Conditions of the Vice-President's Office
Article 64 lays down the VP office conditions: ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and a bar on holding any other office of profit.
At a glance
Article 64 lays down the two conditions of the Vice-President's office: ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and no other office of profit.
While acting as President under Article 65, the Vice-President neither performs Chairman-of-Rajya-Sabha duties nor draws that office's salary under Article 97.
Structurally fuses the Vice-Presidency with the Rajya Sabha chairmanship, and keeps the office free of conflicting paid positions.
VP office conditions are the terms under which the Vice-President of India holds office once elected, laid down primarily in Article 64 of the Constitution. Compared with the detailed conditions prescribed for the President under Article 59, the Constitution keeps the Vice-President's conditions of office short — but the two conditions it does prescribe carry significant practical consequences for how the Rajya Sabha functions.
The Two Conditions Under Article 64
Article 64 lays down that the Vice-President shall be ex officio Chairman of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), and that he shall not hold any other office of profit. These two conditions are stated together in a single Article, unlike the President's more elaborate set of conditions spread across several clauses of Article 59.
Ex Officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha
The first and defining condition of the Vice-President's office is that he automatically becomes the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha the moment he assumes office — there is no separate election or appointment to that chairmanship. This is why the Vice-President of India is, in practice, best known publicly for presiding over Rajya Sabha proceedings. The office of Vice-President and the chairmanship of the Rajya Sabha are constitutionally fused; one cannot exist without the other for as long as the person remains Vice-President.
No Other Office of Profit — and Its Explanation
The second condition bars the Vice-President from holding any other office of profit while in office. This is the same general principle applied to the President, Governors, and Ministers, intended to preserve the independence and dignity of high constitutional office by ensuring the office-holder is not simultaneously drawing benefit from, or beholden to, another position.
A related explanation appears in the provisions dealing with eligibility for election as Vice-President: a person is not treated as holding a disqualifying "office of profit" merely because he is the President or Vice-President of the Union, the Governor of a State, or a Union or State Minister. In other words, the office-of-profit bar is aimed at other kinds of paid public or private positions, not at movement between these particular constitutional offices.
When the Vice-President Acts as President
Article 64 also carries an important proviso for the period during which the Vice-President acts as President, or discharges the President's functions, under Article 65. During that period, the Vice-President does not perform the duties of the office of Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and he is not entitled to the salary or allowance otherwise payable to the Chairman under Article 97. This makes sense structurally: while acting as President, the Vice-President is drawing on the authority and (by implication) the emoluments attached to the presidential office, not those of the Rajya Sabha chairmanship, and someone else — the Deputy Chairman — must be available to preside over the House in his place.
Comparing the Vice-President's and President's Conditions of Office
The President's conditions of office under Article 59 are considerably more detailed than the Vice-President's under Article 64:
| Aspect | President (Article 59) | Vice-President (Article 64) |
|---|---|---|
| Membership of legislature | Must not be, and is deemed to vacate seat in, either House of Parliament or a State Legislature on entering office | No equivalent express bar is stated in Article 64 itself |
| Other office of profit | Barred | Barred |
| Official residence and emoluments | Entitled to use of official residence without rent, plus emoluments/allowances as Parliament determines (Second Schedule until then) | Not separately fixed in Article 64; salary is drawn as Chairman of the Rajya Sabha under Article 97, except while acting as President |
| Reduction of emoluments during term | Emoluments/allowances cannot be reduced during the term | No equivalent provision in Article 64 |
This contrast reflects the different constitutional character of the two offices: the President's conditions of office protect the head of State's independence in fine detail, while the Vice-President's office is structurally anchored to, and largely draws its practical entitlements from, the Rajya Sabha chairmanship it automatically carries.
Nomination Requirements: A Related Safeguard
Separately from the conditions of holding office, the process of contesting the Vice-Presidential election itself carries safeguards against frivolous candidature. A nomination for the office of Vice-President must be subscribed by at least 20 electors as proposers and 20 electors as seconders, and every candidate must make a security deposit of ₹15,000 with the Reserve Bank of India, which is forfeited if the candidate fails to secure one-sixth of the votes polled. These thresholds were raised in 1997 (from five proposers/seconders and a ₹2,500 deposit) specifically to discourage non-serious candidates.
UPSC Relevance
Prelims
- Article 64 lays down two conditions of the Vice-President's office: ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and no other office of profit.
- While acting as President under Article 65, the Vice-President does not perform Rajya Sabha Chairman duties and forgoes the Chairman's salary under Article 97.
- Being President, Vice-President, Governor, or a Minister is not treated as an "office of profit" for this purpose.
Mains
- Compare the conditions of office prescribed for the President (Article 59) and the Vice-President (Article 64), and discuss why the Constitution treats the two offices differently in this respect.
- Examine the constitutional and practical implications of fusing the Vice-Presidency with the Rajya Sabha chairmanship.
FAQ
Q1. What are the two conditions of the Vice-President's office under Article 64? The Vice-President is ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, and must not hold any other office of profit.
Q2. Does the Vice-President draw a separate salary as Vice-President? Article 64 does not fix a separate VP salary; the Vice-President draws the salary attached to the Rajya Sabha chairmanship under Article 97, except while acting as President.
Q3. What happens to the Vice-President's Rajya Sabha duties while he is acting as President? He does not perform the duties of Chairman of the Rajya Sabha during that period, and is not paid the Chairman's salary or allowance.
Q4. Does holding the office of Governor or Minister count as a disqualifying "office of profit" for a Vice-President? No. The Constitution's explanation excludes the offices of President, Vice-President, Governor, and Union/State Minister from being treated as a disqualifying office of profit.
Quick Revision
- Article 64: two conditions — ex officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha; no other office of profit.
- No separate VP salary is fixed by Article 64; it is drawn via the Rajya Sabha Chairman's salary under Article 97.
- While acting as President (Article 65), the VP neither performs Chairman duties nor draws the Chairman's salary.
- President/VP/Governor/Minister posts are excluded from the "office of profit" bar.
- VP nomination needs 20 proposers, 20 seconders, and a ₹15,000 security deposit (raised in 1997).
Sources
- The Constitution of India, Articles 59, 64, 65, 66, 97 — https://legislative.gov.in/constitution-of-india/
Further Reference
For deeper reading on this topic and the wider polity syllabus, these standard works are recommended:
- M. Laxmikanth, Indian Polity (McGraw Hill) — the standard UPSC handbook.
- D.D. Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of India (LexisNexis) — authoritative constitutional-law treatment.
- The Constitution of India — Bare Act — the official text.
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Constitutional provisions
Vice-President is ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and shall not hold any other office of profit.
President's more detailed conditions of office — no legislature membership, no other office of profit, fixed emoluments.
Vice-President acts as President during a vacancy or the President's incapacity.
Salaries and allowances of the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.