President

Constitutional Provisions Related to President Office

Article 52 – There shall be a President of India
Article 53 – The executive power of the Union shall be vested in the President
Article 54 – Election of President by electoral college
Article 55 – Manner of election of President
Article 56 – The President shall hold office for a term of five years
Article 57 – Re-election of the President
Article 58 – Qualifications for election to the office of the President
Article 59 – Conditions of the office of the President
Article 60 – Oath to the office of President
Article 61 – Procedure for impeachment of the President
Article 62 – Provisions related to the term and vacancy of the President.

President of India (52 to 62)

 The Indian President is the head of the state and he is also called the first citizen of India.
 He is a part of Union Executive, provisions of which are dealt with Article 52-78 including articles
related to President (Article 52-62).
 Under these articles, information on how a President is elected, his powers and functions, and also
his impeachment process is given.

Who is President of India?

 The Indian President is the head of the state.
 He is the first citizen of India and is a symbol of solidarity, unity, and integrity of the nation..
 He is a part of Union Executive along with the Vice- President, Prime Minister, Council of Ministers,
and Attorney General of India.

How is President elected?

 There is no direct election for the Indian President.
 An electoral college elects him. The electoral college
responsible for President’s elections comprises elected
members of:
 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha
 Legislative Assemblies of the states (Legislative Councils
have no role)
 Legislative Assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and
Puducherry

Value of Votes:
 For securing uniformity in the scale of representation of all States, the Constitution provides that
the value of vote of an MLA of each state is to be in proportion to the population of that state
 To ensure parity between the States and the Union, it has been laid down that the total value of
votes of all the elected Members of Parliament (MPs) shall be equal to the total value of votes of
all the MLAs from all states.

Who does not take part in the President’s elections?

 Nominated members of Rajya Sabha.
 Nominated Members of State Legislative Assemblies
 Members of Legislative Councils (Both elected and nominated) in bicameral legislatures
 Nominated Members of union territories of Delhi and Puducherry

What is the term of the President’s office?

 Once President is elected, he holds office for five years.
 He sits in the office even after the completion of five years given no new election has taken place
or no new President has been elected till then.
 He can also be re-elected and there is no cap on his re-election.

What are the qualifications of the President?

 A candidate has to meet some qualifications to be elected as the president. Those qualifications of
the President are:
 He should be an Indian Citizen
 His age should be a minimum of 35 years
 He should qualify the conditions to be elected as a member of the Lok Sabha
 He should not hold any office of profit under the central government, state government,
or any public authority

What are the conditions of the President’s office?

 He cannot be a member of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. If he has been a member of either of the
house, he should vacate the seat on his first day as President in the office
 He should not hold any office of profit
 For his residence, Rashtrapati Bhavan is provided to him without the payment of rent
 Parliament decides his emoluments, allowances and privileges
 Parliament cannot diminish his emoluments and allowances during his term of office
 He is given immunity from any criminal proceedings, even in respect of his personal acts
 Arrest or imprisonment of the President cannot take place.
 Only civil proceedings can be initiated for his personal acts that too after giving two
months’ of prior notice.

What is the procedure for impeachment of a President?

 The only condition for the initiation of impeachment of the Indian president is the ‘violation of the
constitution.
 Note: Indian Constitution contains no definition of ‘violation of the constitution.’
 Impeachment proceedings can be initiated by either House of Parliament, with the charges being
signed by one-fourth of the members of the House.
 The President is given 14 days' notice before the proceedings begin and has the right to appear and
be represented during the investigation. If a resolution is passed by a two-thirds majority of both
Houses, the President is removed from office.
 An impeachment is a semi-judicial process in Parliament. Nominated members of either House of
Parliament can participate in impeachment proceedings, even though they cannot vote in the
presidential election.
 Members of state legislative assemblies and the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry, who
can vote in the presidential election, do not participate in impeachment proceedings.
 To date, no President has ever been impeached.
Can the President’s office be vacant?
 Yes, his office can be vacant in the following ways:
 When the President of India completes his term of five years in the office
 If the President resigns by putting forward his resignation to the Vice-President of India
 If Lok Sabha/Rajya Sabha initiates an impeachment charge and they stand valid, he is removed
 If he dies in the office
 If the Supreme Court declares his election invalid

Note:
 Vice-President discharges the duties as President;
if the latter’s office falls vacant in the circumstances mentioned above, except by the expiry of the
term.
 As per the President’s Act 1969; if the Vice-President office is vacant too, Chief Justice of India (CJI)
(or in his absence);
 Supreme Court’s senior-most judge, discharge the functions of the President (till new President is
elected.)

