FEDERALISM

What is federalism?

Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central

authority and various state governments of the country.
A federation has two levels of government. One is the government for the entire country that
is usually responsible for a few subjects (departments) of common national interest.
The state governments at the provinces look after much of the day-to-day administering of
their state.

The dual objectives federal system:

1. To safeguard and promote unity of the country.

2.

At the same time accommodate regional diversity.

Two aspects that are crucial for the institutions and practice of federalism (Two
qualities of Ideal Federalism).

1. Governments at different levels should agree to some rules of power-sharing. They should
trust each other.
2. People must have agreement to live together.
(An ideal federal system has both aspects: mutual trust between central government and state
governments and agreement between majority and minority to live together).

There are two kinds of routes through which federations are formed.

1. The first route involves independent States coming together on their own to form a bigger
unit to increase their security. This type of federation is called coming together federation.
2. In this category of federations, all the States are equally powerful and strong. Examples- the
USA, Switzerland and Australia
3. The second route is where a large country decides to divide its power between the States and
the national government. This type of federation is called holding together federation.
4. In this second category, the central government tends to be more powerful than the States.
Examples-India, Spain and Belgium.

What is Unitary system?

Under the unitary system, either there is only one level of government or the sub-units are
subordinate to the central government. The central government can pass on orders to the state
or the local government.

Explain some of the key features of federalism:

1. There are two or more levels of government in federalism.

2. Different levels of government govern the same citizens, but each level has its own
jurisdiction for legislation, taxation and administration which are specified in the constitution.
3. The fundamental provisions of the constitution can be changed only by consulting both the
levels of government.
4. Supreme Court has the power to interpret the constitution and the powers of different levels
of government. The highest court acts as an umpire if disputes arise between different levels
of government.
5. Sources of revenue for each level of government are clearly specified to ensure its financial
autonomy.

What makes India a federal country? OR What are the power sharing arrangements
done in our country? OR The three (four) fold distribution of legislative powers
between the Union Government and the State Governments.

1. Union List includes subjects of national importance such as defense, foreign affairs, banking,
communications and currency. They are included in this list because we need a uniform
policy on these matters throughout the country. The Union Government alone can make laws
relating to these subjects.
2. State List contains subjects of State and local importance such as police, trade, commerce,
agriculture and irrigation. The State Governments alone can make laws relating to the
subjects mentioned in the State List.
3. Concurrent List includes subjects of common interest to both the Union Government as well
as the State Governments, such as education, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption and
succession. Both the Union as well as the State Governments can make laws on these
subjects.
4. Subjects that do not fall in any of the three lists like computer software that came up after the
constitution was made are called residuary list. Union Government has the power to legislate
on these residuary subjects.
5. Some States of India enjoy a special status. Jammu and Kashmir has its own Constitution.
Many provisions of the Indian Constitution are not applicable to this State without the
approval of the State Assembly. Indians who are not permanent residents of this State cannot
buy land or house here.
How is federalism practiced in India?

1. Linguistic States
a.

The creation of Linguistic States was the first and a major test for federal practice in our
country.

b. In 1947, the boundaries of several old States of India were changed in order to create new
States.
c.

This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State.

d. Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognize differences based on
culture, ethnicity or geography.
e.

These include States like Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.

2. Language policy
a.

Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language.

b. Hindi was identified as the official language. But Hindi is the mother tongue of only about 40
per cent of Indians. Therefore, there were many safeguards to protect other languages.
c.

Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognised as Scheduled Languages by the
Constitution.

d. A candidate in an examination conducted for the Central Government positions may opt to
take the examination in any of these languages.
e.

States too have their own off icial languages. Much of the government work takes place in
the official language of the concerned State.

3. Centre-State relations
a.

Restructuring the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been
strengthened in practice.

b. For a long time, the same party ruled both at the Centre and in most of the States. This meant
that the State governments did not exercise their rights as autonomous federal units.
c.

In those days, the Central Government would often misuse the Constitution to dismiss the
State governments that were controlled by rival parties. This undermined the spirit of
federalism.

d. All this changed significantly after 1990. This period saw the rise of regional political parties
in many States of the country.
e.

