Appointment And Powers Of Prime Minister Of India

The President is the nominal executive authority (de jure executive) in the parliamentary system of government provided by the constitution, while the Prime Minister is the real executive authority (defacto executive). To put it another way, the president is the head of state, whereas the Prime Minister is the head of government.

 

The Prime Minister is not chosen or appointed according to any specific procedure set forth in the Constitution. Only the president can appoint the Prime Minister, according to Article 75. This does not, however, imply that the president can appoint anyone as Prime Minister. The President must appoint the leader of the majority party in the Lok Sabha as Prime Minister in accordance with the parliamentary system's conventions. When no single party has a clear majority in the LokSabha, however, the President may choose and appoint the Prime Minister at his discretion. In such a case, the President usually appoints the Prime Minister as the leader of the largest party or coalition in the Lok Sabha and instructs him to seek a vote of confidence in the House within a month.

 

Another situation in which the president may have to use his discretion in the selection and appointment of the Prime Minister is when the current Prime Minister dies unexpectedly and there is no obvious successor. When Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984, this is exactly what happened. By ignoring the precedent of appointing a caretaker Prime Minister, President Zail Singh appointed Rajiv Gandhi as Prime Minister. Later, he was unanimously elected as the leader of the Congress parliamentary party. If the ruling party elects a new leader after an incumbent Prime Minister dies, the President has no choice but to appoint him as Prime Minister.

 

The Supreme Court ruled in 1997 that a person who is not a member of either House of Parliament can be appointed Prime Minister for six months, after which he must become a member of one of the Houses of Parliament; otherwise, he loses his position. The Prime Minister can be a member of either of the two Houses of Parliament, according to the constitution. In the United Kingdom, however, the Prime Minister must be a member of the Lower House (House of Commons).

The Prime Minister's term is not set in stone, and he serves at the president's pleasure.

 

This does not, however, preclude the president from dismissing the Prime Minister at any time. The President cannot dismiss the Prime Minister as long as he has majority support in the Lok Sabha. If the Lok Sabha loses confidence in him, he must resign or be dismissed by the President. The Prime Minister's salary and allowances are determined by Parliament on a regular basis. He receives the salary and benefits that a Member of Parliament is entitled to. He also receives a stipend, free housing, a travel allowance, and medical care, among other benefits.

 

As the head of the Union council of ministers, the Prime Minister has the following powers:

 

• He makes recommendations to the president for ministerial appointments. Only those ministers who are recommended by the Prime Minister can be appointed by the President.

 

• He reassigns and reshuffles various ministerial portfolios.

 

• In the event of a disagreement, he can ask a minister to resign or advise the President to dismiss him.

 

• He preside over the council of ministers meeting and has a say in its decisions.

 

• He directs, controls, and coordinates all of the ministers' activities.

 

• By resigning from office, he can bring the council of ministers to its knees.

 

The other ministers cannot function if the Prime Minister resigns or dies because he or she is the head of the council of ministers. In other words, an incumbent's resignation or death. The Prime Minister dissolves the council of ministers automatically, creating a void. Any other minister's resignation or death, on the other hand, simply creates a vacancy that the PrimeMinister may or may not wish to fill.

 

In relation to the President, the Prime Minister has the following powers:

1. He serves as the President's primary point of contact with the Council of Ministers. It is the prime minister's responsibility to:

 

• to communicate to the President all decisions made by the Council of Ministers concerning the administration of the Union's affairs, as well as legislative proposals;

 

• to provide such information and proposals for legislation relating to the administration of the Union's affairs as the President may request; and 

 

• to submit for the consideration of the council of ministers any matter on which a minister has made a decision but which has not been considered by the council.

 

2. He advises the president on important appointments such as the Attorney General of India, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, the Chairman and Members of the UPSC, election commissioners, and the Chairman and Members of the Finance Commission, among others.

 

The Prime Minister is the Lower House's leader. He has the following abilities in this capacity:

• He provides advice to the President on the summoning and proroguing of Parliamentary sessions.

 

• He has the authority to recommend to the President the dissolution of the Lok Sabha at any time.

 

• On the House floor, he announces government policies.

 

In addition to the three major roles mentioned above, the Prime Minister has a number of other responsibilities.

 

These are the following:

• He serves on the Planning Commission (now NITI Aayog), the National Development Council, the National Integration Council, the Inter-State Council, and the National Water Resources Council as chairman.

 

• He has a significant influence on the country's foreign policy.

 

• He is the Union government's chief spokesman.

 

• In times of crisis, he serves as the chief crisis manager at the political level.

 

• As the nation's leader, he meets people from all walks of life in various states and receives memos from them about their problems, among other things.

 

• He is the leader of the ruling party.

 

• He is the service's political leader.

 

As a result, the Prime Minister plays a very important and crucial role in the country's politico-administrative system. "If any functionary under our constitution is to be compared to the president of the United States, he is the Prime Minister, not the president of the Union," Dr. B R Ambedkar said.