Parliamentary System & Federal System

👑 1. Parliamentary System — Meaning & Constitutional Basis

Also called Cabinet Government (a term associated with Ivor Jennings), Responsible Government, or the Westminster Model. Dealt with under Articles 74 & 75 for the Centre and Articles 163 & 164 for the States. Its defining feature: the executive is answerable to the legislature for its policies and actions — a sharp contrast with presidential systems, where the executive owes no such accountability.

✓ 2. Eight Features of Parliamentary Government

• Nominal and real executive — the President (head of state) is the de jure executive; the PM (head of government) is the de facto executive, routed through Article 74.
• Majority party rule — when no party wins a majority, a coalition forms on the President's advice; whoever holds a Lok Sabha majority is invited to be PM.
• Collective responsibility — under Article 75, the Council of Ministers rises or falls together ("sink or swim").
• Political homogeneity — COM members typically belong to the same party and share a common ideology.
• Double membership — ministers function as part of both the executive and the legislature; a non-MP minister must secure a seat within six months or vacate office.
• Leadership of the PM — plays the pivotal role in day-to-day government functioning.
• Dissolution of the Lower House — can happen on the PM's recommendation; e.g. the BRS (KCR) government recommending dissolution in Telangana.
• Secrecy — the President administers an oath of secrecy to ministers before they take office.

🇺🇸 3. Features of Presidential Government (for contrast)

• The American Constitution is the model: the President is simultaneously the nominal and real head, combining head of state and head of government.
• Chosen by an Electoral College for a 4-year term; cannot be removed except by impeachment for unconstitutional conduct.
• Relies on a "kitchen cabinet" of non-elected department secretaries, removable at will — India has no such kitchen cabinet, though the PM may informally form an inner circle.
• Not accountable to the legislature — holds no membership in Congress and does not attend its sessions.
• Cannot dissolve the House of Representatives; the system rests on strict separation of powers.

✅ 4. Merits of the Parliamentary System

• Harmony between legislature and executive — close cooperation, fewer disputes.
• Responsible government — Parliament checks ministers via discussion, adjournment motions, no-confidence motions and questions.
• Prevents despotism — executive power rests with the Council of Ministers as a body, answerable to Parliament.
• Ready alternative government — if the ruling party loses its majority, the President can invite the opposition to form a government instead of forcing fresh elections.
• Wide representation — ministers drawn from different regions and sections.

❌ 5. Demerits of the Parliamentary System

• Unstable government — no guarantee of surviving a full tenure; the Morarji Desai government (1977) is a classic example.
• No continuity of policies — a change of ruling party often reverses the outgoing government's policies.
• Cabinet dictatorship — an absolute majority can let the cabinet dominate Parliament, as during the Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi years.
• Runs against separation of powers — the cabinet fuses executive and legislative functions.
• Government by amateurs — ministers aren't necessarily domain experts; PM's choices are constrained by party/coalition considerations.

🇮🇳 6. Why India Adopted the Parliamentary System

After the 1970s, a national debate arose on keeping or replacing this system; the Swaran Singh Committee (1975) concluded replacement was not required — the same committee's recommendations also fed into adding Fundamental Duties.

• Familiarity with the system — it had already operated in India through the British colonial period.
• Preference for greater responsibility over stability, compared to a presidential system.
• Need to avoid legislature-executive conflict by fusing the two organs.
• India's highly heterogeneous, complex and plural society suited a system built for wide representation.

🇬🇧 7. India vs Britain — Comparing the Parliamentary Model

🌐 8. Federal System — Meaning & Global Examples

The word "federal" traces to the Latin foedus, meaning a treaty or agreement. In a federation, powers are constitutionally divided between a national/central government and regional/state governments, each operating within its own jurisdiction.

⚖️ 9. Unitary Traits vs Federal Traits

🔀 10. Integration vs Disintegration Type Federations

• Integration-type federation — independent, weaker units come together and cede power upward to a strong central authority; the USA (1787) is the classic example.
• Disintegration-type federation — a strong central authority devolves power outward to constituent units; Canada (oldest province formed 1867) follows this pattern.
• India follows the disintegration-type model — power flows from the Centre outward to the States, rather than States pooling sovereignty upward.

🏛️ 11. Unitary Features Written Into the Indian Constitution

• Strong Centre — the Union List carries more subjects and overriding authority; residuary powers rest with the Centre.
• India is "an indestructible union of destructible states" — Parliament can alter a state's area, name or boundary with a simple majority.
• Single constitution for both Centre and States — the historical exception was J&K under Article 370, revoked in 2019.
• Flexibility of the Constitution — amendable by both special and simple majority procedures, depending on the provision.
• No equality in Rajya Sabha representation — unlike the USA's fixed two seats per state, India allocates 1 to 31 seats by population.
• Emergency provisions letting the Centre take control over the States.
• Single citizenship — one common Indian citizenship, not separate state citizenships.
• Integrated judiciary — a single Supreme Court sits at the apex for both Central and State laws.
• All-India Services (IAS, IPS) — flagged as running against strict federal principles, since members serve both governments under common central control.
• Integrated audit machinery — the CAG verifies accounts of both Central and State governments.
• Parliament's authority over the State List under specified conditions.
• Appointment of the Governor "during the pleasure of the President" — giving the Centre an ongoing say in state administration.
• Integrated election machinery — a single Election Commission conducts elections to both Parliament and the State legislatures, though the Commission is appointed by the President.
• Governor's veto over State bills — can withhold assent even after a bill is passed a second time by the state legislature (a "pocket veto" option also applies to State bills).

⚖️ 12. Federal Features Written Into the Indian Constitution

• Dual government — Centre and States each focus on their own departments and subject areas.
• Independent judiciary — upholds the supremacy of the Constitution and resolves Centre-State disputes.
• Written constitution — roughly 470 Articles across 25 Parts and 12 Schedules in its current (amended) form.
• Division of legislative subjects across three lists: Union List (~97–100 subjects), State List (~66 subjects), Concurrent List (~47–52 subjects, expanded since 1976); residuary powers rest with the Centre.

🗺️ 13. Why India Chose a Federal Structure

• Large geographical size made a purely unitary structure impractical for effective governance.
• Deep socio-cultural diversity across regions, languages and communities called for a structure accommodating regional autonomy alongside national unity.

🔍 14. Critical Evaluation of the Federal System

• In the landmark S.R. Bommai case, the Supreme Court clarified that Indian federalism represents a normal division of powers, under which States enjoy autonomy within their own sphere, balanced against the need for national integrity and a strong Union government in exceptional circumstances.
• The federal spirit keeps expressing itself through recurring friction: territorial disputes between States, disputes over sharing river waters, and regional parties winning power at the state level (e.g. the TDP in Andhra Pradesh).
• Also visible in the creation of new States, states' recurring demands for greater central grants, growing assertions of state autonomy, and the Supreme Court's imposition of limits on Article 356 (President's Rule) — curbing a provision long seen as one of the Constitution's most centralising tools.

🎯 Exam Angle

A recurring Mains question is to argue whether India is federal, unitary, or "quasi-federal" — the strongest answers cite specific unitary features (single constitution, single citizenship, integrated judiciary, Governor's pleasure-doctrine tenure) alongside genuinely federal ones (written constitution, division of powers, bicameral Parliament). Prelims likes to test the India-vs-Britain and India-vs-USA comparative points directly — e.g. Rajya Sabha seat allocation, or the PM's house-membership rule.