Crack the UPSC with Our Comprehensive President of India Notes

President of India

Article 52 of our constitution lays down that there shall be a President of India.

Article 53 lays down that the executive power of the Union shall be vested in the President and shall be exercised by him directly or indirectly.

  • The President is the head of the Indian State.
  • The President is the First Citizen of India and acts as the symbol of Unity, Integrity, and Solidarity of the Nation.

Selection process for the President of India

President of India Qualification and Election

  1. No person shall be eligible for election as President unless he is
  • citizen of India
  • has completed the age of 35 years
  • Is qualified for election as a member of the Lok Sabha

2. A person shall not be eligible for election as President if he holds any office of profit under the government of India, or the government of any state, or under any local or other authority subject to the control of any of the said governments.

3. Further Article 52 provides that the nomination of a candidate for election to the office of President must be subscribed by at least 50 electors as proposers and seconded by another 50 electors of the electoral college.

4. Every Candidate has to make a security deposit of Rs 15,000/- in the Reserve Bank of India.

5. This security deposit amount will be forfeited if the candidate does not secure 1/6 of the votes polled.

The President is not elected directly by people but by members of the Electoral College consisting of:

  • The elected members of both Houses of Parliament.
  • The elected members of the legislative assemblies of the states.
  • The elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Pondicherry.
  • The President’s election is held with the system of Proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote and the voting is by secret ballot.
  • This system ensures that the successful candidate is returned by the absolute majority of votes

Electoral Quota = (Total number of valid votes polled in the election / Number of electors to be elected) + 1

  • Each member of the Electoral College is given only one ballot paper.
  • The voter, while casting a vote, is required to indicate his preference by marking 1,2,3,4 etc against the names of the candidates.
  • This means the voter can indicate as many preferences as there are candidates in the fray.
  • In the first phase, the first preference votes are counted.
  • In case a candidate secures the required quota in this phase, he is declared elected.
  • Otherwise, the process of transfer of votes is carried out.
  • The ballots of the candidate securing the least number of first preference votes are cancelled and his second preference votes are transferred to the first preference votes of the other candidates.
  • This process continues till a candidate secures the required quota.

Oath by the President

Before entering office, the President has to make and subscribe to an oath or affirmation. In the oath, the president swears:

  • To faithfully execute the office;
  • To preserve, protect and defend the constitution and the law; and
  • To devote himself to the service and well-being of the people of India.

The oath of office to the President of India is administered by the Chief Justice of India and in his absence in the presence of the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court.

Entitlement to the President of India

President is entitled without payment of rent, to the use of his official residence (The Rashtrapathi Bhavan). The President is entitled to such emoluments, allowances, and privileges as may be determined by the Parliament.

The President is entitled to several privileges and immunities. President enjoys immunity from legal liability for his official acts. During his term of office, he is immune from any criminal proceedings

Term of President

Article 56 says that the President shall hold office for a term of 5 years from the date on which he enters his office. However, he can resign from his office at any time by addressing the resignation letter to the Vice President.

Further, he can also be removed from office before the completion of his term by the process of impeachment. The President can hold office beyond his term of five years until his successor assumes charge.

He is also eligible for re-election to that office.

Succession

The President’s seat can be vacant in a variety of ways:

  1. On the expiry of tenure of five years.
  2. By his resignation
  3. On his removal by impeachment
  4. By his death
  5. When he becomes disqualified to hold office or when his election is declared void.
  • If a vacancy occurs, then an election to fill the vacancy should be held within six months and the Vice President acts as the President until a new President is elected.
  • Further, if the sitting President is unable to discharge his functions due to absence, illness or any other cause, the Vice President discharges his functions until the President resumes his office.
  • In case the office of the Vice President is vacant, the Chief Justice of India or if his office is also vacant, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court acts as the President or discharges the functions of the President.

Powers of President of India Upsc

The President has vast Power and Functions. The President convenes the Parliament, and addresses and prorogues the same. That means the President initiates the beginning of Parliament, and addresses and also postpones the parliament proceedings.

The President nominates 12 members of eminence in different fields to the Rajya Sabha and two Anglo-Indian members to the Lok Sabha. The President enjoys veto power over non-money bills of the Parliament and can send back non-money bills for reconsideration of the parliament.

The President can convene joint sessions of the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. The President can promulgate ordinances for a period not exceeding six months. The President also has veto powers over certain State Legislations.

The President prompts and facilitates the institution of the Council of ministers headed by the prime minister, and ensures that the Council of Ministers enjoys the support of the Majority in the Lok Sabha. The President alone installs the ministers and distributes portfolios to them, he can also dismiss the ministry if he feels that the ministry does not enjoy majority support in the Lok Sabha.

Nominates various members to various constitutional bodies, including the Judiciary, armed forces, and diplomatic corps. The President enjoys enormous powers during the period of emergencies, can suspend any law, and can dissolve ministries and legislatures for specified periods.

The president can commute capital punishment. When a person i.e. Vice President, Chief Justice of India or Senior Most Judge is acting as President, he/she enjoys all the powers and immunities of the President as is entitled to such emoluments, allowances, and privileges as determined by the President.

The official residence of the President of India is “The Rashtrapathi Bhavan situated in Delhi“.

Impeachment of President in India

Article 61 of the constitution gives a detailed procedure for the impeachment of the President.

For the Impeachment of the President, first, an impeachment charge has to be made in either House of the Parliament by a resolution signed by at least one-fourth of the total number of members of the House and moved by giving at least 14 days advance notice.

Such a resolution must be passed by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the total number of members of the house when one House so presents a charge, it should be investigated by the other House.

After the investigation, if a resolution is passed by the other house by a majority of two-thirds of its total number of members, the President stands removed by impeachment from his office from the date of passing of the resolution.

Conclusion

This article is written for the topic “President Tnpsc”. This article describes the Importance, role, selection, powers, and function of the President of India. It is extremely useful for TNPSC, Upsc, and other government exams.

FAQ

1. Present president of India?

Droupadi Murmu is the present president of India, who is serving as the 15th president of India since 2022. Also, Droupadi Murmu is the second woman president after Pratibha Patil.

Also, the first person from the tribal community to hold the office.

References

  1. Indian Polity and Governance
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
1 Comment
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
* * All the Notes in this blog, are referred from Tamil Nadu State Board Books and Samacheer Kalvi Books. Kindly check with the original Tamil Nadu state board books and Ncert Books.
1
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x
%d