RBSE Class 12 Political Science Notes Chapter 21 Federal Executive, Presidential Election and Powers, Prime Minister-Position and Functions

Rajasthan Board RBSE Class 12 Political Science Notes Chapter 21 Federal Executive, Presidential Election and Powers, Prime Minister-Position and Functions

President

  • The government has three parts :
    • The legislative,
    • The Executive,
    • The Judiciary,
  • The executive, works to implement policies and laws accepted by the legislature.
  • Differentiation of Parliamentary and Presidential forms of governance is based on different types of executive and mutual relationship of the executive and the legislature.
  • In the Presidential system, the President is the head of state and government and he is the central point of all the powers of governance.

Form of Executive:

  • The Parliamentary system of government has been established in India, in which the President is the formal and constitutional head of the executive.
  • Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, the council of Ministers is the actual executive.
  • The post of President is considered the Post of dignity and prestige. He is considered the first citizen of the country and he holds the highest position in the political hierarchy (protocol).
  • Article 52 of the constitution makes arrangements for the post of President, according to which “there will be a President of India”.
  • According to article 53, “the executive power of the Union shall be vested in the President which shall be exercised by himself or by his subordinate officers.”

Election of President:

  • According to article 54, the President will be elected by an electoral college, which will be made up of members of the two Houses of parliament, elected members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and elected members of legislative assemblies of the states.
  • The Presidential election is indirectiy done. This election occurs secretly by a special method called ‘The single transferable vote system of proportional representation.”
  • In order to win by the transferable vote system, the candidate has to get one more vote than half of the total valid votes cast, it is called ‘the Minimum Quota’.’
  • The President is elected for a term of 5 years and he/she can stand for re-election again.
  • The President can give his resignation at any time by addressing the Vice President.
  • The President can be removed from office by impeachment process for the abuse of powers, misconduct and violation of constitution which is described in Article 61 of the constitution
  • The impeachment process should be passed by the majority of at least two-thirds of the total members of the house.
  • If the President’s office falls vacant due to death, resignation or dismissal, then it is necessary to elect a new President within 6 months. The newly elected President is elected not for the remaining period, but for a full tenure of 5 years.

Presidential Qualifications:

  • According to the Indian constitution, there should be the following qualifications for being a candidate for Presidential post:
    • He should be a citizen of India.
    • His minimum age should be 35 years.
    • He should be eligible to be elected a member of the Lok Sabha.
  • To prevent non-serious persons from contesting elections, arrangement has also been made for the proposers and approvers in the electoral college.
  • Shri Rajendra Prasad was the first President of India who was elected for two consecutive terms.

Presidential Election Processe:

  • The Presidential electoral Board has given special emphasis on two things :
    • The nearest and equal representation of die population should be in the electoral college.
    • There should be equality among the votes given by all the assembly members.
  • A special method has been adopted to determine the number of votes of each member of the electoral college.
  • Election is done by a single transferable proportional representation system by secret ballot

Salary / Privilege / Immunities and Other Facilities:

  • Presently the President’s salary is 1,50,000 ? per month.
  • No person can be prosecuted in any civil and criminal court till the person holds the office of the President. Neither warrant can be issued for arresting him nor can be arrested. .
  • After giving a written notice of 2 months, only civil action can be initiated against the President. 0 Upon the death of the former President, his wife will receive half the pension of the retired President and a government house for lifetime.

The Power and Functions of the President:

  • According to the constitution, the President is the highest office-bearer of the country. He serves as the President of the nation.
  • The powers of the President can be divided into two parts : General and Emergency.
  • President is the constitutional head of the Executive of India. The Union of States is governed in the name of the President. .
  • He appoints the Prime Minister, the other members of the council of Ministers, the attorney general of India, the Ambassadors in foreign countries and the governors in the states.
  • The President appoints Chief Justice and other judges in the supreme court of India and the high courts.
  • The President has the right to appoint the chairman and members of the Union level commissions such as Union Public service commission, election commission, Finance commission, etc.
  • Article 72 of the constitution provides the right to pardon to the President, according to which he can pardon a person convicted with penal punishment including death penalty, forgiveness, delay, suspension or commute.
  • The President can declare three types of emergencies :
    • National Emergency (Article 352),
    • State Emergency (Article 350),
    • Financial Emergency (Article 360)
  • Prime Minister – Position and Functions
  • According to the Article 74 of the constitution, there will be a council of Ministers to assist and advise the President in India, whose head will be The Prime Minister.
  • Prime Minister is appointed by the President. The appointment of other Ministers is also done by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.
  • Pt. Jawahar Lai Nehru was the first Prime Minister of India and Shri Narendra Modi is the current Prime Minister, who is the 15th Prime Minister of India.
  • It is compulsory for the Prime Minister to be a member of either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha. If the Prime Minister is not a member of any house while being appointed then it is necessary for him to take membership of either house within 6 months.
  • In the current government, there is a vast Ministerial council of 78 Ministers, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
  • Prior to accepting the post each Minister including Prime Minister is administered two types of oath before the President.
  • One for the post and other is of secrecy, which is given for discharge of duties honestly.
  • The Prime Minister is the leader of both the council of Ministers and the Lok Sabha. He is the medium of communication between the President and the council of Ministers.
  • It is the function of the Prime Minister to send information of the union government’s administrative and legislative and other proposals to the President.
  • These are three types of minsters in the federal council of Ministers : Cabinet Ministers, Minister of state and vice Minister.
  • The Prime Minister can also appoint a parliamentary secretary for the smooth workings in the Parliament.
  • The Prime Minister co-ordinates work between various ministries and departments through the cabinet secretariat.
  • The Prime Minister keeps certain departments or portfolios with him, that have not been allocated to other Ministers. He is in charge of the departments / ministries generally held by him.
  • The Prime Minister represents India in various delegations, high-level meetings and international organizations.
  • All important decisions related to central cabinet and other policy-making bodies are done under his

