India achieved independence from the British on 15 August 1947, initially as a Dominion within

the Commonwealth of Nations with George VIas king, represented in the country by a governorgeneral.[7] Still, following this, the Constituent Assembly of India, under the leadership of Dr. 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,[8]:26 making India a republic.[9]:9 The offices of monarch and governor-general
were replaced by the new office of President of India, with Rajendra Prasad as the first
incumbent.[9]:1
The constitution of the Republic of India (Articles 53,79 & 111) gave the President the
responsibility and authority to defend and protect the constitution of India and its rule of law.
[10]

Invariably, any action taken by the executive or legislature entities of the constitution shall

become law only after 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 preemptive 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 defense in nullifying any unconstitutional
actions of the executive and legislative entities of the Indian Union.

Powers and duties[edit]

Duties[edit]
The primary duty of the President is to preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the law
of India as made part of his oath (Article 60 of Indian constitution).[10] The President is the
common head of all independent constitutional entities. All his actions, recommendations (Article
3, Article 111, etc.) and supervisory powers (Article 78 c, Article 108, Article 111, etc.) over the
executive and legislative entities of India shall be used in accordance to uphold the constitution.
[11]

There is no bar on the actions of the President to contest in the court of law.[12][13]

Legislative powers[edit]
Legislative power is constitutionally vested by the Parliament of India of which the president is
the head, to facilitate the law making process as per the constitution (Article 78, Article 86, etc.).
The President summons both the Houses (the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha) of
the Parliament and prorogues them. He can dissolve the Lok Sabha.[8]:147 As per Article 74, the
President shall abide by the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime
Minister, provided the given advice is in accordance with the constitution. Article 143 gave power
to the president to consult the Supreme Court about the constitutional validity of any issue.
The President inaugurates Parliament by addressing it after the general elections and also at the
beginning of the first session each year; this is mentioned in Article 87(1). The Presidential
address on these occasions is generally meant to outline the new policies of the government.[14]:145

All bills passed by the Parliament can become laws only after receiving the assent of the
President. After a bill is presented to him, the President shall declare either that he assents to the
Bill, or that he withholds his assent from it. As a third option, he can return a bill to Parliament, if it
is not a money bill or a constitutional amendment bill, for reconsideration. When, after
reconsideration, the bill is passed and presented to the President, with or without amendments,
the President cannot withhold his assent from it. The President can also withhold his assent to a
bill when it is initially presented to him (rather than return it to Parliament) thereby exercising
a pocket veto.[13]
When either of the two Houses of the Parliament of India is not in session, and if the government
feels the need for an immediate procedure, the President can promulgate ordinances which have
the same force and effect as laws passed by Parliament. These are in the nature of interim or
temporary legislation and their continuance is subject to parliamentary approval. Ordinances
remain valid for no more than six weeks from the date the Parliament is convened unless
approved by it earlier.[15] Under article 123, President as the upholder of the constitution shall be
satisfied that immediate action is mandatory as advised by the central cabinet and he is
confident that the government commands majority support in the Parliament needed for the
passing of the ordinance into an act and Parliament can be summoned to deliberate on the
passing of the ordinance as soon as possible. The promulgated ordinance is treated as an act of
Parliament when in force and it is the responsibility of the President to withdraw the ordinance as
soon as the reasons for promulgation of the ordinance are no longer applicable. Bringing laws in
the form of ordinances has become a routine matter by the government and President, but the
provisions made in Article 123 are meant for mitigating unusual circumstances where immediate
action is inevitable when the extant constitutional provisions are inadequate. The President
should take moral responsibility when an ordinance elapses automatically or is not approved by
the Parliament. The President is liable for prosecution for his wrong deeds. [13]

Executive powers[edit]
As per Article 53, the executive power of the country is vested in the President and is exercised
by President either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with the
Constitution. Union cabinet with Prime Minister as its head, should aid and advice the President
in performing his functions. As per Article 74 (2), the council of ministers or Prime Minister are not
accountable legally to the advise tendered to the President but it is the sole responsibility of the
President to ensure compliance with the constitution in performing his duties.

Appointment powers[edit]
The President appoints, as Prime Minister, the person most likely to command the support of the
majority in the Lok Sabha (usually the leader of the majority party or coalition). The President
then appoints the other members of the Council of Ministers, distributing portfolios to them on the
advice of the Prime Minister.[16]:72
The Council of Ministers remains in power at the 'pleasure' of the President.

The President appoints 12 members of the Rajya Sabha from amongst persons who have
special knowledge or practical experience in respect of such matters as literature, science, art
and social service.
The President is responsible for making a wide variety of appointments. These include: [16]:72

Governors of States

The Chief Justice, other judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts of India

The Chief Minister of the National capital territory of Delhi (Article 239 AA 5 of the
constitution)

The Attorney General

The Comptroller and Auditor General

The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners

The Chairman and other Members of the Union Public Service Commission

Vice Chancellor of the central university and academic staff of the central university
through his nominee

Ambassadors and High Commissioners to other countries (only through the list of names
given by the Prime Minister).[17][18]:48

Financial powers[edit]

A money bill can be introduced in the Parliament only with the Presidents
recommendation.

The President lays the Annual Financial Statement, i.e. the Union budget, before the
Parliament.

The President can take advances out of the Contingency Fund of India to meet
unforeseen expenses.

