The Speaker of Lok Sabha can vote:

Explanation

Article 100(1) sets the voting rule for either House of Parliament and for a joint sitting. Questions are decided by a majority of the members present and voting, but the Speaker, or a person acting as Speaker, is excluded from that first round of voting. The same clause then gives the Speaker a specific role if the vote is tied: the Speaker has and must exercise a casting vote in the case of equality of votes. This is why the Speaker is not treated as an ordinary voting member during normal division; the office is expected to stay impartial unless the House is deadlocked.

Why the other options are wrong

• (A) Article 100(1) does not make the Speaker's vote depend on whether a matter is of national importance; it turns on whether there is equality of votes.
• (B) The Speaker cannot vote on every question in the first instance because Article 100(1) expressly excludes the Speaker from the initial majority count.
• (D) The Speaker is not barred from voting altogether because Article 100(1) gives the Speaker a casting vote when the votes are equal.

Concept

This tests the constitutional position of parliamentary presiding officers under the conduct-of-business provisions. It recurs in RAS because questions often distinguish ordinary voting rights from the Speaker's casting vote.

Source

• Government of India, Ministry of Law and Justice, Legislative Department - The Constitution of India

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