Government of the Union

1. Government of the Union S. Manikandan

2. The Union Executive • The President • The Vice President • The Council of Ministers • The Attorney General for India • The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG)

3. The President The Present President of India • Pranab Mukherjee Preceded by Pratibha Patil

4. Shri. Pranab Mukherjee

5. ShriPranabMukherjee • Father's Name: Late ShriKamadaKinkarMukherjee • Mother's Name: Late Smt. RajlakshmiMukherjee • Date of Birth: December 11, 1935 • Place of Birth:Mirati, Kirnahar, District: Birbhum, West Bengal • Marital Status: Married • Spouse's Name: Late Smt. SuvraMukherjee • Children: Two sons and one daughter • Educational Qualifications: M.A. (History), M.A. (Political Science), LL.B., D. Litt. (HonorisCausa), Educated at Vidyasagar College • Permanent Address: Flat No. 2-A, First Floor,60/2/7, KaviBhartiSarani, Lake Road,Kolkata-700 029West Bengal, Tel. (033) 24648366 • Present Address: RashtrapatiBhavan, New Delhi, 110 004., Tel: 011-23015321 • Profession: Political and Social Worker, Teacher, Journalist, Writer • Family Background: Father was a freedom fighter, was imprisoned for more than 10 years, participated in all Congress movements from 1920, was a member of AICC, and West Bengal Legislative Council (1952-64), President, District Congress Committee, Birbhum (WB).

6. Election of the President • Article 54 of the Indian Constitution discusses the election of the President. • It says that the President shall be elected by the members of an electoral college, which consists of the elected members of both the Houses of Parliament, and the Legislative Assemblies of the States and the two Union Territories, namely Delhi and Puducherry. • The election of the President is held in accordance with a system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote. He can be re-elected to the office of the President. • The oath of the President is administered by the Chief Justice of India, and in his absence, by the most senior judge of the Supreme Court.

7. Eligibility • Article 58 of the Indian Constitution says that the presidential candidate must: • Be a citizen of India. • Have completed the age of thirty-five years. • Be qualified for elections as a member of the LokSabha. • Not hold any office of profit under the Union or any State government, or any local or other authority.

8. Term of office • Article 56 of the Indian Constitution says that the President shall hold office for a term of five years from the date he takes up his post. • He may resign from his office by writing his resignation to the Vice-President of India. • But, he will continue to hold his office, in spite of tendering his resignation, until his successor takes up his office. • And, before his office gets vacated, an election should be held for the same. • Article 61 provides for the manner in which he can be impeached on the violation of the Constitution. • The Vice-President acts as his substitute in case his office falls vacant on the grounds of his death, resignation or impeachment or otherwise. • Such a vacancy should be filled by an election necessarily taking place within six months of his office falling vacant.

9. Power and Duties of the President The President of India is vested with • the Executive • Legislative • Emergency • Diplomatic • Judicial and • Military powers

10. Executive powers • All the executive powers of the Union shall be vested in him. • These powers should be exercised by him in accordance with the Constitution of India. • He appoints the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers. • He also appoints the judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts in the states, besides appointing the Attorney General and Comptroller and auditor General of India. • Among other critical powers, he enjoys the pardoning power, whereby he can pardon the death sentence awarded to a convict.

11. Legislative powers • He can dissolve the LokSabha and end a session of the Parliament. • He can also address the Parliament in its first session every year. • He can nominate 12 members to the RajyaSabha. These members must have extra ordinary accomplishments in the fields of science, art, literature and social service. • He can also nominate 2 members to the LokSabha from the Anglo-Indian Community. • When a bill is passed by the Parliament, the President can give or withhold his assent to it. • He can also return it to the Parliament, unless it's a Money Bill or a Constitutional Amendment Bill.

12. Emergency powers • He can declare national, state and financial emergency. • National emergency can be declared on the grounds of war, external aggression or armed rebellion in the country. • This can be done on the written request of the Cabinet Ministers after the proclamation has been approved by the Parliament. • State emergency can be imposed in a state if it fails to run constitutionally. • Financial emergency can be proclaimed if there is a likelihood of the financial instability in the country.

