Indian Polity 18 -Union Executive and President of India - Vocabulary Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, cases, and constitutional concepts discussed in the lecture on Union Executive and the President of India. Each card presents a term and a concise definition to aid quick recall for prelims and mains preparation.

Parliamentary democracy

A system where the executive (Prime Minister and Council of Ministers) is drawn from the legislature and remains responsible to it; the majority in Lok Sabha forms the government; the President is largely ceremonial.

Council of Ministers

The body headed by the Prime Minister, collectively responsible to Lok Sabha; holds the real executive power and acts on the advice of the PM and the President.

Prime Minister

The head of government in a parliamentary system; wields real power with his/her Council of Ministers; must be a member of Parliament and advises the President.

President of India

Ceremonial head of state; executive power is vested in the President but exercised on the advice of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers; acts as a constitutional head.

Westminster model

Britain’s constitutional framework where the monarch is ceremonial and the Prime Minister and Cabinet hold real power; India follows this model with a largely ceremonial President.

Article 74

Article stating there shall be a Council of Ministers headed by the PM to aid and advise the President; originally non-binding, later clarified as binding on the President on advice of the Council.

Article 52

There shall be a President of India; establishes the existence of the President.

Article 53

Executive powers of the Union are vested in the President.

Ram Jawaya Kapoor v State of Punjab (1955)

Supreme Court held that executive power includes policy initiation, maintenance of order, and implementation of laws passed by the legislature.

Shamsher Singh v State of Punjab (1974)

Supreme Court held that the 'satisfaction' of the President is the satisfaction of the Cabinet (Council of Ministers) and not the personal satisfaction of the President.

Indirect election

President is elected not by direct popular vote but through an Electoral College and a system of proportional representation with a single transferable vote.

Electoral College

Body that elects the President; comprises elected Members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, plus elected MLAs of states (Delhi and Puducherry included after amendment; JK not included currently).

Single Transferable Vote (STV)

A preferential voting system used in presidential elections; voters rank candidates and votes are transferred until one candidate has a majority.

First-past-the-post (FPTP)

Constituency-level system where the candidate with the highest number of votes wins, even without an outright majority; can distort seat share vs. vote share.

Delimitation

Redrawing electoral boundaries based on census data to ensure equal representation; has been frozen at times (e.g., 1976–2001) and reactivated by amendments after specific censuses.

272 (two seventy-two)

The simple majority threshold in Lok Sabha to form government; more than half of total seats (542 seats total) or the majority of those present and voting.

Coalition government

A government formed by two or more parties to reach the 272-seat threshold; often less stable but can implement reforms across parties.

Floor test

A test in the legislature to prove that the government still has the support of the majority on the floor of the house.

Anti-defection law (Tenth Schedule)

Law to prevent floor-crossing by MPs/MLAs; disqualifications for defection; stabilizes governments but can curb independent representation.

Directly elected Chief Executive (proposal)

A proposal by some scholars to elect the Prime Minister/President directly by the people with a fixed term; would require major constitutional changes.

Rubber stamp

Describes the President’s role as largely bound to act on the PM’s and Council’s advice, with minimal discretionary power.

Discretionary powers of the President

In practice, largely non-existent; the only notable discretion is situational—appointing a PM when no clear majority—and is bounded by constitutional conventions.

Forty-fourth Constitutional Amendment (1978)

Amendment restoring the binding nature of PM’s advice to the President by allowing reconsideration but making the final advice binding after re-submission.

Interregnum

A temporary vacancy in the office of President; constitutional rule requires that the office not be left vacant.

Census 1971 population weighting (presidential election)

Population data from the 1971 census used to determine the value of votes for state MLAs in presidential elections, affecting the weighting of votes across states.