Executive Class| Chapter 4 Class 11 Polity Notes

The Executive, Legislature, and Judiciary are the three organs of government. Together, they perform the functions of the government, maintain law and order, and look after the welfare of the people. In this article, we will look into the Chapter 4 Executive in detail.

Students can through this article for comprehensive notes on ‘Executive‘.

Executive Class| Chapter 4 Class 11 Polity Notes

What is an Executive?

The organ of government that mainly looks after the function of implementation and administration is called the executive. It is the branch of government that is responsible for the implementation of laws and policies adopted by the legislature. The executive branch contains the Presidents, Prime ministers, and ministers. It also extends to the administrative machinery like civil servants.

What are the Different Types of Executives?

1. Presidential System
   • The president is the Head of state and the head of government.
   • In this system, the president’s office is very powerful, both in theory and practice.
   • Countries with such a system include the United States, Brazil, and most nations in Latin America.
2. Parliamentary System
   • The prime minister is the head of government.
   • The president or a monarch is the nominal Head of state.
   • The role of the President or Monarch is to be the ceremonial head while, the Prime Minister along with the Cabinet wields effective power.
   • Countries with such a system include Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom as well as Portugal.
3. Semi-Presidential Executive
   • It has both a President and a Prime Minister but unlike the parliamentary system, the President may possess significant day-to-day powers.
   • Sometimes the President and the PM may belong to the same party and sometimes to two different parties and thus, would be opposed to each other.
   • Countries with such a system include France, Russia, Sri Lanka.

Parliamentary Executive In India

India already had some experience of running the parliamentary system under the Acts of 1919 and 1935. This experience has shown that in the parliamentary system, the executive can be effectively controlled by the representatives of the people. The Constitution makers wanted to ensure that the government would be sensitive to public expectations and would be responsible and accountable. So, that the executive will be answerable to and controlled by the legislature or people’s representatives. Choosing a presidential form of government has consistently placed the risk of encouraging a personality cult. Hence, India chose a Parliamentary Executive.

Parliamentary System In India

The Constitution adopted the parliamentary system of executive for the governments both at the national and State levels.

At National Level

• The Constitution vests the executive power of the Union formally in the President who is the formal Head of the state of India.
• The President exercises these powers through the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers run the government.

At the State Level

• The executive comprises the Governor the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers.

The President – Powers and Position

The President of India is the head of the Indian Executive. Let’s discuss his powers and positions:

• Article 74 (1) says “There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President who shall in the exercise of his functions, act by such advice.”
• Term of President
  • The President is elected for five years.
• Election of President
  • There is no direct election by the people for the office of the President.
  • The elected MLAs and MPs vote in their election by the principle of proportional representation with the single transferable vote.
• Removal of President
  • The President can be removed from office only by Parliament by following the procedure for impeachment which requires a special majority.
  • The only ground for impeachment is a violation of the Constitution.

Power and Position of President

• As the formal Head of the government
  • The President has wide-ranging executive, legislative, judicial and emergency powers.
  • In a parliamentary system these powers are in reality used by the President only on the advice of the Council of Ministers.
  • The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers have the support of the majority in the Lok Sabha they are the real executive.
  • In most cases, the President has to follow the advice of the Council of Ministers.

Discretionary Powers of the President

Constitutionally, the President has a right to be informed of all important matters and deliberations of the Council of Ministers. The Prime Minister is obliged to furnish all the information that the President may call for. The President often writes to the Prime Minister and expresses his views on matters confronting the country.

Three Situations where the President can exercise the power using his or her withhold discretionwithholddiscretion

1. The President can send back the advice given by the Council of Ministers and ask the Council to reconsider the decision.
2. Veto power by which he can withhold or refuse to give assent to Bills (other than the Money Bill) passed by the Parliament.
3. When after an election, no leader has a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, the President has to decide whom to appoint as the Prime Minister. This discretion arises more out of political circumstances.

The Vice President – Powers and Position

• Article 74 (1) says “There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President who shall in the exercise of his functions, act in accordance with such advice.”
• Term of Vice President
  • The President is elected for five years.
• Election of Vice President
  • It is similar to that of the President and the only difference is that members of State legislatures are not part of the electoral college.
• Removal of Vice President
  • The Vice President may be removed from his office by a resolution of the Rajya Sabha passed by a majority and agreed to by the Lok Sabha.
• Role of Vice President
  • The Vice President acts as the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and takes over the office of the President when there is a vacancy by reasons of death, resignation, removal by impeachment, or otherwise.
  • Acts as the President only until a new President is elected. For example, B. D. Jatti acted as President on the death of Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed until a new President was elected.

Prime Minister and Council of Ministers

The Prime Minister becomes the most important functionary of the government in our country. The President exercises his powers only on the advice of the Council of Ministers which is headed by the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister

The Prime Minister is the head of the Council of Ministers and he allocates ranks and portfolios to the ministers. In the parliamentary form of executive, the Prime Minister must have the support of the majority in the Lok Sabha. So, he loses the office if this support of the majority is lost. In a coalition government, a person is appointed PM who is acceptable to most partners of the coalition. If someone becomes a minister or Prime Minister without being an MP, such a person has to get elected to the Parliament within six months. The Prime Minister is all-powerful whenever a single political party has secured a majority in the Lok Sabha and sometimes looks weak when he leads a coalition government.

