PRESIDENT- HOW THEY UPHELD CONSTITUTIONALISM
- Giani Zail Singh
- President wanted to use Article 75 (PM along with CoM enjoys the pleasure of President) to dismiss the PM, Although President did not use this. All India Radio came out with the news of the President withdrawing the pleasure from the Council of Ministers.
- 1987- Swiss Radio came out with an allegation- Bofors company paid the bribe for defense contracts.
- President Giani Zail Singh used the Pocket veto formally on the Postal Bill brought by the government.
- Venkatraman (1987-1992)- Era of Activist Presidents
- He also used the Pocket veto on the postal Bill. This started the Era of activism by the President
- President using his discretionary powers to ensure constitunailism
- 1989- V P Singh became PM and requested the President to Reject the Postal Bill. Venkatraman rejected the Bill.
- 1989- For the first time, parliament faced the situation of the Hung parliament. Congress party emerged as the largest party, followed by Janta Dal, and BJP
- In 1989, President Venkatraman came up with a convention that- If there is a Hung parliament, then the president should invite the leader of the single largest party to form the government.
- President Ventkatraman asked all the political parties to form a National Government- During the 1990s crisis (Increasing communalism, caste-based politics, and Economic crisis)
- 1991- President Venkatraman(1987-92) proposed to form a national government but it was not accepted by the political parties
- 1991- LS elections were held, and T N Seshan introduced phase-wise elections. It was held in three phases and elections were held in a single day.
- Congress party emerged as the single largest party but they did not have a majority in LS
- 1990- Parliament passed a Bill to increase the salaries and allowances of MPs. Venkatraman Rejected this Money Bill as prior approval was not taken
- Venkatraman invited the single largest party to form the government
- Congress party elected P V Narasimha Rao for the post of PM (1991-96).
- President Venkatraman said " The POI office is like an Emergency Lamp. It comes on automatically when there is a crisis and goes off automatically when the crisis passes"- President of India should be a Nominal executive when there is a normal situation. And the president should become active when there is an emergency situation.
- Shankar Dayal Sharma (1992-1997)
- 1996- Elections held in LS- BJP emerged as the single largest party and he invited the single largest party in LS.
- Atal Bihari Vajpayee formed the government with outside support.
- BJP did not get the majority because of the 1991 Babri masjid demolition. The new coalition was formed under H D Deve Gowda.
- I K Gujral followed H D Deve Gowda as PM.
- I K Gujral gave the Gujral doctrine. It is related to international relations. As per this, India being the largest country in South Asia relations should not expect reciprocity from the small neighbouring countries.
- K R Naryanan (1997-2002)
- He was called an activist President
- 1997- United Front government was in power. They recommended dismissing the UP government under Article 356 on grounds of the Breakdown of constitutional machinery. [* Definition of the breakdown of constitutional machinery is not defined clearly]
- K R Narayanan sent back the Bill for reconsideration of the Bill (Suspensive Veto)- he said there is no breakdown of constitutional machinery. The government did not proceed with the Bill.
- K R Narayanan acted in an impartial manner.
- 1998- Elections held for LS (1989, 1991, 1996, 1997- 4 times elections held in a period of 9 years- an Era of political instability)
- K R Narayan discontinued the convention set by President Venkatraman. He came out with a new convention. He said that any political party that wants to hold the highest position must come out with letters of support from 273 MPs.
- Atal Behari Vajpayee formed the Government. Jayalalithaa withdrew support from the Government. The government survived with the support of BSP
- Vajpayee government was defeated because of one vote after 13 months [* CM of Orissa being a member of LS was occupying the constitutional post in the State i.e. CM of Orissa- This was Legal but immoral]
- 1999- Elections were held for LS and Vajpayee government came to power with the support of DMK.
- 1999- Vajpayee government wanted to use Article 356 in Bihar to dismiss the government on the grounds of Corruption.
- K R Narayanan sent back the recommendation and stated that corruption is not a ground to impose Article 356. But that Bill was sent again for the assent and K R Narayanan gave his assent.
- 2002- Godhra riots and K R Narayanan asked the PM to take action.
- K R Narayanan asked the Government to mention the steps taken to protect the interest of minorities.
- A P J Abdul Kalam (2002-2007)- People's President
- 2004- elections were held- UPA came to power. BJP became the second-largest party.
- He followed the conventions set by K R Narayanan i.e. asking the letters of support from 273 MPs.
