Q. Why is this in news?
A. The party in the opposition has appointed two members as the party’s whips in the Upper House.
Q. Who is a Whip?
A.
- A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature.
- This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology or the will of their donors or constituents.
- Whips are the party’s “enforcers”.
- They try to ensure that their fellow political party legislators attend voting sessions and vote according to their party’s official policy.
- Members who vote against party policy may “lose the whip”, effectively expelling them from the party.
Q. What about Whips in India?
A.
- In India, the concept of the whip was inherited from colonial British rule.
- Every major political party appoints a whip who is responsible for the party’s discipline and behaviours on the floor of the house.
- Usually, they direct the party members to stick to the party’s stand on certain issues and directs them to vote as per the direction of senior party members.
Q. What happens if a whip is disobeyed?
A.
- A legislator may face disqualification proceedings if she/he disobeys the whip of the party unless the number of lawmakers defying the whip is 2/3rds of the party’s strength in the house.
- Disqualification is decided by the Speaker/Chairman of the house.
Q. What are the Limitations of whip?
A.
- There are some cases such as Presidential elections where whips cannot direct a Member of Parliament (MP) or Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) to vote in a particular fashion.
Q. What are the Types of whips?
A. There are three types of whips or instructions issued by the party
- One-line whip: One-line whip is issued to inform members of a party about a vote. It allows a member to abstain in case they decide not to follow the party line.
- Two-line whip: Two-line whip is issued to direct the members to be present in the House at the time of voting.
- Three-line whip: Three-line whip is issued to members directing them to vote as per the party line.
