CR.RP.28

27. (1) The President of the Assembly shall be elected by the Assembly from among its members.

(2) The President shall cease to hold office as such if he ceases to be a member of the Assembly.

Vacation of Office.

(3) The President may resign office by writing under his hand addressed to the Secretary for communication to the Assembly. If the Assembly is in session, the resignation shall be read out to the members; if the Assembly is not in session, it shall be published in the Gazette of India; upon being so read out or published, as the case may be, it shall become effective.

Procedure for Filling Vacancy.

(4) When, owing to a vacancy in the office of President of the Assembly, the election of another President becomes necessary, one of the Vice-Presidents appointed in this behalf by the Steering Committee shall fix a date for the holding of the election and the Secretary shall send to every member notice of the date so fixed.

(5) At any time before noon on the day preceding the date so fixed any member may nominate another member for election by delivering to the Secretary a nomination paper signed by himself as proposer and by a third member as seconder and stating –

(a) the name of the member nominated, and

(b) that the proposer has ascertained that such member is willing to serve as President if elected.

(6) On the date fixed for election the Vice-President or other member performing the duties of the President shall read out to the Assembly the names of the members who have been duly nominated together with those of their proposers and seconders, and, if only one member has been so nominated, shall declare that member to be elected. If more than one member has been so nominated, the Assembly shall proceed to elect a President in accordance with the principle of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote.

(7) The deliberations of the Assembly shall be presided over by the President, when he is present.

(8) The President shall be the guardian of the privileges of the Assembly, its spokesman and representative and its highest executive authority.