System of coalition government led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the
autonomy of State Governments. This trend was supported by a major judgement of the
Supreme Court that made it difficult for the Central Government to dismiss state
governments.

Decentralisation in India

What is decentralization? Explain its needs.

1. When some powers are taken away from Central and State governments and given to local
government bodies, it is called decentralisation.
2. The basic idea behind decentralisation is that there are a large number of problems and issues
which are best settled at the local level. People have better knowledge of problems in their
localities.
3. They also have better ideas on where to spend money and how to manage things more
efficiently. Besides, at the local level it is possible for the people to directly participate in
decision making.
4. Elections to these local governments were not held regularly.
5.

Local governments did not have any powers or resources of their own.

What were the major steps that taken towards decentralization to make the third-tier of
democracy more powerful and effective?
1. Now it is constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections to local government bodies
once in five years
2. Seats are reserved in the elected bodies and the executive heads of these institutions for the
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
3. At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women.
4. An independent institution called the State Election Commission has been created in each
State to conduct panchayat and municipal elections.
5. The State and central governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local
government bodies.

Explain the working of Local Self Government in India?

1.

Each village, or a group of villages in some States, has a gram panchayat. A president or
sarpanch is directly elected by all the adult population living in that village.

2. A few gram panchayats are grouped together to form a panchayat samiti or block samiti. The
members of this representative body are elected by all the panchyat members in that block.
3. All the panchayat samitis or mandals in a district together constitute the zilla (district)
parishad. Most members of the zilla parishad are elected. Zilla parishad chairperson is the
political head of the zilla parishad.
4. Similarly, local government bodies exist for urban areas as well. Municipalities are set up in
towns and small cities. Municipal chairperson is the political head of the municipality.
5. Big cities are constituted into municipal corporations. In a municipal corporation such an
elected representative is called the mayor.

********************

Posted by P.Suresh at 4:31:00 pm No comments:

Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest

Friday, 14 February 2014

Democratic Rights

DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS
Violation of Citizens rights by the USA
1. About 600 people were secretly picked up by the US forces from all over the world and put
in a prison in Guantanamo Bay, an area near Cuba controlled by Americas Navy.
2. The American government said that they were enemies of the US and linked to the attack on
New York on 11 September 2001.
3. Families of prisoners, media or even UN representatives were not allowed to meet them. The
US army arrested them, interrogated them and decided to keep them there. There was no trial
before any magistrate in the US
4. Amnesty International, an international human rights organisation, collected information on
the condition of the prisoners in Guantanamo Bay and reported that the prisoners were being
tortured in ways that violated the US laws.
5. Prisoners were not released even after they were officially declared not guilty. An
independent inquiry by the UN supported these findings. The UN Secretary General said the
prison in Guantanamo Bay should be closed down. The US government refused to accept
these pleas.
Violation of Citizens Rights in Saudi Arabia
1. The country is ruled by a hereditary king and the people have no role in electing or changing
their rulers.

