Module – 3

The Union Executive,

The Parliament &
The Union Judiciary
 The Union Executive

• 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.
 The President
• 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.
ELECTION OF THE PRESIDENT
• The President is elected not directly by the people but
by members of electoral college consisting of:
1.The elected members of both the Houses of
Parliament.
2. The elected members of the legislative assemblies of
the states.
3. The elected members of the legislative assemblies of
the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry.
• Veto power: A bill passed by the Parliament can become
an act only if it receives the assent of the President.
 Qualifications for Election as President of India
A person to be eligible for election as President should
fulfill the following qualifications:
1. He should be a citizen of India.
2. He should have completed 35 years of age.
3. He should be qualified for election as a member of the
Lok Sabha.
4. He should not hold any office of profit under the Union
government or any state government or any local
authority or any other public authority.
Note:
 First president of India: Dr. Rajendra Prasad. No person
except Dr. Rajendra Prasad has occupied the office for
two terms.
 Currently, we have Ram Nath Kovind as the 14th
president of India.
Term of President’s Office
• The President holds office for a term of five years
• He can resign from his office at any time by addressing the
resignation letter to the Vice President.
• Further, he can also be removed from the office before
completion of his term by the process of impeachment.
Impeachment of President
• The President can be removed from office by a process of
impeachment.
• The impeachment charges can be initiated by either House of
Parliament.
• These charges should be signed by one-fourth members of the
House and a 14 days’ notice should be given to the President.
• After the impeachment resolution is passed by a majority of
two-thirds of the total membership of both Houses, then the
President stands removed from his office from the date on
which the resolution is so passed.
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT
1. Executive powers: He appoints the prime minister and the other
ministers, attorney general of India, the chief election commissioner,
administers the union territories.
2. Legislative powers: He can summon the Parliament and dissolve the Lok
Sabha and can hold Joint sessions of both houses. He nominates 12
members of the Rajya Sabha (Various fields) and nominate two
members to the Lok Sabha from the Anglo-Indian Community
3. Financial powers: He constitutes a finance commission after every five
years and make advances out of the contingency fund
4. Judicial powers: He appoints the Chief Justice and the judges of
Supreme Court and high courts.
5. Diplomatic powers: He represents India in international forums and
affairs and sends and receives diplomats like ambassadors, high
commissioners, and so on.
6. Military powers: He is the supreme commander of the defense forces of
India. In that capacity, he appoints the chiefs of the Army, the Navy and
the Air Force.
7. Emergency powers: (a) National Emergency (Article 352); (b) President’s
Rule (Article 356 & 365); and (c) Financial Emergency (Article 360)
 The Vice-President
• The Vice-President occupies the second highest office in the country.
• The Vice-President, like the president, is elected not directly by the
people but by the method of indirect election. He is elected by the
members of an electoral college consisting of the members of both
Houses of Parliament.
• First Vice President of India : Dr. S. Radhakrishnan. Presently,
Venkaiah Naidu is the Vice President of India.
Qualifications
• To be eligible for election as Vice-President, a person should fulfill the
following qualifications:
1. He should be a citizen of India.
2. He should have completed 35 years of age.
3. He should be qualified for election as a member of the Rajya Sabha.
4. He should not hold any office of profit under the Union government
or any state government or any local authority or any other public
authority.
Term of Office (Vice President)
• The Vice-President holds office for a term of five
years.
• He can resign from his office at any time by
addressing the resignation letter to the President.
• He can also be removed from the office before
completion of his term. A formal impeachment is
not required for his removal.
• He can be removed by a resolution passed at least
14 days’ advance by a majority of all the members
of the Rajya Sabha and agreed to by the Lok Sabha.
 POWERS AND FUNCTIONS - VP
• He acts as the ex-officio Chairman of Rajya
Sabha.
• He acts as President when a vacancy occurs in
the office of the President due to his
resignation, impeachment, death or otherwise.
 The Prime Minister
• Acc to Indian constitution, president is the
head of the State while Prime Minister is the
head of the government.
• The President has to appoint the leader of
the majority party in the Lok Sabha as the
Prime Minister. (Article 75)
• Constitutionally, the Prime Minister may be a
member of any of the two Houses of
parliament.
 POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE PRIME MINISTER
(Art 78)
In Relation to Council of Ministers
1. Head of the Union council of ministers
2. Recommends ministers to be appointed by the president
3. Allocates and reshuffles various portfolios
4. He guides, directs, controls, and coordinates the activities of all the
ministers.
In Relation to the President
1. To communicate to the President all decisions of the council of ministers
relating to the administration.
2. Advises the president with regard to the appointment of important officials
like attorney general of India, Comptroller and Auditor General of India,
chairman and members of the UPSC, election commissioners etc.,
In Relation to Parliament
• Prime Minister is the leader of the Lower House
•Summoning and dissolution of the Lok Sabha,
Other Powers & Functions
• Chairman of the NITI Ayog, National Integration
Council, Interstate Council, National Water
Resources Council and some other bodies.