Important Dates and Related Events:
RBSE Class 12 Political Science Notes Chapter 21 Federal Executive, Presidential Election and Powers, Prime Minister-Position and Functions 1<

RBSE Class 12 Political Science Notes Chapter 21 Important Terms and Individuals

  • President: Head of the constitution of country and part of parliament.
  • Parliamentary system of governance : The system of governance in which the actual powers of the executive head’s office are used by the cabinet under the leadership of the Prime Minister, is called parliamentary system of governance. In this system, the Head of State of (the nation) and the Head of the government are different. Example : India.
  • Presidential system of governance : The system of governance in which President exercises power of executive in reality is called the Presidential system. Example : United States of America (USA). In this, the President is the head of both the state and the government.
  • Prime Minister : Leader of the majority party / parties in the Lok Sabha. He is appointed by the President. He is1 the real head of the executive.
  • Council of Ministers : Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, a group of cabinet Ministers, the Ministers of state and deputy Ministers is called the council of Ministers.
  • Order of precedence (Protocol) : The formal behaviour meted out to political representatives is called order of precedence (protocol). The President in India holds the first place in the protocol.
  • Single Transferable Vote System : In India, the President is elected by a special law, which is called the single transferable vote system of proportional presentation.
  • Minimum Quota : In order to win by the transferable vote system, the candidate has to get one more vote than half of the total valid votes cast, it is called “the minimum Quota”
  • Civil court: The judicial system where lawsuits related to money, property, revenue, etc. are heard, is called civil court.
  • Criminal Court: The court in which the lawsuits related to quarrels, murders, etc. are heard, is called criminal court.
  • Attorney General: Country’s highest law officer. This post has been arranged under Article 76 of the constitution of India.
  • Ambassador : A representative of the Indian government in foreign country, or representative of any country in India is called Ambassador.
  • President’s Address : The President jointly addresses the two houses of parliament, which is called the President’s address.
  • Suspension Privilege (Veto) : When the President asks an ordinary Bill to be returned to parliament for reconsideration, then parliament passes it and sends it back to the President. Now, the President has to sign it. It is called the suspension privilege (veto) of the President.
  • Pocket Privilege (Pocket veto) : The President has the right not to sign the bill passed by Parliament and not send it to the parliament for reconsideration but keep it pending with itself. In such a situation, the bill will not be passed. This is called Pocket Privilege (Pocket veto) of the President.
  • Ordinance : Ordinance is a different law than the Act which is applied by the President of the country in a crisis or exceptional circumstances. Generally, the need for issuing an ordinance occurs when parliament’s session is not running and it is necessary to legislate a subject. It is as effective as the law but its effect remains for a certain period.
  • Finance Commission : Commission constituted under article 285 of the constitution. It is set up by the President every 5 years or earlier as per requirement. Its main task is to give advice on the principle of involving grants-in-aid into the revenue of the states from the consolidated fund of India.
  • Nominal Executive : When the head of the state is nominal or deprived of real power and does not use the powers himself but someone else uses powers in his name, then he is called a Nominal Executive. For example, President of India.
  • Real Executive : When the head of state is not nominal but uses all the powers of the state, then he is called the Real / Actual Executive. Example – President of United States of America.
  • Parliamentary Secretary : Appointed by the Prime Minister. His work is to help the minsters of the departments in parliament. Constitutionally, no power is given to him.
  • Foreign Policy : That policy which is adopted by one country for other countries. In order to establish relations with other nations, the policies, programs and principles used by a country are called foreign policy of that country.
  • Dr. Rajendra Prasad : The first President of Independent India. He was elected twice for this post. He was also the head of the constituent assembly.

RBSE Class 12 Political Science Notes