13. Financial powers • Only when the President recommends can a money bill be introduced in the Parliament. • He lays the Union budget before the Parliament and makes advances out of the Contingency Fund.

14. Diplomatic, Military and Judicial powers • He appoints ambassadors and high commissioners to other countries. • All international treaties are signed on his behalf. • Under Military powers, he can declare war and conclude peace. • He appoints Chief of Army, Navy and Air Force. • He can dismiss judges if two-third majority of the members present of the two Houses of the Parliament pass the resolution to that effect.

15. Salary • The salary and allowances of the President are fixed by the Parliament of India. • The current salary of the President is Rs 150000 per month.

16. Vacancy in the Office of President A vacancy in the office of the President may caused in any of the following ways • (i) on the expiry of his term of five years • (ii) by his death • (iii) by his resignation • (iv) on his removal by impeachment

17. Impeachment of President • Impeachment is the process to remove the President of India from his office before his term expires. • The Impeachment can be carried out if the Constitution of India is violated by the President and the proceedings can be initiated in either of the two houses of the Parliament. • Two-thirds majority is required to pass the resolution in the House. • Thereafter, a notice signed by a quarter of the members of the House and containing the charges is sent to the President. • After 14 days the charges are taken into consideration by the other House and in the meantime the President can defend himself. • If the charges are approved by the second House also then the President is said to have been impeached. He has to leave his office.

18. The Vice President • ShriMohd. HamidAnsari • Father's Name: Mohammad Abdul Aziz Ansari • Mother's Name: Mrs. Aasiya Begum • Date of Birth: 1 April 1937 • Place of Birth: Calcutta • Marital Status: Married • Spouse's Name: Mrs. SalmaAnsari • Children: Two sons and one daughter • Educational Qualifications: BA (Hons); MA (Political Science) • Permanent Address: D-55, IFS Apartments, MayurVihar, Phase-I, Delhi - 110091 • Present Address: Vice-President House, 6, Maulana Azad Road, New Delhi - 110011Tel. - 23016422, 23016344 • E-mail:vpindia@sansad.nic.in

19. Shri. Mohmed Hamid Ansari

20. Residence of the Vice President • Unlike the President, the Vice President is not allotted any special residential privileges while in office. • While the President of India stays in the Rastrapati Bhavan, the Vice President is not subject to any such benefits during his or her tenure as the Vice President.

21. Role of the Vice President • According to the Constitution of India, the office of the Vice President is the second highest constitutional post in independent India. • The Vice President is the 'ex-officio' Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. • The office of the Vice President in India is complementary to that of the President, in that, the Vice President takes over the role of the President in the latter’s absence. • In other words, the role of the Vice President is to assist the President in being the nominal head of the Republic of India. • However, one must remember that the office of the President and the Vice President cannot be combined in one person, as per the Constitution of India.

22. Powers and Functions of the Vice President • The Vice President of India, after the President, is the highest dignitary of India, and certain powers are attached to the office of the Vice President. These are: • The Vice President shall discharge the functions of the President during the temporary absence of the President due to illness or any other cause due to which the President is unable to carry out his functions.

23. The Vice President shall act as the President, in case of any vacancy in the office of the President by reason of his death, resignation, removal through impeachment or otherwise. The Vice President shall take over the duties of the President until a new President is elected and resumes office. • The Vice President is the ex-officio Chairman of the Council of States. • When the Vice President acts as, or discharges the functions of the President, he or she immediately ceases to perform the normal functions of being the Chairman of the Council of States.

24. Eligibility Criteria The qualifications needed to become a Vice President of India are the following: • He or she must be a citizen of India. • He or she must be over 35 years of age. • He or she must not hold any office of profit. • He or she must be qualified for election as a Member of the Rajya Sabha or the Council of States.

25. Facilities for the Vice President • The Vice President, unlike the President, is not entitled to any special emoluments and privileges during his term of office. • However, when he discharges the duties of the President in the latter’s absence, the Vice President enjoys all the benefits that are enjoyed by the President, during that tenure.

