Federal set-up in india
A federal setup involves a dual government
Where we have a union government at the centre and state government at each state level, both functioning through the three wings – legislature, executive & judiciary
Federal features of the indian constitution
Dual government and the distribution of powers
Supremacy of the constitution
• The central and state government derive their authority from the constitution
Supreme court is the final interpreter and guardian of the constitution
The union parliament or
the central legislature
Parliament is the supreme legislative organ of the government.
It is a representative body whose permission is required in the process of making or changing laws.
It controls the union council of ministers and the national budget.
The Indian parliament consists of three constituents – lok sabha, rajya sabha and the president
Parliament - IT IS A FRENCH WORD THAT
MEANS SPEAKING.DURING THE
MEDIEVAL PERIOD THE Council of barons
where the king of England used to hold
meetings to consult important issues,
adopted the name of the parliament.
The lok sabha is the lower house or the house of
the people & the rajya sabha is the upper house
or the council of states.
LOK SABHA RAJYA SABHA
QUALIFICATION • should be a citizen of India
• should be 25 years age
•Should not be a proclaimed offender
•Should have his name in the electoral rolls in
any part of the country
•Should not hold any office of profit under
the State or Central Government
•Should not be an insolvent – he should not
be in debt
• should be 30 years of Age
•Rest as required for a Lok Sabha
member
COMPOSITION Seats allotted to the states and union
territories on the basis of the population
Maximum seats as provided by the
constitution is 552 –
•530 represent the states
•20 union territories
•2 from Anglo-Indian community nominated
by the President
Maximum strength of the Rajya
Sabha can be 250 members
•238 elected
•12 nominated by the President
LOK SABHA RAJYA SABHA
TERM • Five Years.
• It can be dissolved before the expiry of its
term and the term can even be extended.
• Six years.
• One-third of the members retire
every two years. It cannot be
dissolved
ELECTION Directly elected by Universal Adult Suffrage
from single member constituencies.
Indirectly elected by the elected
members of the State Legislative
Assemblies to represent the
respective States, in accordance with
the system of proportional
representation by means of a single
transferable vote for a period of six
years.
PRESIDING OFFICER Speaker and Deputy Speaker
– Elected by the members
• Vice President is the ex-officio
Chairman
• Rajya Sabha elects its Deputy
Chairman from amongst its members
LOK SABHA RAJYA SABHA
ADVANTAGES OR POWERS AND
FUNCTIONS EXCLUSIVE FOR EACH HOUSE •Money bills can originate only in Lok
Sabha
•Lok Sabha actually controls the
Executive. A vote of no-confidence
passed in Lok Sabha makes it obligatory
for the Government to resign
•Lok Sabha has an upper hand because of
the greater numeral strength of its
members
• Rajya Sabha alone can declare a
subject on the State List to be a
subject of national interest
• It is a permanent house and
performs functions of Lok Sabha as
well when the latter is dissolved
• people of repute in various spheres
of life – Science, Art, Literature etc
are nominated by the President only
in India
•Can decide by 2/3rd majority to set
up a new All India Service.
Parliamentary procedures
and motions
Sessions Quorum Question hour adjournment
motiion
No-confidence
motion
Parliamentary sessions
• Budget session: February to May.
• Monsoon session: July to September.
• Winter session: November to December.
Quorum
•THE NUMBER OF MEMBERS REQUIRED TO BE PRESENT FOR THE LOK SABHA TO MEET. It is decided as one-tenth of the total members including the speaker. Thus the present quorum is 55.
Question hour (interpellation)
The first hour of a sitting in both the houses is allotted for asking and answering questions
Purpose – obtain info on a matter of public importance
Questions must not exceed 150 words
Member has to give 10 clear days notice of a question
The speaker of the lok sabha
• Election – ELECTED SOON AFTER THE NEWLY ELECTED Lok Sabha meets for the
first time
– The indian constitution provides that when the house is dissloved the speaker shall not vacate his office. He remains in office till the new speaker is elected.
– Speaker is elected by lok sabha from amongst its members.
– Speaker is elected for five years.
– He/she can seek for re-election for any number of times, id he is re-elected as the member of the loksabha
The speaker of the lok sabha
• Removal
– Can resign on health grounds or other reasons by submitting a
letter of resignation
– Can be removed by the lok sabha if a majority of the members
pass a resolution to this effect. 14 days notice is provided.
– Deputy speaker shall preside over the meetings of the house.
