Maintaining the dignity of the House is very important. The country has elected 542 MPs, each one by lakhs of people. And when they come to the House, they have to present the problems and aspirations of those who have elected them. All this has to be done in an atmosphere that is congenial, the debates have to be meaningful and there should be decorum and dignity in the House.

A key concern has been the hours and days that the House does not work. Would you like to stipulate at least a minimum 100 days per year for the Lok Sabha?

I would want to increase days that the Legislature meets, but before finalising anything, I need to consult leaders of all parties.

Several leaders have hoped that the Legislature will be able to ride out pressures put on it by the Executive.

There are three very important functions of the Legislature. The first is of assessing the Executive. The Executive is accountable to the House. This is very important. Second, meaningful debates on national and world issues have to be held in a meaningful way. Third, Parliament’s job is to legislate, make laws. We will have to devote ourselves to spending a lot of time in performing all those functions. We cannot afford to ignore any of these functions.

Your immediate predecessor, Somnath Chatterjee, set a very high bar for the Speaker’s Office, so much so that it had some very dramatic consequences, like his expulsion from his party. Do you feel Speakers should resign from their political parties to ensure total impartiality?

I go by the Constitution. It does not ask Speakers to resign (from the party). The Constitution is of the view that as Speaker, any member of the Lok Sabha will be completely neutral, without resigning from his/her party. All previous Speakers retained their party memberships but you cannot raise a finger on their credentials as far as impartiality goes.

But what did you make of that phase when your predecessor took the steps he did?

He is a man of great stature and conviction. He has tremendous power of conviction.

You have been an officer of the Indian Foreign Service. How have experiences there stood to guide you in your political career?

As a young Foreign Service officer, I was a language trainee in Madrid. It was all about going through the mill, running from here to there, trying to catch your breath… All this comes in handy now—time management, the ability to prioritise work.

You are a woman of many parts, yet, several commentators and leaders, including the PM, made much of the fact that you are from the Dalit community. How do you react to that label?

We live in a caste-ridden society. Everybody here has a caste label, which stays with you till you go to the grave. What do you do about it ? I wish it would change, but it doesn’t. We shouldn’t be identified with the caste we represent, but with the work we do, our integrity and our struggles. But it’s not just me, all Indians, our introduction is not complete till the caste is found out! We must get over this. Our circumstances of birth override all our qualifications and achievements.

So you aren’t exactly a fan or a votary of identity politics, the kind that Mayawati champions, for instance?

I am a votary of nationalist politics, where those who are deprived, marginalised and socially discriminated against should be helped and their concerns should be addressed. We can’t really call our country a great country till atrocities and discriminations are got rid of.

Any enduring memories of your father, Babuji?

Through the journey of life, hardships and struggles, people tend to become hard, and lose the softness you had as a child. But my father retained it till the very end. He was very soft inside and could relate so well with the pain and agony of others. This, I thought, was an exceptional quality, and I would like to have it till the end.