• Chief spokesman of the Union government,
leader of the party in power, crisis manager-in-
chief during emergencies etc.,
 Central Council of Ministers
• The Prime Minister is appointed by the
President, while the other ministers are
appointed by the President on the advice of the
Prime Minister.
• The council of ministers consists of three
categories of ministers, namely,
1. Cabinet ministers (Important ministries)
2. Ministers of state (Independent charge of
ministries)
3. Deputy ministers
 CONSTITUTIONAL STATUS OF
COUNCIL OF MINISTERS (Role)
• Article 74 & 75 deals with the status of the
council of ministers.
• Article 74 - Council of Ministers to aid and advise
President
• Article 75: Total number of ministers, including
the Prime Minister shall not exceed 15% of the
total strength of the Lok Sabha.
 Attorney General of India
• The Constitution (Article 76) has provided for the
office of the Attorney General for India.
• He is the highest law officer in the country.
• The Attorney General (AG) is appointed by the
president.
• He must be a citizen of India and he must have been
a judge of some high court for five years or an
advocate of some high court for ten years or an
eminent jurist.
• He holds office during the pleasure of the president.
( No fixed term)
 DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS OF AG
• To give advice to the Government of India upon
legal matters.
• To perform duties of a legal character that are
assigned to him by the president.
• To appear on behalf of the Government of
India in all cases in the Supreme Court in which
the Government of India is concerned.
• He has the right to speak and to take part in
the proceedings of both the Houses of
Parliament
 The Parliament
• The Parliament is the legislative organ of
the Union government.
• Articles 79 to 122 in Part V of the
Constitution deal with the organisation,
composition, duration, officers,
procedures, privileges, powers of the
Parliament
ORGANISATION/COMPOSTION OF PARLIAMENT
• Under the Constitution, the Parliament of India
consists of three parts: the President, the
Council of States(‘Rajya Sabha’) and the House
of the People (‘Lok Sabha’)
• The Rajya Sabha is the Upper House (Second
Chamber or House of Elders) and the Lok Sabha
is the Lower House (First Chamber or Popular
House).
• Though the President of India is not a member
of either House of Parliament, he is an integral
part of the Parliament. This is because a bill
passed by both the Houses of Parliament cannot
become law without the President’s assent.
 Rajya Sabha (Upper House)
Composition of Rajya Sabha
• The maximum strength of the Rajya Sabha(Fourth
Schedule of the Constitution) is fixed at 250, out of
which, 238 are to be the representatives of the
states and union territories (elected indirectly) and
12 are nominated by the president.
1. Representation of States: The representatives of
states in the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected
members of state legislative assemblies. The seats
are allotted to the states in the Rajya Sabha on the
basis of population.
2. Representation of Union Territories: The
representatives of each union territory in the
Rajya Sabha are indirectly elected by members
of an electoral college specially constituted for
the purpose.
3. Nominated Members:The president nominates
12 members to the Rajya Sabha from people
who have special knowledge or practical
experience in art, literature, science and social
service.
• The tenure of upper house is 6 years.
• The Rajya Sabha (first constituted in 1952) is a
continuing and permanent body and not subject
to dissolution.
 Lok Sabha (Lower House)
Composition of Lok Sabha
• The maximum strength of the Lok Sabha is
fixed at 552. Out of this, 530 members are to
be the representatives of the states, 20
members are to be the representatives of the
union territories and 2 members are to be
nominated by the president from the
AngloIndian community.
• Its normal term is five years from the date of
its first meeting after the general elections
1. Representation of States: The
representatives of states in the Lok Sabha are
directly elected by the people from the
territorial constituencies in the states.
(Universal Adult Franchise)
2. Representation of Union Territories: The
Constitution has empowered the Parliament
to choose the representatives of the union
territories in the Lok Sabha.
3. Nominated Members: The president can
nominate two members from the Anglo-
Indian community.
 MEMBERSHIP OF PARLIAMENT
(Rajya Sabha & Lok Sabha)
Qualifications
The Constitution lays down the following
qualifications for a person to be chosen a member
of the Parliament (MP)
• He must be a citizen of India.
• He must be not less than 30 years of age in the case
of the Rajya Sabha and not less than 25 years of age
in the case of the Lok Sabha.
• He must be a member of a scheduled caste or
scheduled tribe in any state or union territory, if he
wants to contest a seat reserved for them.
 Disqualifications
Under the Constitution, a person shall be
disqualified for being elected as a member of
Parliament:
 If he is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a court.
 If he is not a citizen of India or has voluntarily acquired the
citizenship of a foreign state
 If he is so disqualified under any law made by Parliament.