Powers and functions/duties of the speaker • SHE PRESIDES OVER THE MEETINGS OF THE LOK SABHA
• RESOLUTIONS OR BILLS CAN BE MOVED ONLY WITH HER PERMISSION
• SHE ALLOWS TIME TO THE MEMBERS TO SPEAK IN THE HOUSE
• SHE CAN ADJOURN THE MEETINGS OF THE LOK SABHA
• CONTROLS THE VISITORS OF THE HOUSE
• CALLS FOR VOTE ON THE BILLS AS WELL AS OTHER MOTIONS
• PRESIDES OVER THE JOINT SITTING OF THE LOK SABHA AND RAJYA SABHA
• DECIDES WHETHER A PARTICULAR BILL IS MONEY BILL OR NOT
• HAS A CASTING VOTE IN CASE OF A TIE.
• CAN SUSPEND A MEMBER FROM THE HOUSE FOR MISCONDUCT
• Appoints various parliamentary committees and guides them in their work
• Safeguards the privileges of the members of the house.
• Can adjourn the house if it lacks quorum
• Has final say to decide whether a question, put by a member during the question hour is to be allowed or not
• Admits various motions – motion or adjournment, no-confidence etc if he finds them in order under the rules
Powers and functions of the parliament
• Legislative powers
• Executive powers – control over the executive
• Judicial powers
• Financial powers – control over the finance of the country
• Electoral functions
Legislative powers
• Law making body at the central level. Frames new laws and
amends them – union list and residuary subjects.
• Concurrent list – both parliament and state
• Enact laws in state list subjects – rajya SABHA passes a
esolutio , states e uest, atio al e e ge cy, p eside t’s ule
• Amend the constitution. States cannot initiate an amendment.
Executive powers
• Question hour
• Vote of no-confidence
• Other motions of census – adjournement motion, motions of
censure against a minister
• Monetary controls – cut in the annual budget (cut motion).
Appoints public accounts committee to examine the
expenditure, comptroller and auditor general of india –
financial adviser.
Judicial powers
• Impeach the president
• Removal of judges (supreme court and high court), chief
election commissioner, cag
• Condemn any person found guilty of defamation and contempt
of either house of the parliament.
Financial powers
• Annual budget – statement of sources of income and items of
expenditure for the coming year – parliament empowered to
vote a cut in the budget or reject it a s a whole
• Consolidated fund of india – no vote but can debate the
propriety of this item
• Supplementary demands – by finance minister
• Salary and allowances of the members
Electoral FUNCTIONS
• Election of president
• Vice- president of india is elected by both houses
• Lok sabha Elects the speaker and deputy speaker, rajya sabha
elects its deputy chairman (only) own members
EXCLUSIVE POWERS OF LOK SABHA AND RAJYA
SABHA
• LOK SABHA – FINANCIAL MATTERS
• Money bill
• Decision on a bill – ordinary or money bill – decided by lok sabha speaker
• Recommendations of rajya sabha
• Vote for special grants
– Responsibility of council of ministers
• Collective responsibility of ministers
• No-confidence motion
• Adjournment motion
• Censure motion
• RAJYA SABHA
– Making laws on matters in the state list
– Creation of one or more all India services
Equal powers – lok sabha and rajya sabha
• Election and impeachment of president
• Removal of judges
• Proclamation of emergency
• Ordinances
• Constitutional amendments
Rajya Sabha is the
permanent house
The Lok sabha is the lower house or the house of
the people & the Rajya sabha is the upper house
or the council of states.
By direct election on the basis of
universal adult suffrage that is by all
those who are 18 years or above and
have a vote ’s id/ HAVE THEIR NAMES ENROLLED ON THE VOTERS’ LIST .
On what basis is the distribution of seats per
state done in the elective membership of the lok
sabha?
5 years, but it can be dissolved by the president
before it if a no-confidence motion is passed
against the government.
Sessions. There are totally 3 sessions of
the lok sabha – the budget session [Feb
to May], the monsoon session [ Jul to
Sep] and the winter session [ NOV TO
DEC]. EACH SESSION HAS A NUMBER OF
SITTINGS
OFFICE EXPENSE ALLLOWANCES, TRAVELLING
ALLOWANCES, ACCOMODATION, TELEPHONE
FACILITIES AND MEDICAL FACILITIES BESIDES
THEIR SALARY.
THE NUMBER OF MEMBERS REQUIRED
TO BE PRESENT FOR THE LOK SABHA TO
MEET. It is decided as one-tenth of the
total members including the speaker.
Thus the present quorum is 55.
Questions requiring an oral answer in the house.
There can be totally 20 starred questions listed
for one day.
For starred & unstarred questions the
period of notice is from 10 to 21 days.
Short notice questions can be asked
with a notice period of less than 10 days.
The time that immediately follows the
question hour. It starts around 12 noon.
Matters can be raised during this hour
after prior permission of the speaker,
with a given notice before 10 am on that
day.