26. Salary of the Vice President • The Vice President is entitled to receiving the salary of the Chairman of the Council of States, which presently amounts to Rs 1,25,000 per month. • However, when the Vice President performs the functions of the President or discharges the duties of the President, in the latter’s temporary absence, he is entitled to the salary as well as special privileges of the President.

27. Selection Process of the Vice President • Like the election of the President, the election of the Vice President is indirect and in accordance with the system of proportional representation, through the concept of a single transferable vote by secret ballot. • The electoral college, which consists of members of both houses of the Parliament, cast their votes to elect the Vice President. • However, there is a slight difference in the election of the Vice President and that of the President. The members of the State Legislatures have no role to play in the election of the Vice President, unlike that of the President.

28. The Election Commission of India, which holds elections in the country, is responsible for ensuring that free and fair elections to the post of a Vice President are held in the following steps: • A Returning Officer who is appointed for the elections, sends out public notices issuing the date of election to the office of the Vice President. The elections for the same must be held within a period of 60 days of the expiry of the term of office of the previous Vice President.

29. The nomination of candidates to the office of a Vice President must be affirmed by 20 electors (Members of Parliament) who act as proposers, and 20 electors who act as seconders. • Each candidate must deposit a total of Rs 15,000 to the Reserve Bank of India, as part of the nomination process. • The Returning Officer carefully scrutinises and adds to the ballot, the names of all eligible candidates.

30. The elections are then held by proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote. The nominated candidates can also cast their votes. • The Returning Officer declares the results to the electoral college, the Central Government and the Election Commission of India, respectively. The name of the Vice President is then officially announced by the Central Government.

31. Duty Term or Period of the Vice President • The office of the Vice President is for a period of five years. There is no fixed retirement age to the Vice President, as he or she can remain in the post for five years. • However, he or she can be re-elected as the Vice President for any number of times. The office of the Vice President can also terminate earlier before the fixed five-year term, either by resignation or by removal by the President.

32. There is no formal process of impeachment for the removal of the Vice President, and a removal proceeding can be initiated when members of the Rajya Sabha vote against the Vice President in an effective majority and members of Lok Sabha agree to this decision in a simple majority. • A total of 14 days advance notice must be given prior to the initiation of the removal proceedings of the Vice President. In such cases, when a temporary vacancy in the office of the Vice President is created, the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha takes over the role of the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

33. Pension of the Vice President • Although there is no particular fixed pension in the Constitution for the Vice President of India, according to the Vice President’s Pension Act of 1997, the pension of the Vice President is half of the salary that he/she is entitled to, during his term of office.

34. Facts… • Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was the first Vice President of independent India, elected to the office in 1952. • The only Vice President to be re-elected for a second term was Dr. S Radhakrishnan, who again became the Vice President in the year 1957. • No Vice President, in the history of independent India, has had to face removal proceedings before the expiry of the term of office.

35. K R Narayanan, Shankar Dayal Sharma, R Venkataraman, V V Giri, Zakir Hussain and Dr. S Radhakrishnan, each of whom was a President of India at different points in time, remained Vice Presidents before they were elected as Presidents. • The present Vice President of India, Mohammad Hamid Ansari, has served as an ambassador to many countries across the world.

36. The Prime Minister of India The Head of the Government

37. The Prime Minister of India is the head of the executive branch of the Government of India. • His position is distinct from that of the President of India, who is the head of the State. • As India follows a parliamentary system of government, most of the executive powers are exercised by the Prime Minister. • He acts as an advisor to the President and is the leader of the Council of Ministers. • The President appoints the Prime Minister of India and on his advice, appoints the Council of Ministers. • The Prime Minister can be a member of either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha.

38. Prime Ministers of India Since independence in 1947 • India has had 15 different Prime Ministers till now. There have been many outstanding leaders from different political parties who held India’s top post. Some of them served a complete five-year term while others governed the nation for more than five years. • Narendra Modi is the present Prime Minister of India as leader of single majority party gained in the last general election.

