Rajya Sabha or Council of States is an Indian constitutional body. It is also called the upper house of the parliament.
| Rajya Sabha |
- Rajya Sabha has 250 members. Among these 250 members, 238 are representatives of States and union territories. Other 12 members are selected by Indian president according to their achievement in science, arts, literature. Currently Rajya Sabha has only 245 members. 233 elected and 12 nominated.
- The Hindi name “Rajya Sabha” of Council of States was adopted on 23 August 1954.
- A person is eligible as a member of Rajya Sabha only if a) he/she ïs a citizen of India b) his/her age is greater than 30 years c) he/she must be an elector from the state,for which he/she is representing.
- Vice president of India acts as the chairman of Rajya Sabha. In his absence deputy chairman take care the job of chairman of Rajya Sabha. The person for the post of deputy chairman is elected from the members of Rajya Sabha.
- The tenure of the member of Rajya Sabha is six years. After every two years, one third of the total members of Rajya Sabha retires.
- The first sitting in Rajya Sabha held on 13 may,1952. Unlike the lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha is not dissolved.
- The Quorum (Minimum number of members to be present to make the meeting of Rajya Sabha valid) of Rajya Sabha is one tenth of total members of Rajya Sabha.
- The members of Rajya Sabha are elected by the single transferable vote system. The members of state Legislative assembly selects a predefined number of members for the Rajya Sabha. The number of members one state Legislative Assembly can elect is depended on the population of that state (proportional representation).
Functions of Rajya Sabha
- Any bill (except the money bills) needs to be approved by Rajya Sabha to get passed. If the bill gets stuck for more than six months then President calls for a joint session of both the houses to resolve the deadlock.
- It has the same power as Lok Sabha, for passing any bill for constitutional amendment.
- The members of Rajya Sabha have the electoral power for selection of President, Vice President. Together with the members of Lok Sabha and all the State Legislative Assemblies they elect the President and Vice President.
- It has power in the impeachment procedure of president and judges of supreme court and high court.
Special Powers of Rajya Sabha
| Money Bill: Rajya Sabha does not have any power to amend or reject the Money bill. Lok Sabha can only introduce Money bill and once it is approved my Lok Sabha, it is passed to Rajya Sabha for its approval. If Rajya Sabha fails to pass it within 14 days then the bill gets passed without the approval of Rajya Sabha. Also, Lok Sabha does not need to consider the amendments proposed my Rajya Sabha. Lok Sabha can reject all the proposals and pass it. |
| 1) Rajya Sabha has the power to make a state list subject into National Importance. If two third majority of the members of Rajya Sabha passes a resolution to support it. |
| 2) Rajya Sabha can also create or abolish an All India Service. If majority of members (2/3 of Total Members) supports it. |
Number of members different states can elect for Rajya Sabha
| Name of state and union territory | No. of Seats |
|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh | 11 |
| Arunachal Pradesh | 1 |
| Assam | 7 |
| Bihar | 16 |
| Chhattisgarh | 5 |
| Goa | 1 |
| Gujarat | 11 |
| Haryana | 5 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 3 |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 4 |
| Jharkhand | 6 |
| Karnataka | 12 |
| Kerala | 9 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 11 |
| Maharashtra | 19 |
| Manipur | 1 |
| Meghalaya | 1 |
| Mizoram | 1 |
| Nagaland | 1 |
| National Capital Territory (Delhi) | 3 |
| Nominated | 12 |
| Odisha | 10 |
| Puducherry | 1 |
| Punjab | 7 |
| Rajasthan | 10 |
| Sikkim | 1 |
| Tamil Nadu | 18 |
| Telangana | 7 |
| Tripura | 1 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 31 |
| Uttarakhand | 3 |
| West Bengal | 16 |
| Total | 245 |