2. The king selects the legislature as well as the executive. He appoints the judges and can
change any of their decisions.
3. Citizens cannot form political parties or any political organisations. Media cannot report
anything that the monarch does not like.
4. There is no freedom of religion. Every citizen is required to be Muslim. Non-Muslim
residents can follow their religion in private, but not in public.
5. Women are subjected to many public restrictions. The testimony of one man is considered
equal to that of two women.
Violation of Citizens Rights in Yugoslavia (Kosovo)
1. Kosovo was a province of Yugoslavia before its split. In this province the population was
overwhelmingly ethnic Albanian muslims. But in the entire country, Serbs(Christians) were
in majority.
2. A narrow minded Serb nationalist Milosevic had won the election. His government was very
hostile to the Kosovo Albanians. He wanted the Serbs to dominate the country. Many Serb
leaders thought that Ethnic minorities like Albanians should either leave the country or accept
the dominance of the Serbs.
3. 74-year-old Batisha Hoxha was sitting in her kitchen with her 77- yearold husband Izet,
staying warm by the stove. She knew, five or six soldiers had burst through the front door and
were demanding her children.
4. They shot Izet three times in the chest. When her husband dying, the soldiers pulled the
wedding ring off and even before she comes out of the house they burnt her house.
5. This was typical of what happened to thousands of Albanians in that period. This was one of
the worst instances of killings based on ethnic prejudices in recent times. Finally Milosevic
lost power and was tried by an International Court of Justice for crimes against humanity.
What are rights?
Rights are reasonable claims of persons recognised by society and sanctioned by law.
Why do we need rights in a democracy? (OR) Rights are necessary for the very
sustenance of a democracy.
1. In a democracy every citizen has to have the right to vote and the right to be elected to
government.
2. For democratic elections to take place it is necessary that citizens should have the right to
express their opinion, form political parties and take part in political activities.
3. Rights protect minorities from the oppression of majority. They ensure that the majority
cannot do whatever it likes. Rights are guarantees which can be used when things go wrong.
4. The government should protect the citizens rights. But sometimes elected governments may
not protect or may even attack the rights of their own citizens.
5. That is why some rights need to be placed higher than the government, so that the
government cannot violate these. In most democracies the basic rights of the citizen are
written down in the constitution.
What is Right to Equality? How does it apply in providing equality, liberty and justice
to Indians?

1.
2.
3.
4.

5.
6.

Right to equality means that the laws apply in the same manner to all, regardless of a
persons status. This is called the rule of law. Rule of law is the foundation of any democracy.
It means that no person is above the law. There cannot be any distinction between a political
leader, government official and an ordinary citizen.
The government shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds of religion, caste,
ethnicity, sex or place of birth.
Every citizen shall have access to public places like shops, restaurants, hotels, and cinema
halls. Similarly, there shall be no restriction with regard to the use of wells, tanks, bathing
Ghats, roads, playgrounds and places of public resorts maintained by government or
dedicated to the use of general public.
The same principle applies to public jobs. All citizens have equality of opportunity in matters
relating to employment or appointment to any position in the government. No citizen shall be
discriminated against or made ineligible for employment on the grounds mentioned above.
The Constitution mentions one extreme form of social discrimination, the practice of
untouchability, and clearly directs the government to put an end to it. The practice of
untouchability has been forbidden in any form.
What is Right to Freedom? What are the kinds of freedom given to the Indians?

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Right to Freedom means absence of interference in our affairs by others be it other

individuals
or the government.
Indian Constitution gives the right to Freedom of speech and expression
Right to Freedom to assemble in a peaceful manner
Right to Freedom to form associations and unions
Right to Freedom to move freely throughout the country
Right to Freedom to reside in any part of the country
Right to Freedom to practice any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.
Citizens have the freedom to hold meetings, processions, rallies and demonstrations on any
issue.
Your freedoms should not cause public nuisance or disorder. You are free to do everything
which injures no one else
Rules to be followed by the government or police officer when arrest or detain any
citizen

1. A person who is arrested and detained in custody will have to be informed of the reasons for
such arrest and detention.
2. A person who is arrested and detained shall be produced before the nearest magistrate within
a period of 24 hours of arrest.
3. Such a person has the right to consult a lawyer or engage a lawyer for his defense.
4. Such a person not be tortured or beaten.
5. Such a person to be allowed to meet his family members and relatives.
Right against Exploitation (What are three specific evils which are declared illegal in
the constitution?)
1.

Constitution makers thought it was necessary to write down certain clear provisions to
prevent exploitation of the weaker sections of the society. The Constitution mentions three
specific evils and declares these illegal.

2. First, the Constitution prohibits traffic in human beings. Traffic here means selling and
buying of human beings, usually women, for immoral purposes.
3. Second, our Constitution also prohibits forced labour or begar in any form. Begar is a
practice where the worker is forced to render service to the master free of charge or at a
nominal remuneration.
4. Constitution also prohibits child labour. No one can employ a child below the age of fourteen
to work in any factory or mine or in any other hazardous work, such as railways and ports.
5. Using this as a basis many laws have been made to prohibit children from working in
industries such as beedi making, firecrackers and matches, printing and dyeing.