The President constitutes a Finance commission after every five years to recommend the
distribution of the taxes between the centre and the States.[19][20]:48

Judicial powers[edit]
The President appoints the Chief Justice of the Union Judiciary and other judges on the advice of
the Chief Justice. He dismisses the judges if and only if the two Houses of the Parliament pass
resolutions to that effect by a two-thirds majority of the members present.[21]

According to Article 143 of Indian Constitution, if the President considers a question of law or a
matter of public importance has arisen, he can ask for the advisory opinion of theSupreme Court.

Diplomatic powers[edit]
All international treaties and agreements are negotiated and concluded on behalf of the
President.[22]:18 However, in practice, such negotiations are usually carried out by the Prime
Minister along with his Cabinet (especially the Foreign Minister). Also, such treaties are subject to
the approval of the Parliament. The President represents India in international forums and affairs
where such a function is chiefly ceremonial. The President may also send and receive diplomats,
i.e. the officers from the Indian Foreign Service.[14]:143 The President is the first citizen of the
country.[17]

Military powers[edit]
The President is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces. The President can
declare war or conclude peace,[17] on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the
Prime Minister. All important treaties and contracts are made in the President's name. [23] He also
appoints the chiefs of the service branches of the armed forces.

Pardoning Powers[edit]
See also: Presidential pardon
As mentioned in Article 72 of the Indian Constitution, the President is empowered with the
powers to grant pardons in the following situations:[17]

Punishment is for an offence against Union Law

Punishment is by a Military Court

Sentence is that of death[23]

The decisions involving pardoning and other rights by the President are independent of the
opinion of the Prime Minister or the Lok Sabha majority. In most cases, however, the President
exercises his executive powers on the advice of the Prime Minister and the cabinet[16]:239[24]

Emergency powers[edit]
The President can declare three types of emergencies: national, state and financial, under
articles 352, 356 & 360 in addition to promulgating ordinances under article 123. [22]:12
National emergency[edit]
See also: The Emergency (India)
A national emergency can be declared in the whole of India or a part of its territory for causes of
war or armed rebellion or an external aggression. Such an emergency was declared in India in
1962 (Indo-China war), 1971 (Indo-Pakistan war),[25] and 1975 to 1977 (declared by Indira
Gandhi.[see main]

Under Article 352 of the India Constitution, the President can declare such an emergency only on
the basis of a written request by the Cabinet Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. Such a
proclamation must be approved by the Parliament within one month. Such an emergency can be
imposed for six months. It can be extended by six months by repeated parliamentary approvalthere is no maximum duration.[22][page needed]
In such an emergency, Fundamental Rights of Indian citizens can be suspended.[8]:33 The six
freedoms under Right to Freedom are automatically suspended. However, the Right to Life and
Personal Liberty cannot be suspended.(Article 21)[26]:20.6
The President can make laws on the 66 subjects of the State List (which contains subjects on
which the state governments can make laws).[27] Also, all money bills are referred to the President
for approval.[20]:88 The term of the Lok Sabha can be extended by a period of up to one year, but
not so as to extend the term of Parliament beyond six months after the end of the declared
emergency.[16]:223
National Emergency has only been proclaimed in India twice till date. It was declared first in 1962
by President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, during the Sino-Indian War. The second emergency in
India was from 1975-77 proclaimed by President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, with Indira Gandhi as
Prime Minister.
State emergency[edit]
If the President is fully satisfied, on the basis of the report of the Governor of the concerned state
or from other sources that the governance in a state cannot be carried out according to the
provisions in the Constitution, he can proclaim under Article 356 a state of emergency in the
state.[10] Such an emergency must be approved by the Parliamentwithin a period of 2 months.
Under Article 356 of the Indian Constitution, it can be imposed from six months to a maximum
period of three years with repeated parliamentary approval every six months. If the emergency
needs to be extended for more than three years, this can be achieved by a constitutional
amendment, as has happened in Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.
During such an emergency, the President can take over the entire work of the executive, and the
Governor administers the state in the name of the President. The Legislative Assembly can be
dissolved or may remain in suspended animation. The Parliament makes laws on the 66 subjects
of the state list[28] (see National emergency for explanation).
A State Emergency can be imposed via the following:
1. By Article 356 If that state failed to run constitutionally, i.e. constitutional machinery has
failed[29]:159
2. By Article 365 If that state is not working according to the direction of the Union
Government issued as per the provisions of the constitution. [30]

This type of emergency needs the approval of the parliament within 2 months. It can last up to a
maximum of three years via extensions after each 6-month period. However, after one year it can
be extended only if
1. A state of National Emergency has been declared in the country or in the particular state.
2. The Election Commission finds it difficult to organise an election in that state.
The Sarkaria Commission held that presidents have unconstitutionally misused the provision of
Article 356 many times for achieving political motives, by dismissing the state governments
although there was no constitutional break down in the states.[31] During 2005, President's rule
was imposed in Bihar state, misusing Article 356 unconstitutionally to prevent the democratically
elected state legislators to form a government after the state elections.
There is no provision in the constitution to re-promulgate president's rule in a state when the
earlier promulgation ceased to operate for want of parliaments approval within two months
duration. During 2014 in Andhra Pradesh, president's rule was first imposed on March 1, 2014
and it ceased to operate on April 30, 2014. President's rule was promulgated after being fully
aware that the earliest parliament session is feasible in the end of May, 2014 after the general
elections. It was reimposed again unconstitutionally on April 28, 2014 by the president. [32][33]
Financial emergency[edit]
Article 282 accords financial autonomy in spending the financial resources available with the
states for public purpose.[10][34]
Under article 360 of the constitution, President can proclaim a financial emergency when the
financial stability or credit of the nation or of any part of its territory is threatened. [10]However, until
now no guidelines defining the situation of financial emergency in the entire country or a state or
a union territory or a panchayat or a municipality or a corporation have been framed either by
the finance commission or by the central government.
Such an emergency must be approved by the Parliament within two months by simple majority. It
has never been declared.[35]:604 A state of financial emergency remains in force indefinitely until
revoked by the President.[16]:195
The President can reduce the salaries of all government officials, including judges of
the Supreme Court and High Courts, in cases of a financial emergency. All money bills passed by
the State legislatures are submitted to the President for approval. He can direct the state to
observe certain principles (economy measures) relating to financial matters. [36]

