Sambhav-2023

Answer 1:

Approach

• Start your answer by giving a brief about Parliamentary form of govt in India.
• Discuss the differences between the Parliamentary form of govt. of India and UK.
• Conclude suitably.

Introduction

• The Constitution of India provides for a parliamentary form of government, both at the Centre and in the states. Articles 74 and 75 deal with the parliamentary system at the Centre and Articles 163 and 164 in the states.
• The parliamentary government is also known as cabinet government or responsible government or Westminster model of government and is prevalent in Britain, Japan, Canada, and India among others.

Body

The parliamentary system of government in India is largely based on the British parliamentary system. However, it never became a replica of the British system and differs in the following respects:

• Head of the State: India has a republican system in place of the British monarchical system. In other words, the Head of the State in India (that is, the President) is elected, while the Head of the State in Britain (that is, the King or Queen) enjoys a hereditary position.
• Supremacy of Parliament: The British system is based on the doctrine of the sovereignty of Parliament, while the Parliament is not supreme in India and enjoys limited and restricted powers due to a written Constitution, the federal system, judicial review, and fundamental rights.
• Head of the Govt.: In Britain, the prime minister should be a member of the Lower House (House of Commons) of the Parliament. In India, the prime minister may be a member of any of the two Houses of Parliament.
• Minister: Usually, the members of Parliament alone are appointed as ministers in Britain. In India, a person who is not a member of Parliament can also be appointed as minister, but for a maximum period of six months.
• System of Legal Responsibility: Britain has a system of legal responsibility of the minister while India has no such system. Unlike in Britain, the ministers in India are not required to countersign the official acts of the Head of the State.
• Shadow cabinet: It is a unique institution of the British cabinet system. It is formed by the opposition party to balance the ruling cabinet and to prepare its members for ministerial office. There is no such institution in India.

Conclusion

Although India also adopted the Parliamentary System of Government but the Parliament of India is not at par with the Parliament of the UK due to the sovereignty enjoyed by it.

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Answer 2:

Approach

• Start your answer by giving a brief about the Union Executive.
• Discuss the roles and responsibilities of the President and Vice-President of India.
• Conclude suitably.

Introduction

• Articles 52 to 78 in Part V of the Constitution deal with the Union Executive. The Union executive consists of the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, the council of ministers, and the attorney general of India. Both the President and Vice-President play a significant role in the Polity of India and hold great significance.

Body

Roles and Powers of the President of India

• The President is the head of the Indian State. He is the first citizen of India and acts as the symbol of unity, integrity, and solidarity of the nation.
• Every Executive action by the Govt. of India should be expressed to be taken in his name.
• He can Summons or prorogues Parliament and can dissolve the Lok Sabha.
• No Bill can become an Act until and unless it receives the assent of the President+
• He Promulgates ordinances when both Houses of Parliament are not in session or either House of Parliament is not in session.
• He causes Union Budget to be laid before the Parliament.
• No Money Bill can be introduced without his prior permission.
• He can grant a pardon to a person convicted of a serious offense.
• He can declare all three kinds of emergencies like National Emergency (Article 352), President's Rule (Article 356 & 365), and Financial Emergency (Article 360).

Roles and Powers of the Vice-President of India:

The Vice-President occupies the second highest office in the country. He is accorded a rank next to the President in the official warrant of precedence. This office is modelled on the lines of the American Vice-President.

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, impeachment, 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.

Discretionary Powers of President and Vice-President

The Vice-President has no constitutional as well as constitutional discretion until and unless he acts as the President of India and he enjoys the discretionary powers of the President of India. Although the President has no constitutional discretion but has situational discretion in the following instances:

• Hung Parliament: When no political party or a coalition of parties assumes a majority in the Lok Sabha post general elections, it leads to a hung parliament. If the President is convinced that the leader of the single largest party will not be able to garner the support of the majority in the House, he may exercise his discretion in selecting someone who in his opinion will be able to form a stable government. He invites the most capable leader to form the government.
• Discretion in appointing the Prime Minister: When a Prime Minister in office dies suddenly and there is no successor to replace him, the President has to take charge in the selection and appointment of the next Prime Minister. The discretion of selection and appointing a caretaker Prime Minister entrusts upon the President an enormous task of stabilizing the government in power after the death of a leader.
• Seeking information from the Prime Minister: Article 78 of the Constitution empowers the President to seek information regarding the affairs of the Union Government from the Prime Minister.
• Dissolution of Lok Sabha: When a Council of Ministers loses majority in the Lok Sabha, it is the discretion of the President to decide if the house should be dissolved or not. Although this dissolution is done according to the advice of the Council of Ministers it is binding only if the government is a majority government.

Conclusion

While acting as President or discharging the functions of the 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 the Rajya Sabha.