The term "Article 93" refers to a specific provision within Part V, Chapter II of the Constitution of India, 1950, which deals with the Union Parliament. This article mandates the election of the presiding officers of the Lok Sabha (House of the People).
The provision was created as part of the original Constitution, adopted on January 26, 1950, to establish the foundational offices necessary for the orderly and impartial conduct of business in the lower house of Parliament. Article 93 states that the House of the People shall, as soon as may be, choose two members of the House to be the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker. Furthermore, whenever the office of either the Speaker or Deputy Speaker becomes vacant, the House is obligated to choose another member to fill the post.
This article is intrinsically connected to Article 94, which outlines the conditions for the vacation, resignation, and removal of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker. The Speaker's role is crucial, as they are the final interpreter of the Constitution and the Rules of Procedure within the House, and they preside over joint sittings of both Houses of Parliament. The corresponding provision for the presiding officers of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is Article 89.
While the text of Article 93 has not been amended, its implementation has been a subject of recent discussion. The phrase "as soon as may be" has been criticized for allowing the office of the Deputy Speaker to remain vacant for long periods. For instance, a private member's bill was introduced in 2022 to amend Article 93 to insert a specific time limit of one month for choosing the Deputy Speaker.
An informed reader should also note that the number 93 is famously associated with the 93rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2005, which is a separate and significant amendment that added Clause (5) to Article 15. This amendment enabled the State to make special provisions for the reservation of seats (up to 27% for OBCs) for socially and educationally backward classes, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes in educational institutions, including private unaided ones. The Supreme Court upheld this amendment in the 2008 judgment of Ashoka Kumar Thakur v. Union of India.