Position of PM and CM in India
By
ARHAM ALI
2ND YEAR B B A L L B
Reg No: - 45418341018
Constitutional Law II
CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Arham Ali, a student of Christ Academy Institute of Law, college has
successfully completed his assignment on Position of PM and CM in India on 20th March
2020 and submitted the report on the same, under the guidance of guide Dr Shiju
Date: 20th March 2020 Signature
DECLARATION
I hereby declare that the assignment titled Position of PM and CM in India done by me,
Arham Ali B B A LL B IV SEM, of CHRIST ACADMEMY INSTITUTE OF LAW as a part
of partial fulfilment of award of law degree is a bonafide work carried out by me under the
guidance of Dr Shiju
I further declare work has not been submitted or will not be submitted for any other degree in
this institute or any other institute
Place: Bengaluru Arham Ali
BBA LLB (4rd SEM)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my sincere thanks of gratitude to Law of Contract teacher Dr Shiju
for his guidance and support in completing my assignment on Position of PM and CM in
India
I would like to express my special gratitude and thanks to university persons for giving me
such attention and time
Contents
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................6
Tenure:.......................................................................................................................................7
POWERS AND FUNCTION OF THE PRIME MINISTER:....................................................8
Formation of the Council of Ministers:..................................................................................8
Allocation of Portfolios:.........................................................................................................8
Change of Portfolios:..............................................................................................................8
Chairman of the Cabinet:........................................................................................................8
Removal of Ministers:............................................................................................................8
Chief Link between the President and the Cabinet:...............................................................9
Chief Coordinator:..................................................................................................................9
Leader of the Parliament:.......................................................................................................9
Power to get the Parliament Dissolved:..................................................................................9
Director of Foreign Affairs:..................................................................................................10
Role as the Leader of the Nation:.........................................................................................10
Power of Patronage:.............................................................................................................10
POSITION OF THE PRIME MINISTER:..............................................................................10
The office of PM is very powerful:......................................................................................10
The President of India always acts upon the advice of the PM:...........................................11
The PM cannot become a dictator:.......................................................................................11
CHIEF MINISTER..................................................................................................................11
Selection Process:.....................................................................................................................12
Election:...................................................................................................................................12
Oath:.........................................................................................................................................13
The oath of office.................................................................................................................13
The oath of secrecy...............................................................................................................13
Resignation...........................................................................................................................13
Remuneration.......................................................................................................................13
Deputy chief minister...............................................................................................................14
Prime Minister vs Chief Minister.............................................................................................14
INTRODUCTION
Prime Minister of India: Power and Position of the Prime Minister
The office of the Prime Minister is the most powerful office in India If Cabinet is the
strongest institution, the Prime Minister is the strongest person in the cabinet under the
Constitution of India, the real centre of power is the office of the Prime Minister He is the
Head of the Government of India He is the real custodian of all executive authority
Appointment of the Prime Minister:
The Constitution simply lays down that the Prime Minister is to be appointed by the President