What are the powers and functions of the President of India?

 Executive powers of President
 Legislative powers of President
 Financial powers of President
 Judicial powers of President
 Diplomatic powers of President
 Military powers of President
 Emergency powers of President
 Ordinance making powers
 Veto power

Executive Powers of President

For every executive action that the Indian government takes, is to be taken in his name
He may/may not make rules to simplify the transaction of business of the central government
He appoints the attorney general of India and determines his remuneration.
He seeks administrative information from the Union government
He appoints inter-state council
He appoints administrators of union territories, etc

Legislative Powers of President

 He summons or prorogues Parliament and dissolve the Lok Sabha
 He summons a joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in case of deadlock
 He addresses the Indian Parliament at the commencement of the first session after every general
election
 He promulgates ordinances
 He lays the following reports before the Parliament:
 Comptroller and Auditor General
 Union Public Service Commission
 Finance Commission, etc.
Financial powers of President
 To introduce the, money bill his prior recommendation is a must
 He causes Union Budget to be laid before the Parliament
 To make a demand for grants, his recommendation is a pre-requisite
 Contingency Fund of India is under his control
 He constitutes the Finance Commission every five years

Judicial Powers of President

 Appointment of Chief Justice and Supreme Court/High Court Judges are on him
 He takes advice from the Supreme Court, however, the advice is not binding on him
 He has pardoning power: Under article 72, he has been conferred with power to grant pardon
against punishment for an offence against union law, punishment by a martial court, or death
sentence.

Pardoning power includes the following:

 Pardon with the grant of pardon convicts both conviction and sentence completely absolved
 Commutation with this nature of the punishment of the convict can be changed
 Remission reduces the term of the imprisonment
 Respite awards lesser punishment than original punishment by looking at the special condition of
a convict
 Reprieve stays the execution of the awarded sentence for a temporary period

Diplomatic Powers of President

 International Treaties and agreements that are approved by the Parliament are negotiated and
concluded in his name
 He is the representative of India in international forums and affairs

Military Powers of President

 He is the commander of the defence forces of India. He appoints:
 Chief of the Army
 Chief of the Navy
 Chief of the Air Force

Emergency Powers of President

 He deals with three types of emergencies given in the Indian Constitution:
 National Emergency (Article 352)
 President’s Rule (Article 356 & 365)
 Financial Emergency (Article 360)

Ordinance Making Power

 Article 123 gives the President the authority to issue ordinances when Parliament is not in session.
 These ordinances carry the same legal force and effect as an act of Parliament but are temporary in
nature.
 The ordinance-making power is envisaged in the constitution to deal with unforeseen or urgent
matters.
 Nehru & Ambedkar who were generally opposed to it in the constituent assembly labelled it as a
“necessary evil”
 Ordinance making powers is a typical violation of separation of powers. It is not available with the
British Monarch or US president.
 The President’s power of ordinance-making is not a discretionary power, and he can promulgate or
withdraw an ordinance only on the advice of the CoM headed by the PM.
 It has the authority to amend or repeal any existing act of Parliament or another ordinance.
 Ordinance making power is not applicable for amending the Constitution.

Constitutional Safeguard on Executive Ordinances

 The President can promulgate an ordinance only when both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are not in
session or when either Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha is not in session.
 An ordinance can be issued only on those subjects on which the Parliament can make laws.
 An ordinance is subject to the same limitations as an act of Parliament.
 Every ordinance issued must be presented to both Houses of Parliament or the state legislature
within six weeks of their reassembly. If it is not approved within this period, the ordinance will
cease to exist.

