This article has been written by Ms. Nidhisha Alajangi, a 2nd year BBA LL.B Student from SVKM Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Bengaluru.
INTRODUCTION
There are two power centres in a federation, both of which are completely valid. As contrast to a system that is unitary, one that is federal makes it possible for there to be a division of labour between two separate jurisdictions.
There are primarily two types of federations, which are as follows:
In a federation, the authority is split up between a number of subgroups so that it may more accurately represent the complexity and variety of the body. In most countries, the authority concentrated in the hands of the central government is excessive. Nations such as India, Spain, and Belgium are cited as examples of countries to compare with.
Officially known as the United Federation of Independent States The voluntary incorporation of a number of previously separate nations into a single political body is the defining characteristic of this kind of federation. This kind of federation affords its member states a greater degree of autonomy than do other types. Take for instance the United States of America, Australia, and Switzerland.
MAIN CONTENT
The federal system of India and the characteristics that set it apart from other systems.
1.Having two distinct forms of governance
2. Many applications of labour compartmentalization
3. Unwavering, uncompromising integrity that cannot be compromised in any way
4.In the judicial system, there is a separation of powers.
Bicameralism- The following characteristics may not always exist in each and every federation: The nature of the federation determines the extent to which its members are brought together.The division of India into several states, also known as Indian Federalism
While it is formally organised as a federal republic, India functions more like a unitary state. It is often called a “quasi-federal” or “quasi-unitary” system due to the hybrid character of the system itself. According to the Indian Constitution, Article 1, “India, that is Bharat, will be a union of states,” proclaims that India would be a confederation of states. There is not a single use of the term “federation” in the Constitution.
The Government of India Act, which was passed in 1919 and created a system of legislative devolution, is credited as being the catalyst for modern India’s adoption of some aspects of federalism.The article that you’ve linked to discusses the discussions on federalism that took place in the Constituent Assembly.
In a federal context, There is a central government that oversees all of the states that make up the Indian Union.The Seventh Schedule of the Constitution has three separate lists that each outline the areas of responsibility that are delegated to the federal government, state governments, and municipal governments respectively.
The framework of the Constitution, as established by the Courts, is ultimate and cannot be changed in any way. The Constitution of India is recognised as the supreme legal authority across the whole country of India.The Constitution mandates that the Judiciary be separate from other branches of government and operate independently. The lower and district courts in India are at the bottom of the hierarchy of the country’s judicial system, which is organised from lowest to highest, with high courts in each state and the Supreme Court of India at the very top. The United States Supreme Court holds the view that it is superior to all other courts that have ever been.
Unicity as well as the Union of India is afederated republic best describes India.A federated republic best describes India. In spite of this, the word “federation” does not appear once in the text that is considered to be the foundation document of our country. India is often referred to by its official name, the Union of Indian States. Several historians working in the subject of history have arrived at the opinion that India is, at the very least, a federal state. The term refers to a nation that has a centralised government but also has characteristics of a federated system.
The Indian constitution mandates the existence of a federal system in its fundamental form. You may already be aware of this, but we work on several levels of the government. The central government of India is comprised of the country’s two houses of parliament, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. In addition to that, we have what are known as Vidhan Sabhas and Vidhan Parishads serving as our state governments. Not the least important are the many municipal corporations and panchayats that make up our various local administrations.Constitutional provisions that may be interpreted in a variety of ways; the text contains both loose and strict clauses. It is simple to make changes to a great number of articles. The provision to do so is complicated, but if the modifications are designed to change components of Indian federalism, then they will do so.
The Union List ensures that the country’s geographic centre will have a larger degree of authority. It is possible for laws enacted by individual states on topics on the Concurrent List to be rendered unenforceable by legislation passed by parliament. In the parliament, enacting legislation on State List items is also a possibility.Since the Rajya Sabha is weighted more heavily towards states with larger populations, there is an obvious power disparity between the various states. In order to give you an idea, the state of Uttar Pradesh has a total of 31 seats in the Rajya Sabha, whereas the state of Goa just has one. In an ideal federation, each state would have the same amount of influence at every level of government.
