What is a 'voice vote' and why has it created a controversy in the Manipur assembly?

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition government in Manipur on Monday won the vote of confidence moved by Chief Minister N Biren Singh during the special one-day session of the Assembly, PTI reported.

However, proceedings were shrouded in controversy with allegations that the rules of parliamentary procedure were not followed during the vote – raising doubts about whether the government does truly enjoy the support of the state assembly.

Can a no-confidence motion be ignored?

For one, the speaker’s

to allow a government’s trust motion when there was already a no-confidence motion pending, filed by the Congress, ignores parliamentary procedure. On July 28, the Congress had submitted a motion of no confidence against the state government

As per the rules, a no-confidence motion takes precedence over any other business of the house. “A no-confidence motion can not be ignored,” explained PDT Acharya, former Secretary General of the Lok Sabha. “Unlike other motions, a speaker has no say in admitting or not admitting a no-confidence motion. It is admitted by the House itself.”

What is a voice vote?

The second point of controversy involved the fact that the speaker had assessed that the government enjoyed the support of the house using the device of a voice vote rather than a division.

The Congress claims that it opposed the...

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