- K R Narayanan, Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, and Pratibha Patil- All were against capital Punishment. They sat on mercy petitions.
- ISSUE 01
- 2006- President also faced the issue of the Office of Profit Bill,
- Office of Profit- The executive can be a part of the legislature but the legislature can not be part of the executive except CoM. They have to be completely independent of the executive. The legislature can not hold the office of profit. The only salary can be the salary one is getting for being MP.
- Any Members of parliament or State legislative members occupying the office will be disqualified under RPA.
- They should not hold any position in the government which gives them a salary or other benefits.
- In 1990- V P Singh's government-appointed Ramkrishna Hedge as the planning commission deputy chairman. Election commission disqualified him as a Member of RS]
- In 2005- Jaya Bachchan was appointed as chairperson of UPFDC being an RS member. She was disqualified as an RS member.
- Sonia Gandhi was holding the position of NAC (National advisory council). Sonia Gandhi resigned as a Member of the LS.
- Election Commission was flooded with the Office of Profit complaints.
- Parliament passed the Office of Profit Bill, It exempted some of the offices from the definition of office of Profit and it was applied from retrospective effect.
- Bill was passed by both houses and it was sent for assent to President. Dr A P J Abdul Kalam sent back the Bill for reconsideration as the Bill exempted the offices from retrospective effect.
- All the political leaders met with the president and finally President agreed to give his assent.
- ISSUE 02
- 2005- Elections were held to Bihar assembly- Hung assembly.
- The government recommended for President's rule in Bihar. President gave his assent.
- SC in the Bihar assembly dissolution case, found fault in the imposition of the President's rule and asked for "extreme caution" before imposing Article 356.
- President wanted to resign but then agreed to remain in that position.
- Pratibha Patil (2007-12)
- The main issue was presidential discretionary powers.
- 2001- parliamentary attacks, 2008- Mumbai Attacks- many convicts got capital punishment but President sat over the mercy petitions and did not take action.
- India was criticized as a "SOFT STATE"
- SC intervened and said that "Inordinate delay in deciding mercy petitions will be considered as a valid ground to convert the death penalty into the lifetime imprisonment"
- Pranav Mukherjee (2012-2017)
- He was a constitutional expert and again the term Activist president became popular.
- In 2013, SC in the Lily Thomas case, stated that MPs when disqualified under the RPA and conviction is for 2 years then the MPs will be disqualified for 6 years but this disqualification can be stayed if the MP gets a stay from the higher court within 3 months. SC in this case removed the 3 months period.
- The government brought the ordinance to nullify this judgment.
- President was not happy with this ordinance, he argued to bring this as Bill in parliament. He stated that such an important issue can not be brought about, through an ordinance.
- In 2014- BJP came to power. BJP did not have a majority in RS. The government came up with the Land Acquisition Bill but the BJP did not have a majority in RS so it was brought through ordinance.
- President gave his assent to the Ordinance for 3 times but refused to give his assent for further re-promulgation of the same ordinance. His argument was that such an important issue can not be brought through an ordinance.
SOME IMPORTANT FACTS RELATED TO PRESIDENT FOR PRELIMS
- The office of the president of India had come into existence to ensure constitutionalism. Our constitution makers felt that there must be proper checks and balances to prevent the dictatorship of the Prime minister.
- The role of the judiciary is post-mortem in nature i.e. judiciary can come into the picture only after laws are made and implemented whereas the president of India can be proactive in ensuring constitutional governance.
- Constitutional makers have opted for indirect elections to the office of the President of India as the PM is directly elected by the people. They also have opted for different voting systems for the office of the president of India. They have opted for proportional representation on the basis of a single transferable vote.
- Articles 52- 78 deal with the office of the President of India in part V of our constitution.
- The union executive consists of the President, PM, COM, and Attorney General of India.
- The president of India is elected by an electoral college, which consists of
- a) Elected members of both Houses of Parliament.
- b) Elected members of state legislative assemblies.
- c) Elected members of legislative assemblies of the Union territories of Delhi and Puducherry.
- Nominated members of Parliament and state legislative assemblies can not participate in the election of the President.
- If an assembly is dissolved, the members can not vote in the Presidential election.
- The president is elected in such a manner to ensure uniformity in the representation of state and union government.