Selection process[edit]
Eligibility[edit]
Article 58 of the Constitution sets the principle qualifications one must meet to be eligible to the
office of the President. A President must be:

A citizen of India

Of 35 years of age or above

Qualified to become a member of the Lok Sabha

A person shall not be eligible for election as President if he holds any office of profit under the
Government of India or the Government of any State or under any local or other authority subject
to the control of any of the said Governments.
Certain office-holders, however, are permitted to stand as Presidential candidates. These are:

The current Vice President.

The Governor of any State.

A Minister of the Union or of any State (Including Prime Minister and Chief Ministers).[16]:72

In the event that the Vice President, a State Governor or a Minister is elected President, they are
considered to have vacated their previous office on the date they begin serving as President.
Under The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952,[37] a candidate to be nominated
for the office of president needs 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders for his
name to appear on ballot.[38]

Conditions for the Presidency[edit]

Main article: Electoral College (India)
Certain conditions, as per Article 59 of the Constitution, debar an otherwise eligible citizen from
contesting the presidential elections. The conditions are:

The President shall not be a member of either House of Parliament or of a House of the
Legislature of any State, and if a member of either House of Parliament or of a House of the
Legislature of any State be elected President, he shall be deemed to have vacated his seat
in that House on the date on which he enters upon his office as President.

The President shall not hold any other office of profit.

The President shall be entitled without payment of rent to the use of his official
residences and shall be also entitled to such emoluments, allowances and privileges as may
be determined by Parliament by law and until provision in that behalf is so made, such
emoluments, allowances and privileges as are specified in the Second Schedule.

The emoluments and allowances of the President shall not be diminished during his term
of office.[35]:170

Election process[edit]

Whenever the office becomes vacant, the new President is chosen by an electoral
college consisting of the elected members of both houses of Parliament (M.P.s), the elected
members of the State Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha) of all States and the elected
members of the legislative assemblies (M.L.A.s) of two Union Territories (i.e., National Capital
Territory (NCT) of Delhi and Union Territory of Puducherry).
The nomination of a candidate for election to the office of the President must be subscribed by at
least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders. Each candidate has to make a
security deposit of 15,000 (US$220) in the Reserve Bank of India.[39] The security deposit is
liable to be forfeited in case the candidate fails to secure one-sixth of the votes polled.
The election is held in accordance to the system of Proportional representation by means of
the Single transferable vote method. The voting takes place by secret ballot system. The manner
of election of President is provided by Article 55 of the Constitution.[40]
Each elector casts a different number of votes. The general principle is that the total number of
votes cast by Members of Parliament equals the total number of votes cast by State Legislators.
Also, legislators from larger states cast more votes than those from smaller states. Finally, the
number of legislators in a state matters; if a state has few legislators, then each legislator has
more votes; if a state has many legislators, then each legislator has fewer votes.
The actual calculation for votes cast by a particular state is calculated by dividing the state's
population by 1000, which is divided again by the number of legislators from the State voting in
the electoral college. This number is the number of votes per legislator in a given state. Every
elected member of the parliament enjoys the same number of votes, which may be obtained by
dividing the total number of votes assigned to the members of legislative assemblies by the total
number of elected representatives of the parliament.
Although Indian presidential elections involve actual voting by MPs and MLAs, they tend to vote
for the candidate supported by their respective parties.[41]

Oath or affirmation[edit]
The President is required to make and subscribe in the presence of the Chief Justice of India (or
in his absence, the senior-most Judge of the Supreme Court), an oath or affirmation that he/she
shall protect, preserve and defend the Constitution as follows: [42]
I, (name), do swear in the name of God (or solemnly affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office
of President (or discharge the functions of the President) of the Republic of India, and will to the
best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law, and that I will devote
myself to the service and well-being of the people of the Republic of India.
Article 60, Constitution of India

Emoluments[edit]
President pay

Date established

Salary in 1998
50,000 (US$740)

30 December 2008

Salary in 2008
1.5 lakh (US$2,200)

Sources:[43]
The President of India used to receive 10,000 (US$100) per month as per the Second
Schedule of the Constitution. This amount was increased to 50,000 (US$700) in 1998. On 11
September 2008 the Government of India increased the salary of the President
to 1.5 lakh (US$2,200). However, almost everything that the President does or wants to do is
taken care of by the annual 225 million (US$3.3 million) budget that the Government allots for
his or her upkeep.[44] Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President's official residence, is the largest
Presidential Palace in the world.[45][46] The Rashtrapati
Nilayam at Bolarum, Hyderabad and Retreat Building at Chharabra, Shimla are the official
Retreat Residences of the President of India.[47] The official state car of the President is a custombuilt heavily armoured Mercedes Benz S600 (W221) Pullman Guard.