Veto Power
 Article 111: It deals with the President's veto power over a bill passed by the Parliament.
 Veto Power Objective in Safeguarding Legislative Integrity and Constitutional Consistency
 To prevent hasty and ill-considered legislation by the Parliament
 To prevent a passage of unconstitutional legislation.
 To ensure an additional layer of check and scrutiny.

Absolute Veto in Indian Legislation:

 Power of the President to withhold his assent to a bill passed in Parliament.
 This veto has been used twice
 In 1954, President Rajendra Prasad withheld his assent to PEPSU appropriation bill
 In 1991, President R Venkataraman refused to approve (withheld his assent) the Salary, Allowances,
and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill.

When this veto is used?

 With respect to private member’s bills
 With respect to the government bills when the cabinet resigns (after the passage of the bills but
before the assent by the President) and the new cabinet advises the President to restrain from
giving his assent to such bills.

Suspensive Veto
 Power of President to return a bill passed in Parliament for reconsideration
 In case, the bill is passed again by the Parliament with or without amendments and presented
again to the President, it is obligatory for the President to give his assent to the bill.
 This veto power is not applicable to the money Bill (Art. 110)
 But in case of Money Bill, the President can either give his assent or withhold his assent to a money
bill but cannot return it for the reconsideration of the Parliament.
Pocket Veto
 No time frame for the President to give his assent or refuse i.e. pocket a bill for infinite times.
 In this veto, the President neither ratifies nor rejects nor returns the bill.
 Pocket veto is not applicable for Constitutional Amendment Bill – 24th Amendment (1971), made it
obligatory for the President to give his assent to Constitutional Amendment Bill.
 President Zail Singh in 1986, exercised the pocket veto with respect to the Indian Post Office
(Amendment) Bill
 44th amendment (1978): If the bill is passed by the Parliament again after reconsideration (with or
without amendments) and presented to the President, the President must give his assent to the
bill.

Veto Power in State Legislature

 The President has veto power with respect to state legislation as well.
 A bill passed by a state legislature can become an act only if it receives the assent of the Governor
or the President (when reserved for the consideration of the President).
 When a bill passed by a state legislature, the Governor has four alternatives for his assent (Art.
200).
 He may give his assent to the billl,
 He may withhold his assent to the bill, or
 He may return the bill for reconsideration of the state legislature (not in case of money bill), or
 He may reserve the bill for the consideration of the President.
 The Indian Constitution has not prescribed any time limit within which the President has to take
decision with regard to a bill reserved by the Governor for his consideration.
 When a bill is reserved by the Governor for the consideration of the President, the President has
three alternatives
 He may give his assent to the bill,
 He may withhold his assent to the bill, or
 He may direct the Governor to return the bill (not in case of money bill) for the reconsideration of
the state legislature.
 If the bill is passed again by the state legislature with or without amendments and presented again
to the President for his assent, the President is not bound to give his assent to the bill.
 The veto power of the President cannot override by the state legislature

President Veto Authority

Who among the following invites the leader of the majority party to form the government?
(a) Chief Justice of India
(b) Vice-President
(c) Chief Secretary
(d) President

The President of India has the power to pardon under which article of the Constitution of India?
(a) Article 63
(b) Article 72
(c) Article 52
(d) Article 86

Who among the following is the ex-officio chairman of Rajya Sabha?

(a) Vice-President of India
(b) Speaker of the Parliament
(c) Prime Minister
(d) President of India

Which of the following pairs is wrongly matched regarding the judicial powers of the President of
India?
(a) Pardon - sentence and freedom from conviction
(b) Privation - giving lesser punishment instead of the original punishment.
(c) Commutation changing one form of punishment into another.
(d) Delay - To stop the execution of the sentence for a short time

Which of the following statements is correct regarding the benefits of the retiring President of India?
A. Former President of India will also be entitled to a monthly pension of Rs 2.5 lakh.
B. They are entitled to secretarial staff including one private secretary, personal assistant, one
additional private secretary, two peons, and office expenses up to Rs 1 lakh per annum.
C. They are also entitled to free travel of the highest class anywhere in India by rail, air or steamer
accompanied by one person.
(a) A only B
(b) B only C
(c) A only C
(d) A, B and C