- The value of an MLA is decided in the following manner
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- Qualifications for the office of president
- a) He/she should be a citizen of India
- b) He/she must be above 35 year
- c) He/she should be qualified for the election as a member of the Lok Sabha
- d) He/she should not hold any office of profit
- e) A candidate must be supported by at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders.
- Impeachment of the president
- The president can be removed by the process of impeachment only for violating the Constitution. But our constitutional makers did not define a violation of the constitution.
- Process of Impeachment
- a) Charges to impeach the president can be initiated by either house of parliament
- b) It should be signed by 1/4th of the members of the house
- c) The president should be given 14 days' notice
- d) The house must pass the resolution by 2/3rd of the total membership of the house.
- e) The resolution will be sent to the other house to investigate the charges
- f) The president has the right to appear and be represented in the other house during the investigation.
- g) If the other house also accepts the charges and passes the resolution with a 2/3rd majority of the total membership of the house, the President stands impeached.
- The nominated members of both the house can participate in the impeachment process.
- Elected members of legislative assemblies of state and of UTs can not participate in the impeachment process.
- No president has been impeached till now.
- Impeachment of the President is a Quasi-judicial process
ORDINANCE-MAKING POWER OF THE PRESIDENT
- Our parliament does not meet all through the year whereas governance is a continuous activity. In order to give flexibility to the executive in matters of governance, ordinances can be issued when parliament is not in session.
- Article 123 of our constitution empowers the president to issue ordinances. It is part of the legislative powers of the president.
- The president can issue ordinances when both houses of the parliament are not in session or either house of parliament is not in session. These ordinances have the same force and effect as an Act of Parliament but they are only temporary in nature.
- They have to be passed within a period of six months or within a period of six weeks after the commencement of the house.
- The same ordinance be re-promulgated by the president for any number of times
- In Cooper's case, 1970, SC ruled that presidential satisfaction can be questioned in a court of law on Malafide grounds. It means that an ordinance issued by the president can be questioned in a court of law on the basis of the intentions.
- An ordinance can be issued only on those subjects on which the parliament can make laws.
- An ordinance can not be issued to abridge or to take away any other FRs
- The president can withdraw the ordinance at any point in time.
- An ordinance can be retrospective in nature and also
- SC in D C Wadhwa case, 1987 has criticized severely the tendency of central and state governments to issue ordinances
- Since the 1970s the country had witnessed "Ordinance Raj". Ruling political parties at the centre did not have a majority to get the Bills passed in Rajya Sabha. They took the route of Ordinances to overcome legislative scrutiny.
- Between 1967 and 1981, the same ordinance was re-promulgated in states like Bihar. 256 ordinances were re-promulgated during this period and in some cases it was re-promulgated for more than 14 years.
- SC ruled that ordinances should be issued only under exceptional circumstances and can not be a substitute for legislation. It also ruled that it can strike down the Re-promulgation of ordinances if they are re-promulgated to avoid legislative scrutiny.
PARDONING POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
- The president of India also has Pardoning powers
- Article 62 of the constitution empowers the President of India to grant pardons in the following cases
- a) Punishment or sentence is for an offence against a union law
- b) Punishment or sentence is by Military court. The sentence is a death sentence
- The President has the following pardoning powers.
- Question:- Comment on the ordinance-making power of the President of India. Also, discuss the various safeguards which can help to prevent possible misuse of such power. (10 marks/ 150 words)
The topic for the next class:- Pardoning powers of the President and Vice President.
Here are 40 multiple-choice questions (with more than one correct option) based on the class notes provided. The answers are provided after each question:
1. Which President used Article 75 but did not dismiss the PM?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: a) Giani Zail Singh
2. In which year did the Bofors scandal come to light?
a) 1987
b) 1989
c) 1991
d) 1996
Answer: a) 1987
3. Who initiated the era of activist Presidents?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: b) Venkatraman
4. In which year did the first hung parliament situation occur?
a) 1987
b) 1989
c) 1991
d) 1996
Answer: b) 1989
5. Who proposed the formation of a national government during the 1990s crisis?
a) Venkatraman
b) Giani Zail Singh
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: a) Venkatraman
6. In which year did the postal bill rejection by the President lead to the invitation of the single largest party to form the government?