In doing so the President follows the rules of the parliamentary system He appoints the
leader of the majority in Lok Sabha election, the president plays a little role and he appoints
the leader of such a party or a coalition group as the Prime Minister However, in case no
party gets a majority and some parties are even unable to elect a common candidate as their
leader, the President can play a real role in the appointment of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister need not be always from Lok Sabha:
Between 1950 –96 the Prime Minister always belonged to Lok Sabha But it was a
convention and not a law This convention was broken in June 1996, April 1997, May 2004
and May 2009 Since May 2004 (for the second consecutive time since May 2009) Dr
Manmohan Singh has been the Prime Minister and he has been and still he is a member of the
Rajya Sabha Thus the convention that Prime Minister always belongs to Lok Sabha now
stands broken The Prime Minister can be from either House of the Parliament The only
essential condition is that he must be adopted or elected leader of majority in the Lok Sabha
Prime Minister need not be a sitting member of the Parliament:
Further, that any person who is not a member of either House of the Parliament can also
become a minister or the Prime Minister and he can remain so for six months, within this
period he has to essentially get the member ship of either House In case he fails to do so, he
loses his office of Minister
No Formal Qualification:
The Constitution lays down no formal qualifications for the office of the Prime Minister
Since no person who is not a member or cannot become a member of the Parliament can be
appointed as the Prime Minister, it can be said that the qualifications essential for the office
of Prime Minister
Tenure:
Theoretically, the Prime Minister holds office during the pleasure of the President It really
means, so long as he enjoys the confidence of majority in Lok Sabha Lok Sabha can pass a
vote of no confidence against him and in this case the Prime Minister either submits his
resignation to the President or gets dismissed by the President
Whenever it may appear that the Prime Minister’s party has lost its majority in the Lok
Sabha, the President can ask him to prove his majority in House A failure to do so compels
the Prime Minister to either resign for the with or face dismissal at the hands of the President
POWERS AND FUNCTION OF THE PRIME MINISTER:
Formation of the Council of Ministers:
The task of formation of the ministry begins with the appointment of the Prime Minister by
the President After the appointment of the Prime Minister the PM determines the strength of
his ministry and selects his team of ministers however this number cannot be more than 15%
of the total membership of the Lok Sabha
Normally, most of the ministers are drawn from Lok Sabha Prime Minister decides who
amongst them shall be the Cabinet Minister He can, if he so desire, even have one or two
Deputy Prime Ministers in his council of Ministers
Allocation of Portfolios:
It is an undisputed privilege of the Prime Minister to allocate portfolios to his ministers
Which particular department is to be given to which minister is determine by him Any
minister objecting to such an allotment invites the wrath of the Prime Minister and can get
completely ignored from the ministry
Change of Portfolios:
The Prime Minister has the power to change the departments of the minister at any time It is
privilege to shuffle and reshuffle his ministry any time and as many times as he may like
Chairman of the Cabinet:
The Prime Minister is the leader of the Cabinet He presides over its meetings He decides the
agenda of its meetings In fact all matters in the Cabinet are decided with the approval and
consent of the Prime Minister It is up to him to accept or reject proposals for discussions in
the Cabinet All minister conform to his views and policies There scope for deliberations and
discussions but not for opposition
Removal of Ministers:
The Prime Minister can demand resignation from any minister at any time, and the latter has
to resign, the Prime Minister can get him dismissed from the President In April 2010 Mr
Shashi Tharoor had to submit his resignation because PM Manmohan Singh had asked him to
do so
Chief Link between the President and the Cabinet:
The Prime Minister is the main channel of communication between the President and the
Cabinet He communicates to the President all decisions of the Cabinet, and puts before the
Cabinet the views of the President This is the sole privilege of the Prime Minister and no
other minister can, of his own convey the decisions or reveal to the President the nature or
summary of the issues discussed in the Cabinet
Chief Coordinator:
The Prime Minister acts as the general manager of the state and the chief coordinator It is his
responsibility to coordinate the activities of all the departments and to secure cooperation
amongst all government departments He resolve all differences among the ministers
Leader of the Parliament:
As the leader of the majority in Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister is also the leader of the
Parliament In this capacity, it is the PM who, in consultation with the Speaker of the Lok
Sabha, decides the agenda of the House The summoning and the proroguing of Parliament is
in fact decided by him and the President only acts upon his advice
Power to get the Parliament Dissolved:
The Prime Minister has the power to advice the President in Favour of a dissolution of the
Lok Sabha This power of dissolution really means that the members hold their seats in the
house at the mercy of the Prime Minister that it binds his party men and even the members of
opposition
Director of Foreign Affairs:
As the powerful and real head of the government, the Prime Minister always plays a key role
in determining Indian foreign policy and relations with other countries He may or may not
hold the portfolio of foreign affairs but he always influences all foreign policy decisions
Role as the Leader of the Nation:
Besides being the leader of his party and Lok Sabha, Prime Minister is also the leader of the
nation General elections are fought in his name We know that it was the charismatic and
charming personality of PM Nehru that used to sweep popular votes in favour of the
Congress party The personality of the Prime Minister and the respect and love, that he
commands act as a source of strength for his party as well as the nation He leads the nation
both in times of peace and war
Power of Patronage:
All important appointments are really made by the Prime Minister these appointments include
Governors, Attorney General, Auditor General, Members and Chairman of Public Service
commission, Ambassadors, Consular etc. All high ranking appointments and promotions are
made by the President with the advice of the Prime Minister All decisions taken to meet an
emergency are really the decisions of the Prime Minister
The Prime Minister can get the imposition of President’s rule in a state The Presidential
decision in favour of imposing an emergency in a state is always governed by the decision of
the Prime Minister and his Cabinet
POSITION OF THE PRIME MINISTER:
The office of PM is very powerful:
A study of the powers and functions of the Prime Minister Clearly brings out the fact that he
holds the most powerful office in the Indian He exercises real and formidable powers in all
spheres of government activity executive, legislative and financial The Prime Minister is the
captain of the ship of state, the key stone of cabinet arch, the steering wheel of government,
and the moon amongst lesser stars The whole organisation and working of the Council of
Ministers depend upon the Prime Minister The President always acts in accordance with the
advice of the Prime Minister always means the resignation of the Council of Ministers Hence
Prime Minister is the centre of gravity and the foundation stone of the Council of Ministers
The President of India always acts upon the advice of the PM:
The President always acts upon the advice of the Prime Minister The constitution assigns to
the latter the role of being the chief advisor to the President All the powers of the President,
both the normal powers and the emergency powers, are really the powers of the Prime
Minister
As the head of the government, leader of the Cabinet, leader of the majority, leader of the
Parliament and the leader of the nation, the Prime Minister plays an important an powerful
role in the Indian rather the most powerful position in India
The PM cannot become a dictator:
Undoubtedly, the Prime Minister of India enjoys a very strong position, yet he can neither be
a dictator nor even behave like a dictator His office is a democratic office to which he rises
only through an effective participation in the democratic process
CHIEF MINISTER
In the Republic of India a Chief Minister is the elected head of government of the each state
out of 28 state and sometimes a union territory According to the Constitution of India, the
Governor is a state’s head, but de facto executive authority rests with the chief minister
Following elections to the State Legislative Assembly in a state, the state’s governor usually
invites the party with a majority of seats to form the government The governor appoints and
swears in the chief minister, whose Council of Ministers are collectively responsible to the
assembly, the chief minister’s term can last for the the length of the assembly life a maximum
of five years There are no limits to the number of terms that the chief minister can serve A
chief minister heads a state government’s council of ministers and can be deputed in that role
by a deputy chief minister Qualifications of a chief minister are:
He should be the citizen of India
His minimum age should more than 25 years
He should be the member of legislative assembly
He should not hold any government profit or job
Selection Process:
Eligibility The Constitution of India sets the principle qualifications one must meet to eligible
to the office of the chief minister a chief minister must
A citizen of India
Should be a member of the state legislature if a person is elected chief minister who is not a
member of the legislature, then he/she must take sign from governor
25 years of age or more
An individual who is not a member of the legislature can be considered as the chief minister
provided he/she gets himself /herself elected to the state Legislature within six months from
the date of their appointment Failing which, he/she would cease to be the chief minister
Election:
The Chief Minister is elected through a majority in the state legislative assembly This is
procedurally established by the vote of confidence in the legislative assembly, as suggested
by the governor of the state shall hold office during the pleasure of governor
Oath:
Since according to the constitution, the chief minister is appointed by the governor, the
swearing in is done before the governor of the state
The oath of office
I, do swear in the name of God/solemnly affirm that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the
constitution of India as by law established, that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of
India, that I will faithfully and conscientiously discharge my duties as a minister for the state
of and that I will do right to all manner of people in accordance with the constitution and the
law without fear or favour, affection or ill-will
The oath of secrecy
I, <Name of Minister>, do swear in the name of God/solemnly affirm that I will not directly
or indirectly communicate or reveal to any person or persons any matter which shall be
brought under my consideration or shall become known to me as a Minister for the State of
<Name of the State> except as may be required for the due discharge of my duties as such
Minister
Resignation
In the event of a Chief Minister's resignation, which conventionally occurs after a general or
during a phase of assembly majority transition, the outgoing Chief minister holds the
informal title of "caretaker" chief minister until the Governor either appoints a new chief
minister or dissolves the assembly Since the post is not constitutionally defined, the
caretaker chief minister enjoys all the powers a regular chief minister, but cannot to make any
major policy decisions or cabinet changes during his/her short tenure as caretaker
Remuneration
By Article 164 of the constitution of India, remuneration of the chief minister as well as other
ministers are to be decided by the respective state legislatures. Until the legislature of the
state decides salary, it shall be as specified in the second schedule The salaries thus vary from
state to state As of 2019, the highest salary is drawn by chief ministers of Telangana, which
is ₹410,000 (US$5,700) and lowest by the chief ministers of Tripura which is ₹105,500
(US$1,500)legally
Deputy Chief Minister
Various states throughout the history have appointed Deputy Chief Ministers Despite being
not mentioned in the constitution or law, the Deputy-Chief minister office is often used to
pacify factions within the party or coalition It is similar to the rarely used Deputy-Prime
minister post in Central government of India During the absence of the Chief minister, the
deputy-CM may chair cabinet meetings and lead the Assembly majority Various deputy
chief ministers have also taken the oath of secrecy in line with the one that chief minister
takes This oath has also sparked controversies
Prime Minister vs. Chief Minister
India has a parliamentary system of democracy and is a union of states with bicameral
legislatures both at the centre and state levels .While the government is headed by the prime
minister at the centre, states are governed by chief ministers. There are many similarities in
the roles and functions of prime minister and chief ministers However, there are differences
that will be harped upon in this article
While President is the constitutional head at the centre who appoints the prime minister, it is
the prime minister who has the real executive powers. Prime minister governs the country
along with a council of ministers that forms the cabinet at the state level, it is the governor
who is the constitutional head while the real executive powers lie in the hands of the chi9ef
minister who is appointed by the governor
While the council of ministers at the centre is responsible collectively to the lower house of
parliament, the cabinet at the state level is responsible to the lower house of the legislature
called the Vidhan Sabha
Indian constitution has clearly demarcated the subjects so that some fall under centre’s
administration while others are prerogative of state governments there are some subjects
where both the centre and the state government can issue directives this makes it easy for
both the prime minister and the chief ministers as they can look after the subjects that belong
to them
In short, powers and responsibilities of a state chief minister are similar to that of the prime
minister Chief Minister is not just the leader of his party; he is also the leader of the state and
has to administer the state according to the agenda set by his party which is in majority He
has to negotiate with the centre on all policies of the central government to see that resources
are allocated to his state in a fair and just manner He maintains cordial relations with the
prime minister as he needs help and assistance from the centre for all developmental projects
being carried out in the state
While it is the prime minister who has to meet and receive heads of foreign countries, chief
minister receives the prime minister and the president when they arrive in his state Prime
minister looks after all the states while a chief minister has only his state as his priority
Prime minister can get article 356 of the constitution imposed in a state on recommendations
of the president This has the effect of dissolving the state legislature invoking president’s
rule No such power is vested in a chief minister
BIBLIOGRAPHY
http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/political-science/prime-minister-of-india-power-and-
position-of-the-prime-minister/40355
https://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/tag/chiefminister/