Presidential Amenities

Rashtrapati Bhavan, official residence of the President, located at New Delhi.

Rashtrapati Nilayam is the official retreat of the President located in Hyderabad.

The President's Bodyguards is an elite household cavalry regiment of theIndian Army.

Air India One is the call sign of any aircraft carrying the President. The aircraft are operated as VIP
flights by the Indian Air Force.

Removal[edit]
The President may be removed before the expiry of the term through impeachment. A President
can be removed for violation of the Constitution of India;[48] The process may start in either of the
two houses of the Parliament. The house initiates the process by levelling the charges against
the President. The charges are contained in a notice that has to be signed by at least one quarter
of the total members of that house. The notice is sent up to the President and 14 days later, it is
taken up for consideration.
A resolution to impeach the President has to be passed by a two-third majority of the total
number of members of the originating house. It is then sent to the other house. The other house
investigates the charges that have been made. During this process, the President has the right to
defend oneself through an authorised counsel. If the second house also approves the charges
made by special majority again, the President stands impeached and is deemed to have vacated
his/her office from the date when such a resolution stands passed. No president has faced
impeachment proceedings so the above provisions have never been used. [49]
Supreme Court can remove the president for the electoral malpractices under Article 71(1) of the
constitution. Under Article 361 of the constitution, though president can not be summoned for
questioning except on his voluntary willingness to testify in the court in support of his
controversial deeds, the unconstitutional decisions taken by the president would be declared
invalid by the courts. The case would be decided by the courts based on the facts furnished by
the union government for the president's role. As clarified by the Supreme Court in the case
'Rameshwar Prasad & Ors vs Union Of India & Anr on 24 January 2006', though president can
not be prosecuted and imprisoned during his term of office, he can be prosecuted after his term
of office for the guilty committed during his term of presidency as declared earlier by the courts.
[50]

No president has resigned on impropriety to continue in office for declaring and nullifying his

unconstitutional decisions by the courts till now. No criminal case at least on the grounds
of disrespecting constitution is lodged till now against former presidents to punish them for their
unconstitutional acts though many decisions taken during the term of presidency had been
declared by Supreme Court as unconstitutional, mala fides, void, ultra vires, etc.[51]

Succession[edit]
The Office of the President falls vacant in the following scenarios:
1. On the expiry of his/her term
2. By reason of death
3. By reason of resignation
4. Removal by impeachment
Article 65 of the Indian Constitution says that the Vice President of India will have to discharge
the duties, if the Office falls vacant due to any reason other than expiry of the term. [26]:20.10 The Vice
President reverts to office when a new President is elected and enters office. When the President
is unable to act because of absence, illness or any other cause, the Vice President discharges
the President's functions until the President resumes the duties.
A Vice President who acts as or discharges the functions of the President has all the powers and
immunities of the President and is entitled to the same emoluments as the President. It should be
noted here that when the Vice President discharges the duties of the President, he/she does not
function as the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.
The Indian Parliament has enacted the law (The President (Discharge of Functions) Act, 1969)
[52]

for the discharge of the functions of the President when vacancies occur in the offices of the

President and of the Vice President simultaneously, owing to removal, death, resignation of the
incumbent or otherwise. In such an eventuality, the Chief Justice, or in his absence, the senior
most Judge of the Supreme Court of India available discharges the functions of the President
until a newly elected President enters upon his office or a newly elected Vice President begins to
act as President under Article 65 of the Constitution, whichever is the earlier.[18]:96 For example, in
1969, when President Zakir Husain died in Office, Vice President V. V. Giri served as the acting
President of India. However, later, V.V Giri resigned from both posts (Acting President of India
and Vice President of India) as he became a candidate in the 1969 Presidential election in India.
In this event, the then Chief Justice of India, Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah served as the
acting President of India until the next President was elected.

Important presidential interventions in the past[edit]

The President's role as defender of the Constitution and the powers as Head of State, especially
in relation to those exercised by the Prime Minister as leader of the government, have changed
over time. In particular, Presidents have made a number of interventions into government and
lawmaking, which have established and challenged some conventions concerning Presidential
intervention.

Proving majority in the parliament[edit]

Main article: Vote of confidence

In 1979, the Prime Minister, Charan Singh, did not enjoy a Parliamentary majority. He responded
to this by simply not advising the President to summon Parliament. [17] Since then, Presidents have
been more diligent in directing incoming Prime Ministers to convene Parliament and prove their
majority within reasonable deadlines (2 to 3 weeks). In the interim period, the Prime Ministers are
generally restrained from making policy decisions.

