What is a whip?

The term whip is derived from the old British practice of “whipping in” lawmakers to follow the party line.

A whip in parliamentary parlance is a written order that party members be present for an important vote, or that they vote only in a particular way.

What is the position in India with respect to whip?

In India all parties can issue a whip to their members.

Parties appoint a senior member from among their House contingents to issue whips — this member is called a Chief Whip, and he/she is assisted by additional Whips.

Is the office of Whip mentioned in the Constitution of India?

The ‘office of whip’ is not mentioned or defined in the Constitution of India.

The ‘office of whip’ is a Parliamentary convention.

In parliamentary parlance, a whip may refer to both:

(a) A written order to members of a party in the House to abide by a certain direction

(b) To a designated official of the party who is authorised to issue such a direction.

What are the various kinds of whips?

The importance of a whip can be inferred from the number of times an order is underlined.

A one-line whip, underlined once, is usually issued to inform party members of a vote, and allows them to abstain in case they decide not to follow the party line.

A two-line whip directs them to be present during the vote.

A three-line whip is the strongest, employed on important occasions such as the second reading of a Bill or a no-confidence motion, and places an obligation on members to toe the party line.

What is the penalty for defying a whip?

The penalty for defying a whip varies from country to country.

In the UK, MPs can lose membership of the party, but can keep their House seats as Independents; in India, rebelling against a three-line whip can put a lawmaker’s membership of the House at risk.

The anti-defection law allows the Speaker/ Chairperson to disqualify such a member; the only exception is when more than a third of legislators vote against a directive, effectively splitting the party.