Which Article empowers the President to prorogue either House of Parliament?

Explanation

Article 85 is titled "Sessions of Parliament, prorogation and dissolution" in the Constitution of India. Clause (1) requires the President to summon each House of Parliament from time to time, with no more than six months between the last sitting of one session and the first sitting of the next. Clause (2) then gives the President the power to prorogue the Houses or either House, and also to dissolve the House of the People. This is why the provision on prorogation is Article 85, not the neighbouring articles dealing with presidential addresses or ministers' rights in Parliament.

Why the other options are wrong

• (A) Article 88 is not the prorogation provision; the relevant power to prorogue the Houses is placed in Article 85.
• (C) Article 87 is not the prorogation article; Article 85 is the provision headed for sessions of Parliament, prorogation and dissolution.
• (D) Article 86 does not provide the President's prorogation power; Article 85 clause (2) expressly says the President may prorogue the Houses or either House.

Concept

This tests the constitutional machinery around Parliament's sessions, especially the President's formal powers of summoning, proroguing and dissolving. It recurs in RAS because questions often distinguish adjacent constitutional articles with similar institutional themes.

Source

• India Code, Constitution of India PDF

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