DRAFT CONSTITUTION 567
ARTICLE 76
*Mr. President : The motion is :
“That article 76 stand part of the constitution.”
Mr. Naziruddin Ahmad : I do not wish to formally move this amendment, but I want to make a few remarks. A similar amendment of mine was very kindly characterised by Dr. Ambedkar as absurd. I submit. Sir, my amendment was not absurd....
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : We have already dealt with that amendment, and a similar amendment was moved by my Honourable Friend to article 73.
ARTICLE 77
†The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : Sir, I am sorry I cannot accept the amendment moved by my honourable friend, Mr. Kamath. The existing article is based upon a very simple principle and it is this, that a person normally tenders his resignation to another person who has appointed him. Now the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are persons who are appointed or chosen or elected by the House. Consequently these two people, if they want to resign, must tender their resignations to the House which is the appointing authority. Of course, the House being a collective body of people a resignation could not be addressed to each member of the House separately. Consequently, the provision is made that the resignation should be addressed either to the Speaker or to the Deputy Speaker, because it is they who represent the House. Really speaking, in theory, the resignation is to the House because it is the House which has appointed them. The President is not the person who has appointed them. Consequently, it would be very incongruous to require the Deputy Speaker or the speaker to tender their resignations to the President, who has nothing to do with House and who should have nothing to do with the House in order that the house may be independent of the executive authority exercised either through the President or through the Government of the day.
Shri H. V. Kamath : On a point of information, may I know from Dr. Ambedkar what is the procedure prevailing in the case of the Speaker of the Central Legislative Assembly today ?
- CAD. Vol. VIII, 19th May 1949, p. 121
† Ibid, p. 123