parliament questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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