39. The Present Prime Minister of India

40. Shri Narendra Damodardas Modi • Born: September 17, 1950 (age 65), Vadnagar • Spouse: Jashodaben Narendrabhai Modi (m. 1968) • Parents: Heeraben Modi, Damodardas Mulchand Modi • Narendra Damodardas Modi is the 15th and current Prime Minister of India, in office since 26 May 2014. Modi, a leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from Varanasi.

41. Background of Narendra Modi • Narendra Damodardas Modi hails from a family of grocers in a town called Vadnagar in the northern Mehsana district of the state of Gujarat. • He was born on 17 September 1950 to Damodardas Mulchand Modi and Heeraben Modi. Narendra Modi is the third eldest of his six siblings. • Modi’s saga of struggle began when as a teenager, he, along with his brother, used to run a tea stall near a railway station in Ahmedabad. • He did his schooling from Vadnagar and obtained a master's degree in Political Science from the Gujarat University. • One of his school teachers described him as an average student but a brilliant debater. • During his college days, he acted as a pracharak (promoter) of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

42. The official residence of the Indian Prime Minister • 7, Race Course Road, New Delhi. • It is also his main workplace. • The official name of the residence is “Panchavati”. • It was built in the 1980s. • The entire complex spreads over an area of 12 acres and comprises five bungalows. • When a person is appointed as the new Prime Minister, his predecessor vacates the residence and the incumbent is advised to move to his official residence at the earliest.

43. Roles and Responsibilities of Prime Minister The roles and responsibilities of the Prime Minister are as follows: • Link between President and Council of Ministers: • The Prime Minister is the leader of the Council of Ministers and serves as the channel of communication between the President and the Council of Ministers. • It is his duty to communicate to the President all the decisions taken by the Council of Ministers and to provide information regarding administration of the Union or proposals for the legislature as called for by the President. Allocation of Portfolios: • He allocates portfolios among the ministers and distributes work among various ministries and offices. • The Prime Minister coordinates work among various ministries and departments through the Cabinet Secretariat.

44. Prime Minister also retains certain portfolios that are not allocated to other ministers. • He is generally in charge of the following ministries/departments: • Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Ministry of Planning Department of Atomic Energy Department of Space Appointments Committee of the Cabinet

45. Leader of the Cabinet • The Prime Minister summons and presides over meetings of the cabinet and determines what business shall be transacted in these meetings. • Link between the Parliament and the Cabinet: • The Prime Minister is also the link between the cabinet and the Parliament. • He is the chief spokesperson of the government in the Parliament, along with the leader of the party in majority in the Lok Sabha. • It is his responsibility to announce important policy decisions. • The Prime Minister can also intervene in debates of general importance in the Parliament to clarify the government’s stand or policy.

46. Official Representative • The Prime Minister represents India in various delegations, high-level meetings and international organisations and also addresses the nation on various occasions of national importance.

47. Powers/Authorities of Prime Minister The various powers and authorities enjoyed by the Prime Minister are as follows: • Head of the Government: • The Prime Minister of India is the head of the Government. • Though the President is the head of the State, most of the executive decisions are taken by the Prime Minister. • All the important decision-making bodies in India, like the Union Cabinet and the Planning Commission, run under his supervision.

48. Leader of the Council of Ministers • As far as the Prime Minister’s relation to the Council of Ministers is concerned, his position is that of “First among Equals”. • In the case of death or resignation of the Prime Minister, the entire Council of Ministers has to resign. • The ministers directly report to the Prime Minister. • He can also remove a minister by asking for his resignation or having him dismissed by the President. • If any difference of opinion arises between the Prime Minister and any other minister, the opinion of the Prime Minister prevails.

49. Leader of the Parliament • The Prime Minister is the Leader of the House to which he belongs. • He can take part in debates in the House of which he is not a member. • He can also advise the President to dissolve the Lok Sabha.

50. Representative of the Country • In international affairs, he is the spokesperson of the country. • The Prime Minister plays a major role in directing India’s foreign policy.