In India, the executive branch of government is represented at both the national and state levels of the legislative system. This violates the idea of the separation of powers that is inherent in our political structure.In spite of the fact that doing so goes against the principles of federalism, our system has it set up such that the lower house, or Lok Sabha, is more influential than the higher house, or Rajya Sabha (the Rajya Sabha).
The building is equipped with emergency capabilities, such as the capability to place a request for assistance in the event of a crisis. With the declaration of a national emergency, the scope of the federal government’s jurisdiction over the many states expands. There is a potential threat to the autonomy of the states.The many branches of India’s judicial system work together. There is no state or federal government that has its own separate branch of the judicial system. (Further information on the legal system in India may be found in the article’s notes.)
There is just one category of citizenship that may be held by a person living in India, and that is the single citizenship category. They are not eligible to have citizenship in both the state and the nation at the same time. This serves to enhance national identity by creating togetherness in spite of the many geographical and cultural contrasts that exist. In addition, fundamental rights, such as the liberty to migrate to and dwell in any area of the country, are strengthened.As the governor is the state’s representative to the federal government, he or she is the one who makes appointments to state offices. The federal government, not the state governments, is in charge of making the decision of who will serve as the head of state.
A vote in parliament is the only way that new states may be created, and it is also the body that has the authority to change the territory of an existing state by expanding or contracting it. Altering the name of a state is another possibility.The All India Services allow the central government to interfere with the executive functions of the various state governments. These services include the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Police Service (IPS), and a number of others. Such services contribute to the provision of consistency in the execution of government policies across the country.The Election Commission of India, which is a component of India’s unified electoral system, is responsible for ensuring that elections are conducted in a free and fair manner at both the federal and state levels. The president is responsible for selecting the people who will serve on the EC.
It is possible for the governor of a state to make a request to the president to use his or her power of veto over legislation that would otherwise be approved by the state legislature. It is within the president’s power to veto any of these laws at any time. It is possible that he may use his veto power a second time, when the state legislature has had an opportunity to reconsider the law. This law runs counter to the concepts of federalism and undermines them. The records of both the federal government and the states are audited by the Comptroller General of the United States (CAG), who is nominated by the President.
Even at the state level, the governor or the legislature do not have the authority to fire high-ranking government employees such as the election commissioner, the chief justices of the state’s highest court, or the head of the state’s public service commissions. These positions are considered to be constitutionally protected.To begin, the Indian form of federalism is one of a kind due to the fact that it is a kind of federalism that is centralised, which may seem like a contradiction.Collaboration in Order to Conquer Competition Within Federalism
Depending on the nature of the connection that exists between the federal government and the state governments, the concept of federalism is often categorised as either cooperative or competitive.The federal government and the various states “cooperate” for the common good via the medium of a horizontal connection under the system known as cooperative federalism.
It is an essential instrument for including state governments into the process of creating and executing federal policy.Article VII of the Constitution requires the various states and the federal government to cooperate on the issues that are stated in that section.The connection between the individual states and the federal government is considered to be vertical under competitive federalism, whereas the interaction between individual states is considered to be horizontal.The economic shifts that took place in India during the 1990s served as a tipping point in the development of the competitive federalism concept.
CONCLUSION
The endowments of states, the availability of a wide variety of resources, and the presence of different competitive advantages all contribute to a healthy dosage of competitiveness in an economy based on free market principles. This helps ensure that there is a healthy dose of competition. But, greater globalisation has only helped to exacerbate longstanding inequities and imbalances among the world’s governments.Some individuals who support the concept of competitive federalism are of the opinion that the states need to fight for advantages not just amongst themselves but also with the central government.
The competition that exists between states to acquire financial resources and investment amplifies the efficacy of government and the scope of its expansion efforts.It should come as no surprise that investors choose governments that are economically stable. The amount of money sent to each state by the federal government depends on how the states used the money they received.It’s possible that some healthy competition might be beneficial to the state’s social and physical institutions.The framework of India’s constitution does not include any provisions for competitive federalism. The company’s executive management came to a consensus and made the choice.
REFERENCES
http://www.isec.ac.in/WP%20378%20-%20Susant%20Kumar%20Naik%20-%20Final.pdf
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