Proof of Majority to form a Government[edit]

Since the 1990s, Parliamentary elections have generally not resulted in a single party or group of
parties having a distinct majority, until the 2014 Lok Sabha elections when BJP received a clear
majority. In such cases, Presidents have used their discretion and directed Prime Ministerial
aspirants to establish their credentials before being invited to form the government. Typically, the
aspirants have been asked to produce letters from various party leaders, with the signatures of
all the MPs who are pledging support to their candidature. This is in addition to the requirement
that a Prime Minister prove he has the support of the Lok Sabha (by a vote on the floor of the
House) within weeks of being sworn into office.[53][54]

Pocket veto of the Postal Bill[edit]

See also: Pocket veto and Zail Singh
Since the Indian Constitution does not provide any time limit within which the President is to
declare his assent or refusal, the President could exercise a "pocket veto" by not taking any
action for an indefinite time. The veto was used in 1986 by the then President Zail Singh over the
Postal Bill. The President did not give assent to the bill, arguing that its scope was too sweeping
and would give the government arbitrary powers to intercept postal communications
indiscriminately.[49][55][56]

Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqus[edit]

In the late 1990s, President K. R. Narayanan introduced explaining to the nation (by means of
Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqus), the thinking that led to the various decisions he took while
exercising his discretionary powers; this has led to openness and transparency in the functioning
of the President.[57]

Offices of Profit Bill[edit]

See also: Office of profit
The constitution gives the President the power to return a bill unsigned but it circumscribes the
power to send it back only once for reconsideration. If the Parliament sends back the bill with or
without changes, the President is obliged to sign it. In mid-2006, President A. P. J. Abdul
Kalam sent back a controversial bill regarding the exclusion of certain offices from the scope of
'offices of profit', the holding of which would disqualify a person from being a member of
parliament.[58] The combined opposition, the NDA, hailed the move. The UPA chose to send the
bill back to the president without any changes and, after 17 days, Kalam gave his assent on 18
August 2006.[59][60]

List of Presidents of India[edit]

Main article: List of Presidents of India

1950: Dr. Rajendra Prasad (507,000 electoral votes) defeated K T

Shah (92,000), Lakshman Ganesh (Kartar Singh) Thatte, Chowdhry Hari Ram

1957: Rajendra Prasad defeated Hari Ram

1962: Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (553,067 votes) defeated Hari Ram (6,341)

1967: Dr.Zakir Hussain (politician) (471,000) defeated Koka Subbarao (363,000), Hari
Ram (zero votes), and 10-11 other inconsequential candidates

1969: V V Giri (401,000) defeated Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (313,000) and C D

Deshmukh (112,000); second round Giri (420,000) beat Reddy (405,000)

1974: Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed defeated Tridib Chaudhuri

1977: Neelam Sanjiva Reddy elected unopposed

1982: Zail Singh defeated Hans Raj Khanna

1987: R Venkataraman beat V R Krishna Iyer

1992: Shankar Dayal Sharma bt G G Swell

1997: K R Narayanan defeated T N Seshan

2002: Dr.A P J Abdul Kalam defeated Lakshmi Sahgal

2007: Pratibha Patil defeated Bhairon Singh Shekhawat

2012: Pranab Mukherjee defeated P A Sangma

Election, oath and term[edit]

Qualifications[edit]
As in the case of the President, in order to be qualified to be elected as Vice President, a person
must:

Have completed more than 35 years of age

Not hold any office of profit

While in order to be a President, a person must be qualified for election as a member of the Lok
Sabha (House of Peoples), the Vice President must be qualified for election as a member of
the Rajya Sabha (Council of States).[2] This difference is because the Vice President is to act as
the ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

Election[edit]
The Vice President is elected indirectly, by an electoral college consisting of members of both
houses of the Parliament. The election of the Vice President is slightly different from the election
of the President as the members of state legislatures are not part of the electoral college for the
Vice Presidential election.
The nomination of a candidate for election to the office of the Vice President must be subscribed
by at least 20 electors as proposers and 20 electors as seconders. Every candidate has to make
a security deposit of Rs.15,000 in the Reserve Bank of India.
The Election Commission of India, which is a constitutional autonomous body, conducts the
election. The election is to be held no later than 60 days of the expiry of the term of office of the
outgoing Vice President. A Returning Officer is appointed for the election, usually the SecretaryGeneral of either House of the Parliament, by rotation. The Returning Officer issues a public
notice of the intended election, inviting nomination of candidates. Any person qualified to be
elected and intending to stand for election is required to be nominated by at least twenty
Members of Parliament as proposers, and at least twenty other Members of Parliament as
seconders. The nomination papers are scrutinized by the Returning Officer, and the names of all
eligible candidates are added to the ballot.
The election is proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote by secret
ballot. Voters stack-rank the candidates, assigning 1 to their first preference, 2 to their second
preference, and so on. The number of votes required by a candidate to secure the election is
calculated by dividing the total number of votes by two, and adding one to the quotient by
disregarding any remainder. If no candidate obtains the required number of first-preference
votes, the candidate with the least number of first-preference votes is eliminated and his/her
second-preference votes are transferred. The process is repeated until a candidate obtains the
requisite number of votes. Nominated members can also participate in the election. [4]
After the election has been held and the votes counted, the Returning Officer declares the result
of the election to the electoral college. Thereafter, he/she reports the result to the Central
Government (Ministry of Law & Justice) and the Election Commission of India and the Central
Government publishes the name of the person elected as Vice President, in the Official Gazette.
The Vice-President may resign his office by submitting his resignation to the President. The
resignation becomes effective from the day it is accepted.

Election disputes[edit]
All disputes arising in connection with the election of the Vice President are petitioned to
the Supreme Court of India, which inquires into the matter. The petition is heard by a five-

member bench of the Supreme Court, which decides on the matter. The decision of the Supreme
Court is final.[4]

Oath of Affirmation[edit]
The article 69 of Indian Constitution provides the Oath of Affirmation for the Office of Vice
President as under:"I, ________ do swear in the name of God/solemnly affirm that I will bear true faith and
allegiance to solemnly affirm the Constitution of India as by law established and that I will
faithfully discharge the duty upon which I am about to enter."
The President administers the oath of office and secrecy to the Vice-President.

