Parliamentary Terms — Set 1

Correct Answer: B. Quorum

• **Quorum** = the minimum number of members that must be present in the House to transact any business; one-tenth of total membership. • **Numbers** — Lok Sabha quorum = 55 members (1/10 of 543+2); Rajya Sabha quorum = 25 members (1/10 of 245); if absent, the presiding officer must adjourn or suspend. • 💡 Option A (Decorum) is wrong — decorum refers to proper conduct/behaviour in the House, not a numerical threshold. Option C (Referendum) is wrong — referendum is a public vote on a policy matter, unrelated to House business rules. Option D (Forum) is wrong — forum means a meeting place for discussion; it has no specific parliamentary numerical meaning.

Correct Answer: B. Question Hour

• **Question Hour** = the first hour of every parliamentary sitting, from 11 AM to 12 PM, during which members ask questions and ministers give oral or written answers. • **Three types of questions** — Starred (oral answer, green list), Unstarred (written answer, white list), and Short Notice (less than 10 days' notice, oral answer); supplementary questions follow starred answers. • 💡 Option A (Zero Hour) is wrong — Zero Hour starts at 12 PM (noon), immediately after Question Hour ends. Option C (Half-an-Hour Discussion) is wrong — Half-an-Hour Discussion takes place at the end of the day's sitting, not the first hour. Option D (Calling Attention) is wrong — Calling Attention is a specific motion for urgent matters and does not constitute the fixed first hour of sitting.

Correct Answer: C. Zero Hour

• **Zero Hour** = an Indian innovation introduced in 1962; starts at 12 PM immediately after Question Hour; members raise matters of public importance without prior notice. • **No formal rules** — Zero Hour is not mentioned in the Rules of Procedure; it is a convention that allows members to raise any urgent issue at the Speaker's discretion. • 💡 Option A (Question Hour) is wrong — Question Hour is the first hour (11 AM–12 PM) requiring advance notice; Zero Hour requires no notice. Option B (Censure Motion) is wrong — Censure Motion is a formal motion against a minister; it is not a time-based device like Zero Hour. Option D (Adjournment Motion) is wrong — Adjournment Motion is a formal device to discuss a specific urgent matter; it requires 50 members' support and interrupts normal business.

Correct Answer: B. President of India

• **President of India** = issues the notification for prorogation of a session under Article 85(2)(a). • **Effect of prorogation** — terminates a session (not the House itself); all pending business lapses (Bills lapse, Notices lapse) except Bills pending in Rajya Sabha or awaiting President's assent. • 💡 Option A (Chairman of Rajya Sabha) is wrong — the Chairman presides over Rajya Sabha sittings but does not issue prorogation notifications. Option C (Speaker of Lok Sabha) is wrong — the Speaker adjourns sittings but has no power to prorogue a session; that belongs to the President. Option D (Prime Minister) is wrong — the PM advises the President to prorogue, but the formal notification is issued by the President.

Correct Answer: A. Adjournment sine die

• **Adjournment sine die** = termination of a sitting of the House by the presiding officer without specifying any date for its next meeting. • **Power holder** — the Speaker (Lok Sabha) or Chairman (Rajya Sabha) has this power; it typically marks the end of a session before the President issues the prorogation notification. • 💡 Option B (Dissolution) is wrong — dissolution ends the very life of the Lok Sabha and triggers fresh elections; sine die only suspends a sitting. Option C (Prorogation) is wrong — prorogation is the President's act terminating a session, not the presiding officer's act. Option D (Recess) is wrong — recess is the gap between two sessions or two sittings within the same session; it is not the same as indefinite termination.

Correct Answer: D. Dissolution

• **Dissolution** = the act that ends the very life of the existing Lok Sabha; after dissolution, general elections must be held to constitute a new Lok Sabha. • **Article 85(2)(b)** — empowers the President to dissolve the Lok Sabha; the President acts on the advice of the Council of Ministers; Rajya Sabha is a permanent House and cannot be dissolved. • 💡 Option A (Suspension) is wrong — suspension is a disciplinary measure against a member, not an action ending the House. Option B (Prorogation) is wrong — prorogation by the President merely ends a session; the House continues to exist and can be recalled. Option C (Adjournment) is wrong — adjournment by the presiding officer only suspends a sitting for a specified time; the House remains alive.

Correct Answer: B. President

• **President of India** = has the power under Article 85(1) to summon each House of Parliament to meet at such time and place as he thinks fit. • **Six-month rule** — the maximum gap between two consecutive sessions of Parliament cannot exceed six months; this means Parliament must meet at least twice a year. • 💡 Option A (Vice-President) is wrong — the Vice-President is the ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha and presides over its sittings but has no power to summon Parliament. Option C (Speaker) is wrong — the Speaker presides over Lok Sabha sittings but cannot summon Parliament; that power is exclusively with the President. Option D (Chief Justice) is wrong — the Chief Justice heads the judiciary and has no role in summoning Parliament.

Correct Answer: D. Lame Duck Session

• **Lame Duck Session** = the last session of the existing Lok Sabha held after a new Lok Sabha has been elected but before the new House is formally constituted. • **Lame ducks** — members of the outgoing Lok Sabha who failed to win re-election are called 'lame ducks'; they continue to sit and vote during this session despite losing the election. • 💡 Option A (Special Session) is wrong — a Special Session is called by the President for a specific extraordinary purpose; it is not specifically tied to the period between election and new House formation. Option B (Budget Session) is wrong — Budget Session is held at the start of the financial year (Feb–May) and is about presenting the Union Budget. Option C (Winter Session) is wrong — Winter Session is the third regular session held in November–December and is unrelated to the transition between old and new Houses.

Correct Answer: A. Neither the Constitution nor the Rules of the House

• **Whip (parliamentary)** = a functionary appointed by each political party in Parliament to ensure party discipline, coordinate attendance, and direct members on how to vote. • **Neither Constitution nor Rules** — the office of Whip finds no mention in the Constitution of India or in the Rules of Procedure of either House; it exists entirely by parliamentary convention. • 💡 Option B (The Rules of Procedure) is wrong — the Whip is not mentioned in the Rules of Procedure of the Houses; it is purely conventional. Option C (The Constitution of India) is wrong — the Constitution does not reference the Whip at all. Option D (A Parliamentary Statute) is wrong — no Parliamentary statute creates or defines the office of the Whip.

Correct Answer: A. Crossing the Floor

• **Crossing the Floor** = the act of a member of Parliament physically moving from their party's seating side to the opposite side, signifying a change of party allegiance. • **Anti-defection law** — the Tenth Schedule (added by the 52nd Amendment, 1985) now regulates floor-crossing; a member who voluntarily gives up party membership or votes against party direction faces disqualification. • 💡 Option B (Taking the Floor) is wrong — taking the floor means a member begins to speak or address the House; it does not involve changing party allegiance. Option C (Holding the Floor) is wrong — holding the floor means continuing to speak uninterrupted; no party change is implied. Option D (Yielding the Floor) is wrong — yielding the floor means allowing another member to speak in your place; it is a courtesy gesture, not a political act.