Impeachment Process of the President of India

Impeachment Process of the President of India

INTRODUCTION

The president of India is a ceremonial head of the state and the commander-in-chief for the armed forces. The election process of the president is not a direct process like the general elections. The president is elected indirectly by the members of the Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) and the members of the Legislative assemblies.

The president of India, according to the Indian Constitution, has the same stature as that of the King in Britain under the British Constitution. The president is part of the Union Executive along with the prime minister, council of minister, vice president and the attorney general of India. The president is bound by the constitution to act only on the aid and advice of the prime minister and the council of ministers. The first president of independent India was President Rajendra Prasad and the current president is Shri Ram Nath Kovind.

POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE PRESIDENT

The powers and functions are as follows-:

LEGISLATIVE FUNCTIONS

1. The president has the power to summon both the houses of the parliament.
2. He/She has the power to pass an ordinance during an emergency.
3. The president is the one who addresses a joint sitting of the parliament first time after the election.
4. The president nominates 12 members to the Rajya Sabha.
5. The president also nominates two members from the Anglo-Indian community.

EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS

1. Any bill , before being implemented and becoming a law needs to have the assent of the president. He can also send back the bill if he/she feels that there are any changes.
2. He also appoints the inter-state council.
3. Even though the president is only a figure head of the country, he can ask for administrative information from the prime minister and needs to be informed of what is going on in the country regarding laws and reforms

MILITARY POWERS

The president is the commander-in-chief for the armed forces and has the power to appoint the chief of the army, navy and air force.

FINANCIAL POWERS

1. The president’s recommendation is a must before introducing the money bill.
2. He also constitutes the finance commission after every five years.
3. The contingency funds are also under his control.

DIPLOMATIC POWERS

The president represents the country in all international forums and all international treaties are signed in his name.

IMPEACHEMENT PROCESS OF THE PRESIDENT

The president can be impeached for the violation of the constitution. If there are justified grounds on which the president must be impeached, then there is a proper procedure mentioned in the constitution of India, under Article 61 which deals with the impeachment process. The charges against the president can be taken up by either house. There is then a detailed investigation also conducted to investigate the charges. A fourteen day notice must be served to the president as a part of natural justice. The president can come to defend his charges. Once one house completes their vote, the second house takes up the charges. If the charges are proved to be right then a resolution for removal of president is passed and the president stands removed from that date.

Till now, in India no president has bee impeached.

Author: Vaishnavi Menon,
MIT WPU School of Law, 1st year