Term[edit]
The Vice President holds office for five years. He/she can be re-elected any number of times.
However, the office may be terminated earlier by death, resignation or removal. The Constitution
does not provide a mechanism of succession to the office of Vice President in the event of an
extraordinary vacancy, apart from re-election. However, the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya
Sabha can perform the duties of the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha in such an event.

Removal[edit]
The Vice President cannot be formally impeached, unlike the President. The Constitution states
that the Vice President can be removed by a resolution of the Rajya Sabhapassed by an
effective majority (more than 50% of effective membership(total membership - Vacant seats)) and
agreed to by a simple majority (50% of present and voting members) of the Lok Sabha (Article
67(b)).[2] But no such resolution may be moved unless at least 14 days' advance notice has been
given. Notably, the Constitution does not list grounds for removal.
No Vice President or ex officio Vice President has ever faced removal proceedings. [5]

Salary and pension[edit]

There is no provision for the salary of the Vice President of India in that capacity. He/She gets
the salary in his capacity as the ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States),
which is currently Rs. 1,25,000 per month. In addition, he/she is entitled to daily allowance, free
furnished residence, medical, travel and other facilities.[6] The constitution provides that when
the ex officio Vice President acts as the President or discharges the duties of the President,
he/she is entitled to the salary and privileges of the President.
The pension for the Vice-President is 50% of the salary.[7]

Sarvepalli
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The Judiciary interprets the Constitution as its final arbiter.[3] It is its duty as mandated by the
Constitution, to be its watchdog, by calling for scrutiny any act of the legislature or the executive,
who otherwise, are free to enact or implement these, from overstepping bounds set for them by
the Constitution.[4] It acts like a guardian in protecting the fundamental rights of the people, as
enshrined in the Constitution, from infringement by any organ of the state. It also balances the
conflicting exercise of power between the centre and a state or among states, as assigned to
them by the Constitution.
While pronouncing decisions under its constitutional mandate, it is expected to remain unaffected
by pulls and pressures exerted by other branches of the state, citizens or interest groups. And
crucially, independence of the judiciary has been held to be a basic feature of the Constitution, [5]
[6]

and which being inalienable, has come to mean - that which cannot be taken away from it by

any act or amendment by the legislature or the executive.[7] This independence shows up in the
following manner: No minister, or even the executive collectively, can suggest any names for
appointment as judges, to the President,[8][9] who ultimately decides on appointing them from a list
of names recommended only by the collegium of the judiciary. Nor can judges of the Supreme
Court or a High Court be removed from office once appointed, unless an overwhelming twothirds of members of any of the Houses of the Parliament back the move, and only on grounds of
proven misconduct or incapacity.[10][11] A person who has been a judge of a court is debarred from
practicing in the jurisdiction of that court.

Appointment and Transfer of Judges at Present[edit]

As per the Constitution, as held by the court in the Three Judges' Cases - (1982, 1993, 1998), a
judge is appointed to the Supreme Court and the High Courts by the President of India from a list
of names recommended by the collegium a closed group of the Chief Justice of India and the
most senior judges of the Supreme Court, for appointments to the Supreme Court, and they,
together with the Chief Justice of a High Court and its senior-most judges, for appointments to
that court. This has resulted in a Memorandum of Procedure being followed, for the
appointments.
Judges used to be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Union Cabinet.
After 1993, as held in the Second Judges' Case, the executive was given the power to reject a

name recommended by the judiciary. However, according to some, the executive has not been
diligent in using this power to reject the names of bad candidates recommended. [12][13][14]
The collegium system has come under a fair amount of criticism.[9] Presently, by a recent order in
the Fourth Judges' Case,[15] the court has invited everyone,[16] including the public,[17][18] to suggest
by mid-November 2015,[19] how to improve it, broadly along the lines of - setting up an eligibility
criteria for appointments, a permanent secratariat to help the collegium sift through material on
potential candidates, infusing more transparency into the selection process, grievance redressal
and any other suggestion not in these four categories, like transfer of judges. [20]
Earlier, one recommendation by a collegium came to be challenged in court. The court held that
who could become a judge was a matter of fact, and any person had a right to question it. But
who should become a judge was a matter of opinion and could not be questioned. As long as an
effective consultation took place within a collegium in arriving at that opinion, the content or
material placed before it to form the opinion could not be called for scrutiny in a court. [21]

Courts[edit]
Supreme Court of India[edit]
Main article: Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest court of the land as established by Part V, Chapter
IV of the Constitution of India. According to it, the Supreme Court is a federal court, guardian of
the Constitution and the highest court of appeal. Articles 124 to 147 of the Constitution lay down
the composition and jurisdiction of the Court. Primarily, it is an appellate court which takes up
appeals against judgments of the High Courts of the states and territories. However, it also takes
writ petitions in cases of serious human rights violations or any petition filed under Article 32
which is the right to constitutional remedies or if a case involves a serious issue that needs
immediate resolution.[22] It had its inaugural sitting on 28 January 1950, the day India's
constitution came into force,[23] and since then has delivered more than 24,000 reported
judgments.
The Supreme Court comprises the Chief Justice and 30 other Judges.
The proceedings of the Supreme Court are conducted in English only. Supreme Court Rules,
1966 are framed under Article 145 of the Constitution to regulate the practice and procedure of
the Supreme Court.