How is Right to Freedom of Religion practiced in India?

1. Secularism is based on the idea that the state is concerned only with the relation between
human beings and God. A secular state is one that does not establish any one religion as
official religion.
2. Every person has a right to profess, practice and propagate the religion he or she believes in.
Every religious group or sect is free to manage its religious affairs. A right to propagate ones
religion, however, does not mean that a person has right to compel another person to convert
into his religion by means of force, fraud, inducement or allurement.
3. Freedom to practice religion does not mean that a person can do whatever he wants in the
name of religion. For example, one cannot sacrifice animals or human beings as offerings to
supernatural forces or gods. Religious practices which treat women as inferior are not
allowed.
4. Discrimination against people on the basis of religion is not allowed. Thus the government
cannot compel any person to pay any taxes for the promotion or maintenance of any
particular religion or religious institution.
5. There shall be no religious instruction in the government educational institutions. In
educational institutions managed by private bodies no person shall be compelled to take part
in any religious instruction or to attend any religious worship.
What are the guarantees given under the Cultural and Educational Rights?
1. The language, culture and religion of minorities that needs special protection. Otherwise,
they may get neglected or undermined by the majority. That is why the Constitution specifies
the cultural and educational rights of the minorities.
2. Any section of citizens with a distinct language or culture has a right to conserve it.
3. Admission to any educational institution maintained by government or receiving government
aid cannot be denied to any citizen on the ground of religion or language.
4. All minorities have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their
choice.
5. Here minority does not mean only religious minority at the national level. In some places
people speaking a particular language are in majority; people speaking a different language
are in a minority.
How can we secure the fundamental rights? (Right to Constitutional Remedies)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

The fundamental rights in the Constitution are important because they are enforceable. We
have a right to seek the enforcement of the above mentioned rights. This is called the Right to
Constitutional Remedies.
This is a Fundamental Right. This right makes other rights effective. It is possible that
sometimes our rights may be violated by fellow citizens, private bodies or by the government.
When any of our rights are violated we can seek remedy through courts.
If it is a Fundamental Right we can directly approach the Supreme Court or the High Court
of a state. That is why Dr. Ambedkar called the Right to Constitutional Remedies, the heart
and soul of our Constitution.
Courts also enforce the Fundamental Rights against private individuals and bodies. The
Supreme Court and High Courts have the power to issue directions, orders or writs for the
enforcement of the Fundamental Rights.
Fundamental Right, if it is of social or public interest. It is called Public Interest Litigation
(PIL). Under the PIL any citizen or group of citizens can approach the Supreme Court or a
High Court for the protection of public interest against a particular law or action of the
government.
EXPANDING SCOPE OF RIGHTS (Constitutional Rights)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

While Fundamental Rights are the source of all rights, our Constitution and law offers a
wider range of rights. Over the years the scope of rights has expanded. From time to time, the
courts gave judgments to expand the scope of rights.
Now school education has become a right for Indian citizens. The governments are
responsible for providing free and compulsory education to all children up to the age of 14
years.
Parliament has enacted a law giving the right to information to the citizens. We have a right
to seek information from government offices.
Recently the Supreme Court has expanded the meaning of the right to life to include the
right to food.
The right to property and right to vote in elections are important constitutional rights.
Constitution of South Africa guarantees its citizens several kinds of new rights:

1. Right to privacy, so that citizens or their home cannot be searched, their phones cannot be
tapped, their communication cannot be opened.
2. Right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or wellbeing.
3. Right to have access to adequate housing.
4. Right to have access to health care services, sufficient food and water; no one may be refused
emergency medical treatment.
Human right activists all over the world seek a set of rights as a standard of human
rights. These include:
1. Right to work: opportunity to everyone to earn livelihood by working.
2. Right to safe and healthy working conditions, fair wages that can provide decent standard of
living for the workers and their families
3. Right to adequate standard of living including adequate food, clothing and housing.
4. Right to social security and insurance.
5. Right to health: medical care during illness, special care for women during childbirth and
prevention of epidemics

6. Right to education: free and compulsory primary education, equal access to higher education.