Executive powers
Legislative power is constitutionally vested in the Parliament of India of which
the president is the head, to facilitate the lawmaking process per the constitution
(Article 78, Article 86, etc.). The president summons both the houses (Lok Sabha
and Rajya Sabha) of the parliament and prorogues them. They can dissolve the Lok
Sabha.[5]: 147
The president inaugurates parliament by addressing it after the general elections
and also at the beginning of the first session every year per Article 87(1). The
presidential address on these occasions is generally meant to outline the new
policies of the government.[13]: 145
All bills passed by the parliament can become laws only after receiving the assent
of the president per Article 111. After a bill is presented to them, the president
shall declare either that they assent to the Bill, or that they withhold assent
from it. As a third option, they can return a bill to parliament, if it is not a
money bill, for reconsideration. President may be of the view that a particular
bill passed under the legislative powers of parliament is violating the
constitution, they can send back the bill with their recommendation to pass the
bill under the constituent powers of parliament following the Article 368
procedure. When, after reconsideration, the bill is passed accordingly and
presented to the president, with or without amendments, the president cannot
withhold their assent from it. The president can also withhold their assent to a
bill when it is initially presented to them (rather than return it to parliament)
thereby exercising a pocket veto on the advice of the prime minister or council of
ministers per Article 74 if it is inconsistent with the constitution.[12] Article
143 gives the president the power to consult the supreme court about the
constitutional validity of an issue. The president shall assent to constitutional
amendment bills without power to withhold the bills per Article 368 (2).
India achieved independence from the British on 15 August 1947, initially as a
dominion within the Commonwealth of Nations with George VI as king, represented in
the country by a governor-general.[4] Following independence, the Constituent
Assembly of India, under the leadership of B. R. Ambedkar, undertook the process of
drafting a completely new constitution for the country. The Constitution of India
was eventually enacted on 26 November 1949 and came into force on 26 January 1950,
[5]: 26 making India a republic.[6]: 9 The offices of monarch and governor-general
were replaced by the new office of President of India, with Rajendra Prasad as its
first incumbent.[6]: 1 India retained its Commonwealth membership per the London
Declaration, recognising The King as "the symbol of the free association of its
independent member nations and as such the Head of the Commonwealth."[7]
The Indian constitution accords to the president the responsibility and authority
to defend and protect the Constitution of India and its rule of law.[8] Invariably,
any action taken by the executive or legislature entities of the constitution shall
become law only after the president's assent. The president shall not accept any
actions of the executive or legislature which are unconstitutional. The president
is the foremost, most empowered and prompt defender of the constitution (Article
60), who has pre-emptive power for ensuring constitutionality in the actions of the
executive or legislature. The role of the judiciary in upholding the Constitution
of India is the second line of defence in nullifying any unconstitutional actions
of the executive and legislative entities of the Indian Union.