High courts[edit]
Main article: High courts of India
There are 24 High Courts at the State level. Article 141 of the Constitution of India mandates that
they are bound by the judgments and orders of the Supreme Court of India by precedence.
These courts have jurisdiction over a state, a union territory or a group of states and union
territories. Below the High Courts are a hierarchy of subordinate courts such as the civil courts,

family courts, criminal courts and various other district courts. High courts are instituted
as constitutional courts under Part VI, Chapter V, Article 214 of theIndian Constitution.
The High Courts are the principal civil courts of original jurisdiction in the state along with District
Courts which are subordinate to the High courts. However, High courts exercise their original civil
and criminal jurisdiction only if the courts subordinate to the high court in the state are not
competent (not authorised by law) to try such matters for lack of pecuniary, territorial jurisdiction.
High courts may also enjoy original jurisdiction in certain matters if so designated specifically in a
state or Federal law. e.g.: Company law cases are instituted only in a high court.
However, primarily the work of most High Courts consists of Appeals from lower courts and writ
petitions in terms of Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Writ Jurisdiction is also original
jurisdiction of High Court. The precise territorial jurisdiction of each High Court varies.
Judges in a high court are appointed by the President after consultation with the Chief Justice of
India, Chief Justice of High Court and the governor of the state. The number of judges in a court
is decided by dividing the average institution of main cases during the last five years by the
national average, or the average rate of disposal of main cases per judge per year in that High
Court, whichever is higher.[citation needed]
The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in the country, established on 2 July 1862,
whereas the Allahabad High Court is the largest, having a sanctioned strength of judges at 160.
High courts which handle a large number of cases of a particular region, have
permanent benches (or a branch of the court) established there. For litigants of remote regions,
'circuit benches' are set up, which work for those days in a month when judges visit. [24]

District courts[edit]
Main article: District Courts of India
The District Courts of India are established by the State governments in India for every district or
for one or more districts together taking into account the number of cases, population distribution
in the district. They administer justice in India at a district level. These courts are under
administrative control of the High Court of the State to which the district concerned belongs. The
decisions of District court are subject to the appellate jurisdiction of the concerned High court. [25]
The district court is presided over by one District Judge appointed by the state Government. In
addition to the district judge there may be number of Additional District Judges and Assistant
District Judges depending on the workload. The Additional District Judge and the court presided
have equivalent jurisdiction as the District Judge and his district court. [26] The district judge is also
called "Metropolitan session judge" when he is presiding over a district court in a city which is
designated "Metropolitan area" by the state Government. [27] The district court has appellate
jurisdiction over all subordinate courts situated in the district on both civil and criminal matters.
Subordinate courts, on the civil side (in ascending order) are, Junior Civil Judge Court, Principal
Junior Civil Judge Court, Senior Civil Judge Court (also called sub-court). Subordinate courts, on
the criminal side (in ascending order) are, Second Class Judicial Magistrate Court, First Class

Judicial Magistrate Court, Chief Judicial Magistrate Court.In addition 'Family Courts" are
established to deal with matrimonial disputes alone. The Principal judge of family court is
equivalent to District Judge.

Village courts[edit]
Village courts, called Lok Adalat (people's court) or Nyaya Panchayat (justice of the villages),
compose a system of alternative dispute resolution.[28]
They were recognized through the 1888 Madras Village Court Act, then developed (after 1935) in
various provinces and (after 1947) Indian states.[28] The model from the Gujarat State (with a
judge and two assessors) was used from the 1970s onwards.[28] In 1984 the Law Commission
recommended to create Nyaya Panchayats in rural areas with laymen ("having educational
attainments").[28] The 2008 Gram Nyayalayas Act have foreseen 5,000 mobile courts in the
country for judging petty civil (property cases) and criminal (up to 2 years of prison) cases.
[28]

However, the Act has not been enforced properly, with only 151 functional Gram Nyayalayas in

the country (as of May 2012) against a target of 5000 such courts.[29] The major reasons behind
the non-enforcement includes financial constraints, reluctance of lawyers, police and other
government officials.[2
The Election Commission of India is an autonomous constitutional authority responsible for
administering election processes toLok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, state legislatures and the offices of
the President and Vice President in India.[1] Election Commission operates under the authority
of Constitution, and subsequently enacted Representation of the People Act. The Supreme Court
of India has held that where the enacted laws are silent or make insufficient provision to deal with
a given situation in the conduct of elections, the Election Commission has the residuary powers
under the Constitution to act in an appropriate manner.
Contents
[hide]

1Structure

2Functions and powers

3State Election Commission

4Modernization

5Criticism

6References

7External links

Structure[edit]

Originally in 1950, the commission had only a Chief Election

Commissioner. Two additional Commissioners were appointed to the
commission for the first time on 16 October 1989, but they had a very
short tenureuntil 1 January 1990. The Election Commissioner Amendment
Act, 1993 made the Election Commission a multi-member body. The concept
of a 3-member Commission has been in operation since then, with
decision-making power by majority vote.[2]
The Chief Election Commissioner of India can be removed from his office by Parliament with twothirds majority in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabhaon the grounds of proven misbehavior or
incapacity. Other Election Commissioners can be removed by the President on the
recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner. A Chief Election Commissioner has never
been impeached in India. In 2009, just before the 2009 Lok Sabha Elections, CEC
NGopalaswami sent a recommendation to President Patil to remove Election
Commissioner Navin Chawla, who was soon to take office as a Chief Election Commissioner and
to subsequently supervise the Lok Sabha Election, citing his partisan behavior in favor of one
political party.[3] The President opined that such a recommendation is not binding on the
President, and hence rejected it.[4]Subsequently, after CEC Gopalaswami's retirement next
month, Navin Chawla became the Chief Election Commissioner and supervised the bulk of 2014
Lok Sabha Elections.[5] The Chief Election Commissioner and the two Election Commissioners
draw salaries and allowances at par with those of the Judges of the Supreme Court of India as
per the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Conditions of Service)
Rules, 1992.