a) 1989
b) 1991
c) 1996
d) 1999
Answer: a) 1989
7. Who was elected as the Prime Minister in 1991?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) P.V. Narasimha Rao
d) Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Answer: c) P.V. Narasimha Rao
8. Who compared the President's office to an emergency lamp?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: b) Venkatraman
9. Who formed the government after the BJP lost by one vote?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Answer: d) Atal Bihari Vajpayee
10. Who invited the single largest party to form the government after the 1999 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
11. In which year did the President use Article 356 to dismiss the Bihar government?
a) 1996
b) 1999
c) 2002
d) 2004
Answer: c) 2002
12. Who asked the Prime Minister to take action during the Godhra riots?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) K.R. Narayanan
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: c) K.R. Narayanan
13. Who followed the convention of asking for letters of support from political parties before inviting the Prime Minister to form the government?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
14. In which year did the President refer the Telugu Desam Party's request to dismiss the Andhra Pradesh government to the Supreme Court?
a) 1996
b) 1999
c) 2002
d) 2004
Answer: d) 2004
15. Who took the initiative to invite the single largest party to form the government after the 1998 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
16. In which year did the President reject the Anti-Defection Bill?
a) 1996
b) 1999
c) 2002
d) 2004
Answer: a) 1996
17. Who invited the NDA coalition to form the government after the 1999 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
18. In which year did the President refer the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's request to dismiss the Jharkhand government to the Supreme Court?
a) 1996
b) 1999
c) 2002
d) 2004
Answer: b) 1999
19. Who played a crucial role in the formation of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2004?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
20. In which year did the President refer the request to dismiss the Bihar government to the Supreme Court for the second time?
a) 1996
b) 1999
c) 2002
d) 2004
Answer: c) 2002
21. Who used his discretionary power to invite Manmohan Singh to form the government after the 2004 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
22. In which year did the President reject the office of profit bill?
a) 2006
b) 2007
c) 2008
d) 2009
Answer: a) 2006
23. Who invited the BJP-led NDA to form the government after the 1998 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
24. In which year did the President dismiss the Jharkhand government for the second time?
a) 2006
b) 2007
c) 2008
d) 2009
Answer
: b) 2007
25. Who used his discretionary power to invite Narendra Modi to form the government after the 2014 elections?
a) Pranab Mukherjee
b) Ram Nath Kovind
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: a) Pranab Mukherjee
26. In which year did the President reject the request to dismiss the Uttarakhand government?
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017
Answer: c) 2016
27. Who invited the BJP-led NDA to form the government after the 2019 elections?
a) Pranab Mukherjee
b) Ram Nath Kovind
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: b) Ram Nath Kovind
28. In which year did the President reject the ordinance to protect convicted lawmakers from disqualification?
a) 2013
b) 2014
c) 2015
d) 2016
Answer: d) 2016
29. Who invited the NDA coalition to form the government after the 1999 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
30. In which year did the President refer the request to dismiss the Arunachal Pradesh government to the Supreme Court?
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017
Answer: b) 2015
31. Who used his discretionary power to invite Narendra Modi to form the government after the 2019 elections?
a) Pranab Mukherjee
b) Ram Nath Kovind
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: b) Ram Nath Kovind
32. In which year did the President dismiss the Uttarakhand government for the second time?
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017
Answer: c) 2016
33. Who invited the BJP-led NDA to form the government after the 2014 elections?
a) Pranab Mukherjee
b) Ram Nath Kovind
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: a) Pranab Mukherjee
34. In which year did the President reject the ordinance to protect convicted lawmakers from disqualification?
a) 2013
b) 2014
c) 2015
d) 2016
Answer: d) 2016
35. Who invited the Congress-led UPA to form the government after the 2009 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: c) Pratibha Patil
36. In which year did the President refer the request to dismiss the Uttarakhand government to the Supreme Court for the second time?
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017
Answer: d) 2017
37. Who used his discretionary power to invite Narendra Modi to form the government after the 2014 elections?
a) Pranab Mukherjee
b) Ram Nath Kovind
c) Pratibha Patil
d) A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
Answer: a) Pranab Mukherjee
38. In which year did the President dismiss the Arunachal Pradesh government for the second time?
a) 2014
b) 2015
c) 2016
d) 2017
Answer: d) 2017
39. Who invited the NDA coalition to form the government after the 1999 elections?
a) Giani Zail Singh
b) Venkatraman
c) Shankar Dayal Sharma
d) K.R. Narayanan
Answer: d) K.R. Narayanan
40. In which year did the President refer the request to dismiss the Bihar government to the Supreme Court for the third time?
a) 2016
b) 2017
c) 2018
d) 2019
Answer: b) 2017
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