Vacancy in the Vice-President's Office (Article 68)

VP vacancy office refers to the constitutional mechanism under Article 68 that fixes the timing of an election to fill a vacancy in the office of Vice-President of India and the tenure of the person elected to that vacancy. It sits alongside Article 62, which does the same job for the President, but the two provisions are not identical, and that difference is a favourite UPSC trap.

Article 68: Text and Meaning

Article 68 deals with two separate situations. Clause (1) covers a vacancy that is foreseeable — the normal expiry of a Vice-President's five-year term under Article 67. Here, the Constitution requires that the election to choose the next Vice-President be completed before the sitting Vice-President's term actually runs out, so that the office does not lie vacant even momentarily in the ordinary course.

Clause (2) covers an unforeseeable vacancy — one arising from the Vice-President's death, resignation, removal, "or otherwise." In this situation, the Constitution only says the election shall be held "as soon as possible" after the vacancy occurs. The person so elected, once he enters office, is entitled to the full five-year term afresh, counted from the date he takes charge, subject to the qualifying conditions in Article 67.

How a Vacancy Can Arise

A vacancy in the Vice-President's office can occur in more than one way:

Mode of vacancy	Trigger
Expiry of term	Completion of the fixed five-year term under Article 67
Resignation	Vice-President resigns in writing addressed to the President
Removal	Rajya Sabha resolution, agreed to by Lok Sabha, as provided in Article 67
Death	Office falls vacant immediately
Otherwise	For instance, disqualification, or an election being declared void

Election Timelines: Article 68 vs Article 62

A sharp textual distinction separates Article 68 from its presidential counterpart, Article 62. For the President, Article 62(2) requires the fresh election after a casual vacancy to be held "in no case later than six months" from the date the vacancy arises. Article 68(2), governing the Vice-President, carries no such six-month outer limit — it merely requires the election to be held "as soon as possible." This asymmetry exists because the Vice-President's absence does not paralyse the Union executive the way a prolonged presidential vacancy would; if the President's office itself falls vacant, the Vice-President is available under Article 65 to act as President in the interim.

Term of the Person Elected to Fill the Vacancy

Whoever is elected to fill a vacancy under Article 68 — whether the vacancy was a routine end-of-term vacancy or a casual one caused by death, resignation, or removal — serves a fresh, full five-year term from the date of entering office. The new term is not merely for the unexpired residue of the predecessor's tenure. This mirrors the rule for the President under Article 62, and it means a Vice-President's tenure is always reckoned from his own date of assumption of office, never inherited from his predecessor's cycle.

A Vice-President is also eligible for re-election and may hold the office for any number of terms; Dr S. Radhakrishnan is a recorded instance of a Vice-President who served a second term.

Removal and Continuation in Office

Article 67 supplies the removal mechanism referred to in Article 68: a resolution of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) passed by a majority of all its then members and agreed to by the Lok Sabha by a simple majority, with at least fourteen days' advance notice of the intention to move such a resolution. Notably, unlike the detailed impeachment grounds and procedure prescribed for the President under Article 61, the Constitution does not specify any grounds for removing the Vice-President — the resolution route is open-ended in that respect. Such a resolution can only be introduced in the Rajya Sabha, never in the Lok Sabha.

Even after his term expires, a Vice-President continues in office until his successor enters upon the office, ensuring the post is never technically unoccupied.

Who Holds the Fort During the Vacancy?

While the Vice-President's own office is vacant, the ordinary business the Vice-President conducts as ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha (Article 64) does not stop — the Rajya Sabha elects a Deputy Chairman from among its own members under Article 89, and that Deputy Chairman can preside when the Chairman's post is empty or the Chairman is unable to act. This is distinct from the situation under Article 65, where the Vice-President himself steps in to act as President when the presidential office is vacant.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims

• The exact wording difference between Article 62(2) (President — six-month cap) and Article 68(2) (Vice-President — no such cap) is a recurring objective-question distinction.
• A person elected to fill a vacancy gets a fresh full five-year term, not the remainder of the predecessor's term.
• The Constitution prescribes no specific grounds for removing the Vice-President, unlike the detailed impeachment process for the President.

Mains

• Discuss how Articles 65, 68, and 89 together ensure institutional continuity at the apex of the executive and the Rajya Sabha even when the offices of President or Vice-President fall vacant.
• Examine why the Constitution does not impose a fixed deadline for filling a Vice-Presidential vacancy while it does so for the President.

FAQ

Q1. What does Article 68 of the Constitution deal with? It fixes the timing of the election to fill a vacancy in the office of Vice-President and the term of the person elected to fill that vacancy.

Q2. Is there a deadline to hold the election after a Vice-President dies or resigns? No fixed deadline is prescribed; Article 68(2) only requires the election to be held "as soon as possible."

Q3. Does the newly elected Vice-President complete the predecessor's remaining term or get a fresh term? A fresh full five-year term, counted from the date the new Vice-President enters office.

Q4. Who presides over the Rajya Sabha when the office of Vice-President is vacant? The Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, elected by the House under Article 89, presides in such a situation.

Q5. Can a Vice-President be re-elected after completing a term? Yes, there is no bar on re-election, and a Vice-President may hold office for any number of terms.

Quick Revision

• Article 68(1): election for a term-expiry vacancy must be completed before the term ends.
• Article 68(2): election for a death/resignation/removal vacancy — "as soon as possible," no six-month cap (unlike Article 62 for the President).
• Newly elected Vice-President always gets a full fresh five-year term.
• No constitutional grounds specified for removing the Vice-President; procedure is via Rajya Sabha resolution agreed to by Lok Sabha, 14 days' notice.
• Deputy Chairman (Article 89) presides over Rajya Sabha during the vacancy.

Sources

• The Constitution of India, Articles 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 89 — 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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