Functions and powers[edit]

Main article: Election Commission of India's Model Code of Conduct
One of the most important features of the democratic polity is elections at regular intervals.
Holding periodic free and fair elections are essentials of democratic system. It is a part of the
basic structure of the Constitution.<ref>AIR 1995 SC 852</ref> The Election Commission is
regarded as the guardian of free and fair elections. In every election, it issues a Model code of
Conduct for political parties and candidates to conduct elections in a free and fair manner. The
Commission issued the code for the first time in 1971 (5th Election) and revised it from time to
time. It lay down guidelines for conduct of political parties and candidates during elections.
However, there are instances of violation of code by the political parties and complaints are
received for misuse of official machinery by the candidates. The need for such code is in the
interest of free and fair elections. However, the code does not have any specific statutory basis. It
has only a persuasive effect. It contains what, known as "rules of electoral morality". But this lack
of statutory backing does not prevent the Commission from enforcing it.
A law regarding to the registration process for political parties was enacted in 1989 and number
of parties got registered with the Commission.<ref name="eci.nic.in">Welcome to Election

Commission of India. Eci.nic.in. Retrieved on 2014-05-21.</ref> It helps to avoid confusion of the

administrative machinery and the electorate and ensures that political parties are brought under
the purview of the election commission.
To get rid of the growing influences and vulgar show of money during elections the Election
Commission has made many suggestions in this regard. The Election Commission has fixed the
legal limits on the amount of money which a candidate can spend during election campaigns.
These limits have been revised from time to time. The Election Commission by appointing
observers keeps an eye on the individual account of election expenditure. The contestants are
also required to give details of expenditure within 30 days of declaration of results. The campaign
period was reduced by the Election Commission from 21 to 14 days for Lok Sabha and Assembly
elections to trim down election expenditure. Moreover, Election Commission takes details of the
candidate's assets on affidavit at the time of submitting nomination paper.
The Commission can issue an order for prohibition of publication and disseminating of results
of opinion polls or exit polls.<ref name="photius.com">India Election Commission Sources: The
Library of Congress Country Studies; CIA World Factbook</ref>

State Election Commission[edit]

The power of superintendence, direction and control of all elections to the local government
bodies vest with the State Election Commissions as envisaged in Article 243K of the Constitution
of India. The Constitutional (73rd Amendment) Act, passed in 1992 by the Narasimha Rao
government, came into force on April 24, 1993. It was meant to provide constitutional sanction to
establish "democracy at the grassroots level as it is at the state level or national level" The State
Election Commissioner has several unique powers pertaining to the elections to Local Bodies,
which include the following. SEC chairs the Delimitation Commission which delimits local
government constituencies. He has full powers to conduct local government elections including
disciplinary powers over staff who are on election duty and assigns reserved posts and
constituencies. The SEC can disqualify candidates who do not submit election accounts,
members found guilty of defection and elected representative who do not convene the Grama
Sabha. 111

Modernization[edit]

NOTA symbol in India

The Election Commission had tried to bring improvements in election procedures by introduction
of EVM Electronic voting machines. It was thought that EVMs would reduce malpractices and
improve efficiency. It was first tried out on an experimental basis in the state of Kerala for the
1982 Legislative Assembly Elections. After successful testing and legal inquires, the Commission
took the decision to begin the use of EVMs.[2] The Election Commission launched a web site of its
own on 28 February 1998. It helps to provide accurate information, management, administration
and also instant results of the elections. In 1998, Election Commission decided on a program for
the 'computerization' of the electoral rolls. In an effort to prevent electoral fraud, in 1993 EPICs
Electorals Photo Identity Cards were issued. In the 2004 elections, it was mandatory to possess
the card. But even ration cards and driving licenses is allowed to be used for election purposes.
The introduction of Voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) in eight Lok Sabha constituencies in
2014 Indian General Elections was a big achievement after the Supreme Court judgement in
October 2013.[6] Voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) system was first used with EVMs in a bypoll in September 2013 in Noksen (Assembly Constituency) in Nagaland.[7] VVPAT was used in
gradual manner in all elections starting from September 2013- Mizoram Legislative Assembly
election, 2013,Delhi Legislative Assembly election, 2013,Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly
election, 2013,Rajasthan Legislative Assembly election, 2013,Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly
election, 2013, Indian general election, 2014, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election,
2014,Haryana Legislative Assembly election, 2014, Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly
election, 2014,Jharkhand Legislative Assembly election, 2014. NOTA was also an option
on Indian voting machines in 2014 Lok Sabha elections and now it is a mandatory option in every
subsequent elections.[8][9]
The specific symbol for NOTA, a ballot paper with a black cross across it, was introduced on 18
September 2015. The symbol is designed by National Institute of Design,Ahmedabad.[10][11]
Photo voter slips would be provided to voters. Bihar became the first state to have photo
electoral rolls, with photographs of candidates on EVMs in Bihar Legislative Assembly election,
2015.[12][13]

Criticism[edit]