• The Vice President of India, the second-highest Constitutional office in the country, is perhaps the only post that does not enjoy the benefits of a regular salary.

• The Vice President draws his salary for his role as the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha — the Upper House of Parliament.

• NDA candidate C.P. Radhakrishnan and opposition nominee P. Sudershan Reddy are in the fray for the September 9 vice presidential elections necessitated due to the resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar on July 21.

Salary and allowances of the Vice President

• The salary and allowances of the Vice President are determined under the Salaries and Allowances of Officers of Parliament Act, 1953.

• There is no provision for a specific salary for the Vice President.

• The Vice President is entitled to draw the salary of the President of India when he assumes the responsibility in a caretaker role. In such a situation, the Vice President ceases to be the chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

• The Rajya Sabha chairman is entitled to a salary of Rs 4 lakh per month.

• The Vice President enjoys several perks and allowances such as free accommodation, medical care, train and air travel, a landline connection, mobile phone service, personal security and staff.

• A former Vice President is entitled to a pension of nearly Rs 2 lakh per month, a Type-8 bungalow, one personal secretary, one additional personal secretary, one personal assistant, one physician, one nursing officer and four personal attendants.

• In the case of a former Vice President’s death, his or her spouse is entitled to a smaller Type-7 house for her lifetime. 

Vice President’s constitutional position

• The Vice President of India is the second highest constitutional office in the country. 

• He serves for a five-year term, but can continue to be in office, irrespective of the expiry of the term, until the successor assumes office.

• The Constitution is silent on who performs the duties of the Vice President, when a vacancy occurs in the office of the Vice President of India, before the expiry of his term, or when the Vice President acts as the President of India. 

• The only provision in the Constitution is with regard to the Vice President’s function as the Chairperson of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), which is performed, during the period of such vacancy, by the Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, or any other member of the Rajya Sabha authorised by the President of India.

• The Vice President may resign his office by submitting his resignation to the President of India. 

• The resignation becomes effective from the day it is accepted.

Powers and Functions

The functions of Vice-President are two-fold:

• He acts as the ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha. In this capacity, his powers and functions are similar to those of the Speaker of Lok Sabha. In this respect, he resembles the American Vice-President who also acts as the Chairman of the Senate – the Upper House of the American legislature.

• He acts as President when a vacancy occurs in the office of the President due to his resignation, removal, death or otherwise. He can act as President only for a maximum period of six months within which a new President has to be elected. 

• Further, when the sitting President is unable to discharge his functions due to absence, illness or any other cause, the Vice President discharges his functions until the President resumes his office. 

• While acting as President or discharging the functions of President, the Vice President does not perform the duties of the office of the chairman of Rajya Sabha. During this period, those duties are performed by the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha.

• The Vice President can be removed from office by a resolution of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), passed by a majority of its members at that time and agreed to by the House of the People (Lok Sabha). A resolution for this purpose may be moved only after a notice of at least a minimum of 14 days has been given of such an intention.

To be eligible for election as Vice President, a person: 

i) Should be a citizen of India.

ii) Should have completed 35 years of age.

iii) Should be qualified for election as a member of the Rajya Sabha.

iv) Should not hold any office of profit under the Union government or any state government or any local authority or any other public authority.

• A nomination paper of a candidate has to be subscribed by at least 20 electors as proposers and by at least other 20 electors as seconders. An elector can subscribe to only one nomination paper of a candidate as either a proposer or a seconder.

• A candidate can file a maximum of four nomination papers. The security deposit for the election is Rs 15,000.

• Election to the office of Vice President of India is governed by the provisions contained in Articles 64 to 68 of the Constitution of India and the Presidential and Vice Presidential Elections Act, 1952 and the Rules made thereunder.

• Under Article 324 of the Constitution of India, the authority to conduct elections to the Office of Vice President is vested in the Election Commission of India.