 He must not have been found guilty of certain election
offences or corrupt practices in the elections.
 He must not have been convicted for any offence resulting in
imprisonment for two or more years.
 He must not have been dismissed from government service
for corruption or disloyalty to the State etc.,
Note: Facts
• There is a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker for
the Lok Sabha and a Chairman and a Deputy
Chairman for the Rajya Sabha.
• The Speaker and Deputy Speaker is elected by
the Lok Sabha from amongst its members
• The presiding officer of the Rajya Sabha is
known as the Chairman. The vice-president of
India is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya
Sabha
• The Deputy Chairman is elected by the Rajya
Sabha itself from amongst its members
 FUNCTIONS OF PARLIAMENT
1. Legislative Powers and Functions: The primary function of Parliament is
to make laws for the governance of the country
2. Executive Powers and Functions: It also supervises the activities of the
Executive with the help of its committees like committee on
government assurance, committee on subordinate legislation,
committee on petitions, etc.
3. Financial Powers and Functions: The enactment of the budget, Tax
Matters etc.,
4. Constituent Powers and Functions: Amendment of the Constitution
requires consent from parliament
5. Judicial Powers and Functions : Impeach the President, Removal of the
Vice-President etc.,
6. Electoral Powers and Functions: Election of the President and Vice-
president. The Lok Sabha elects its Speaker and Deputy Speaker, while
the Rajya Sabha elects its Deputy Chairman.
7. Other powers and functions: Approves all the three types of
emergencies, It can increase or decrease the area, alter the boundaries
and change the names of states of the Indian Union etc.,
 Union Judiciary
• The Indian Constitution has established an
integrated judicial system with the Supreme
Court at the top and the high courts below it.
• Under a high court (and below the state
level), there is a hierarchy of subordinate
courts, that is, district courts and other lower
courts.
 Supreme Court of India
• The Supreme Court of India was inaugurated
on January 28, 1950.
• Articles 124 to 147 in Part V of the
Constitution deal with the organisation,
independence, jurisdiction, powers,
procedures and so on of the Supreme Court.
COMPOSITION AND APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES
• At present, the Supreme Court consists of thirty-
four judges (one chief justice and thirty three
other judges).
Appointment of Judges
• The judges of the Supreme Court are appointed
by the president. The chief justice is appointed
by the president after consultation with such
judges of the Supreme Court and high courts as
he deems necessary.
• The other judges are appointed by president
after consultation with the chief justice.
Qualifications of Judges
• A person to be appointed as a judge of the
Supreme Court should have the following
qualifications:
1. He should be a citizen of India.
2.(a) He should have been a judge of a High Court
for five years; or (b) He should have been an
advocate of a High Court for ten years; or (c) He
should be a distinguished jurist in the opinion of
the president.
 JURISDICTION AND POWERS OF SUPREME COURT
The jurisdiction and powers of the Supreme Court can
be classified into the following:
1. Original Jurisdiction: The Supreme Court decides
the disputes between different units of the Indian
Federation
2. Writ Jurisdiction: The Supreme Court is
empowered to issue writs including habeas
corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto
and certiorari for the enforcement of the
fundamental rights.
3. Appellate Jurisdiction: The Supreme Court is
primarily a court of appeal and hears appeals
against the judgments of the lower courts.
4. Advisory Jurisdiction: The Constitution (Article
143) authorizes the president to seek the opinion
of the Supreme Court
5. A Court of Record: The judgments, proceedings and
acts of the Supreme Court are recorded for perpetual
memory and testimony
6. Power of Judicial Review: It is the power of the
Supreme Court to examine the constitutionality of
legislative enactments and executive orders of both
the Central and state governments
7. Constitutional Interpretation : The Supreme Court is
the ultimate and final interpreter of the Constitution. It
is the guardian of the Constitution and guarantor of
the fundamental rights of the citizens.
8. Other Powers: It decides the disputes regarding the
election of the president and the vice-president. It
enquires into the conduct and behaviour of the
chairman and members of the Union Public Service
Commission on a reference made by the president. Its
law is binding on all courts in India
 Appeal by Special Leave
• It is a special power of Supreme court.
• The Supreme Court is authorised to grant in its discretion special
leave to appeal from any judgement in any matter passed by any
court or tribunal in the country (except military tribunal and court
martial).
This provision contains the four aspects as under:
 It is a discretionary power and hence, cannot be claimed as a
matter of right.
 It can be granted in any judgement whether final or interlocutory.
 It may be related to any matter–constitutional, civil, criminal,
income-tax, labour, revenue, advocates, etc.
 It can be granted against any court or tribunal and not necessarily
against a high court (of course, except a military court).
 Thus, the scope of this provision is very wide and it vests the
Supreme court with a plenary jurisdiction to ear appeals.