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Understanding Lok Sabha Elections In Detail

The following article will revolve around the process of Lok Sabha Elections in India.

India is ruled by a parliamentary system described by its constitution, with power dispensed among the central government and the states.

As per the constitution, the Lok Sabha is the House of the People, the lower house of India’s bicameral Parliament House, and the upper house is the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are chosen via an universal  adult suffrage plus a first-past-the-post system to stand for their respective constituencies. They enjoy their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the recommendation of the council of ministers. The house convenes in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Sansad Bhavan, New Delhi.

The prime minister of the country is the head of the party or political alliance having preponderance in the national elections to the Lok Sabha. The Prime Minister is the head of the executive sector of the Government of India. The Prime Minister is the main adviser to the President of India and the chief of the Union Council of Ministers.

Qualifications

Article 84 of the Indian Constitution lays prerequisites for being a member of Lok Sabha, which are:

  1. They must be a citizen of India and should pledge before the Election Commission of India an oath or declaration as per the form set out for the principle of the Indian Constitution.
  2. They must not be under 25 years of age.
  3. They own other such qualifications as may be stipulated on that behalf by or as per any law enacted by the Parliament House.
  4. They should not be declared criminal, i.e. they must not be a convict, a verified debtor, or otherwise debarred by law; and
  5. They must contain their name in the electoral rolls in any country area.

Parliamentary general elections (Lok Sabha) 

  • Members of Lok Sabha (House of the People), otherwise the lower house of Indian Parliament House, are chosen by being voted upon via every adult citizen of India, from a set of candidates who contest in their relevant constituencies. Each adult citizen of India can vote just in their constituency. Candidates who prevail in the Lok Sabha elections are referred to as ‘Member of Parliament and clasp their seats for five years or until the body is suspended by the President at the suggestion of the council of ministers. Elections occur once in 5 years to choose 543 members for the Lok Sabha (Lower house). 
  • The maximum membership of the House allocated by the Constitution of India is 552. (Originally, in 1950, it was 500). Presently, the house has 543 seats completed via the election of up to 543 elected members. However, between 1952 and 2020, 2 extra members of the Anglo-Indian community were too nominated by the President of India on the recommendation of the Government of India, which was eliminated in January 2020 by the 104th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2019. As a result, the fresh parliament has a seating aptitude of 888 for Lok Sabha.
  • A totality of 131 seats (24.03%) is reserved for representatives of Scheduled Castes (84) and Scheduled Tribes (47). The quorum used for the House is 10% of the entire membership. The Lok Sabha, unless earlier dissolved, prolongs to function for five years for the time being from the date selected for its first meeting. While a proclamation of emergency is in process, this period might be expanded by Parliament House by law or decree.
  • An implementation to redraw Lok Sabha constituencies’ boundaries is conceded out by the Boundary Delimitation Commission of India every decade based on the Indian census, the last of which was performed in 2011. This exercise previously also comprised relocation of seats among states based on demographic changes. Still, that stipulation of the commission’s authorisation was shelved in 1976 after a constitutional amendment to incentivise the family planning program which was being executed. 
  • The Lok Sabha has its television channel, Lok Sabha TV, headquartered within the foundations of Parliament.

Voting Scheme

  1. Every state is allocated several seats in the Lok Sabha in such an approach that the ratio amid that number and its population was as close to uniform as feasible. This proviso does not pertain to states with less than 6 million (60 lakh). The number of seats for each state has been stationary as per the constitutional amendment of 1976.
  2. Every state is segregated into territorial constituencies so that the ratio amid the population of every constituency and the number of seats assigned to it (in each case, one) stay the same all through the state. This standard is endorsed by the boundary reviews cited above.

Conclusion

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are two of India’s bicameral Parliament House houses. Lok Sabha is the lower chamber (house of the people) of Parliament, and Rajya Sabha is called the upper chamber. The members of the Lok Sabha are chosen via General Elections, contested based on the universal adult suffrage.

faq

Frequently asked questions

Get answers to the most common queries related to the NDA Examination Preparation.

Who can suspend the Lok Sabha?

The President has the authority to suspend Lok Sabha.

Which bill is put up just in Lok Sabha?

Money Bills can be put up just in Lok Sabha.