Constitutional Provisions & Nature of the Council of Ministers
- Constitutional Mandate (Article 74):
- Article 74 of the Constitution provides that there shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid and advise the President, who shall, in the exercise of his functions, act in accordance with such advice.
- The Constitution ensures that there shall always be a Council of Ministers.
- The President accepts the advice tendered by the Council of Ministers.
- Collegiate Executive:
- The Constitution provides for a collegiate executive, namely the Council of Ministers under the chairpersonship of the Prime Minister.
- Executive refers to a body of persons having the authority to initiate major policies, make decisions, and implement them based on the Constitution and the laws of the country.
- Articles 52 to 78 in Part V of the Constitution deal with the Union Executive.
- Real Executive Responsibilities:
- Unlike the President of the USA who wields de facto (real, functional) executive powers, the President of the Indian Republic is not vested with direct executive responsibilities.
- Direct and real executive responsibilities are assigned by the Constitution to the Council of Ministers led by the Prime Minister.
Appointment and Formation
- Constitutional Procedure (Article 75):
- Under Article 75, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President, and the other ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.
- The Constitution does not specify a separate detailed procedure for the selection of the Prime Minister; the President appoints the leader of the majority party or coalition that commands a majority in the Lok Sabha.
- In case no single party obtains a majority, the President appoints the person most likely to secure majority support.
- Ministry-Making Process:
- The first and foremost function of the Prime Minister is to prepare the list of his ministers.
- The Prime Minister meets the President with this list, leading to the formation of the Council of Ministers.
- In actual practice, ministers are selected by the Prime Minister, and the President cannot appoint anyone not recommended by the Prime Minister.
- The President allocates portfolios among the ministers solely on the advice of the Prime Minister.
Composition and Categories of Ministers
- Three Categories: The Council of Ministers consists of three categories of ministers, distinguished by their rank, emoluments, and political importance:
- Cabinet Ministers: Prominent ministers of Cabinet rank who are involved in policy decision-making.
- Ministers of State: Second-ranking ministers who have administrative responsibilities (they may sometimes hold independent charge of a ministry/department).
- Deputy Ministers: Ministers belonging to the third rank who handle administrative responsibilities.
- Deputy Prime Minister: It is within the discretionary powers of the Prime Minister to designate a minister as Deputy Prime Minister.
- Leadership: At the apex stands the Prime Minister, the supreme governing authority and head of the government, who is described as primus inter pares (first among equals).
Tenure, Dismissal, and Removability
- Pleasure of the President: According to the Constitution, ministers hold office during the pleasure of the President.
- De Facto Power of the Prime Minister: In reality, the Prime Minister holds the power of selecting ministers and advising the President to dismiss any of them individually or require any of them to resign.
- Portfolio Reshuffling: The Prime Minister can transfer a minister from one department to another, keep departments under direct control, advise the President to reshuffle portfolios, bifurcate or trifurcate departments, or amalgamate different departments.
- Impact of Vacancy vs. Resignation/Death of the Prime Minister:
- The resignation of an individual minister merely creates a vacancy.
- The resignation or death of the Prime Minister dissolves and ends the entire Council of Ministers.
Accountability and Principles of Responsibility
- Accountability to the Lok Sabha:
- The Council of Ministers, both collectively and individually, is responsible and accountable to the Union Legislature (specifically the Lok Sabha).
- Minsters can be members of either House of Parliament, but irrespective of their membership, they are responsible only to the Lok Sabha.
- Collective Responsibility:
- The entire Council of Ministers is jointly responsible to the Lok Sabha for all acts of the government.
- Ministers must not speak in public in different voices.
- All ministers are expected to remain unanimous in support of government policies on all public occasions and issues.
- Legislative Control & No-Confidence Motion:
- The Lok Sabha controls the Council of Ministers through devices such as asking questions, supplementary questions, passing resolutions, motions, and no-confidence motions.
- The government remains in power only as long as it enjoys the confidence/majority support of the Lok Sabha.
- If the Prime Minister or the government loses the confidence of the Lok Sabha, the entire government must resign and face elections.
- The Rajya Sabha cannot remove the Council of Ministers through a no-confidence motion, though it can discuss and criticize government policies.
- Channel of Communication: The Prime Minister acts as the sole channel of communication between the President and the Council of Ministers, as well as between Parliament and the Ministers.
The Union Cabinet and Other Variants
- Union Cabinet:
- The Cabinet consists of ministers of Cabinet rank and represents the inner core/nucleus within the broader Council of Ministers.
- It is an extra-constitutional authority created out of the Council of Ministers.
- The entire Council of Ministers does not meet to conduct business; instead, the Cabinet takes policy decisions and advises the President.
- It is the highest decision-making and policy-formulating executive body governing administrative, legislative, financial, and foreign policy matters.
- Functions include exercising control over higher appointments, recommending ordinances during parliamentary recess, appointing inquiry commissions, resolving inter-departmental disputes, and advising the President on declaring emergencies or dissolving the Lok Sabha.
- Kitchen Cabinet:
- An informal, smaller body or “a Cabinet within a Cabinet” representing a circle within a circle.
- Acts as an informal body and the real center of power that assists the Prime Minister in preserving secrecy while deciding critical political issues.
- Shadow Cabinet:
- Originating in the British parliamentary tradition, the opposition party forms a group among its members to examine issues portfolio-wise, keeping the opposition informed and the government vigilant.
Supporting Administrative Framework
- Cabinet Secretary:
- The senior-most civil servant in India and head of the Cabinet Secretariat (office created in 1950; first held by N.R. Pillai).
- Assists Cabinet ministers, acts as Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister on administration and policy, presides over the annual conference of Chief Secretaries, and chairs the Senior Selection Board.
- Acts as the crucial link between the Prime Minister’s Office, civil services, administrative agencies, and the political executive.
- Cabinet Secretariat:
- Operates directly under the Prime Minister to handle secretarial assistance to the Cabinet and Cabinet Committees.
- Divided into three functional wings: Civil wing (main wing providing aid, advice, and assistance to the Union Cabinet), Military wing, and Intelligence wing.
- Responsible for inter-ministerial coordination, preparing and circulating meeting agendas, recording and circulating discussions with PM approval, monitoring implementation, and serving as custodian of Cabinet papers.
- Prime Minister’s Office (PMO):
- Provides secretarial assistance and advice directly to the Prime Minister and acts as an extra-constitutional agency with departmental status (originally established in 1947 as the Prime Minister’s Secretariat; renamed PMO in 1977 under Morarji Desai).
- Headed politically by the Prime Minister and administratively by the Principal Secretary.
- Coordinates with all ministers in the central union cabinet, ministers of independent charge, and state governments.
- It does not deal with the Prime Minister’s responsibilities as Chairman of the Union Cabinet, as Cabinet affairs are managed directly by the Cabinet Secretariat.
