According to the Constitution of India, the Vice President is the Rajya Sabha Chairman. The Vice President of India shall be the ex officio Chairman of Upper House of the Parliament or Rajya Sabha as per the Articles 64 and 89(1). The Vice-President, as the Rajya Sabha Chairman, chairs over the meetings of the House.
It is the duty of the Chairman of Rajya Sabha to ensure that the proceedings of the House are conducted in a regimented method and are in harmony with the pertinent provisions of the Constitution of India. It is also his duty to ensure that the members of the Upper House get proper chance to ask questions and get proper reply.
The Rajya Sabha Chairman does not have the power to vote in any matters of the House. He can only put vote when there is a tie. The decisions of the Chairman Rajya Sabha cannot be ignored or criticized. The Chairman is also not bound to show reasons for any of his decisions. The act of protesting against the ruling of the Chairman is regarded as a contempt of Court.
Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is helped by the Deputy Chairman in the proceedings of the House. The present Chairman of Rajya Sabha is Mohammad Hamid Ansari. The first Chairman of Rajya Sabha was Dr. S. Radhakrishnan and Shri S.V. Krishnamoorthy was the first Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.
Last Updated on 1st Oct 2012