Council of Ministers

The Prime Minister decides who will be the Ministers in the Council of Ministers. The Ministers are given the ranks of Cabinet Minister, Minister of State, or Deputy Minister. Similarly, Chief Ministers of the States choose Ministers from their party or coalition. The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha. This provision means that a Ministry which loses the confidence of the Lok Sabha is obliged to resign.

Size of the Council of Ministers

• The Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15 percent of the total number of members of the House of the People (or Assembly for states). This is by the 91st Amendment Act (2003).
• Before this, the size of the Council of Ministers was determined according to the exigencies of time and requirements of the situation. The minister’s berth was used as a temptation to win over the support of the members of the Parliament.

Executive under the control and supervision of the legislature

• The Council of Ministers is collectively accountable to the Lok Sabha.
• If the Council of Ministers loses the confidence of the Lok Sabha, it is obliged to resign.
• Collective responsibility entails the solidarity of the cabinet, meaning a vote of no confidence against any minister leads to the resignation of the entire Council of Ministers.
• All Ministers must adhere to or support a policy decision of the cabinet, if a minister does not agree with a policy or decision of the cabinet, he or she must either accept the decision or resign.

Pre-eminent Position of Prime Minister

• The Council comes into existence only after the Prime Minister has taken the oath of office.
• The death or resignation of the Prime Minister automatically brings about the dissolution of the Council of Ministers but the demise, dismissal, or resignation of a minister only creates a ministerial vacancy.
• The Prime Minister acts as a link between the Council of Ministers on the one hand and the President as well as the Parliament on the other. Thus referred to as ‘Linchpin of the Government‘.
• The Prime Minister is involved in all crucial decisions of the government and decides on the policies of the government.
• The power wielded by the Prime Minister flows from various sources: control over the Council of Ministers, leadership of the Lok Sabha, command over the bureaucratic machine, access to media, projection of personalities during elections, projection as national leader during international summitry as well as foreign visits.

Parliamentary Executive at the State level

• At the State level, a similar parliamentary executive exists, albeit with some variations.
• An important variation is that the Governor of the State is appointed by the President, typically on the advice of the central government.
• Despite the Chief Minister, like the Prime Minister, being the leader of the majority party in the Assembly, the Governor possesses more discretionary powers.
• The main principles of the parliamentary system also operate at the State level.

Permanent Executive: Bureaucracy

• The Executive organ of the government comprises the Prime Minister, the Ministers, and a substantial organization known as the bureaucracy or administrative machinery.
• To distinguish it from the military service, this machinery is referred to as the civil service.
• Trained and skilled officers, who serve as permanent employees of the government, are tasked with assisting the Ministers in formulating and implementing policies.

Role of Bureaucracy

• In a democracy, the elected representatives and the Ministers hold the reins of government, with the administration under their control and supervision.
• Administrative officers are bound not to contravene the policies adopted by the legislature. It falls on the Ministers to uphold political control over the administration.
• India has instituted a professional administrative machinery that is politically accountable.
• The bureaucracy refrains from taking any political stance on policy matters.

System of Indian Bureaucracy

The system is enormously complex, encompassing the All-India services, State services, employees of local governments, and technical and managerial staff overseeing public sector undertakings.

• The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is tasked with recruiting civil servants which ensures impartial selection based on merit. Similar public service commissions are established for the States.
• Besides IAS and IPS officers appointed by the UPSC, State administration is managed by officers appointed through State Public Service Commissions.
• The Constitution mandates job reservations for Dalits and Adivasis, and subsequently for women and other backward classes.
• Members of the Public Service Commissions
  • Appointed for fixed terms.
  • Removed or suspended following a thorough inquiry conducted by a Supreme Court judge.

Issues of Indian Bureaucracy

• Insensitivity to ordinary citizens: Many individuals are reluctant to approach government officers due to fear or intimidation.
• The politicization of the bureaucracy has occurred, turning it into a tool for politicians.
• There are insufficient provisions to protect civil servants from political interference.
• Lack of accountability: There are inadequate measures in place to ensure the bureaucracy is accountable to citizens.
• Expectations exist that measures like the Right to Information may enhance bureaucratic responsiveness and accountability.

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Executive- FAQs

What do you mean by executive?

The executive is the part of the government that makes sure laws are carried out. It can be one person or a team of people who have authority to manage and oversee things in the government or organization. Their main job is to enforce the rules and laws that have been made.

Who is head of government?

The Prime Minister is the head of the goverment whereas, the president is the head of the nation.

Is Prime Minister part of executive?

Yes, the Prime Minister is the part of the exectives. The President, the Vice-President, and the Council of Ministers form the Union Executives.

Are bureaucrats part of executive?

The Executive organ of the government includes the Prime Minister, the ministers and a large organisation called the bureaucracy or the administrative machinery

How many Council of Ministers are there in India?

The Central Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha (Article 75(1A)). Currenltly there are 78 council of mininsters.

Who appoints Council of Ministers India?

The President on the advice of the prime minister appoints the coucil of ministers in India.