WORKING OF INSTITUTIONS

Q1. Define the term ‘institution’. Explain the need of these institutions in a democratic nation.

Ans. Institution: Several arrangements are made in all modern democracies to perform various
tasks. Such arrangements are called Institutions.

Some of the tasks performed by these institutions are:

1. To ensure security to the citizens and provide facilities for education and health for all.

2. To collect taxes and spend the money thus raised on administration, defence and developmental
programmes.

3. To formulate and implement several welfare schemes.

4. To resolve the disputes if they arise on various decisions or on their implementation.

A democracy works well when the various institutions perform the functions assigned to them.

Q2. Describe the role of the three institutions responsible to run a democratic government in
India.

Ans. The three institutions responsible to run a democratic government in India are:

1. Legislature – It is an assembly of people’s representatives with power to enact laws for the
country. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures have the authority to raise taxes and adopt the
budget and other money bills. At the national level, it is called the Parliament and at the State Level,
it is called Legislative Assembly.

2. Executive – The functionaries of different levels of the government who take day to day decisions
are collectively known as the executive. They are in charge of the execution of policies of the
government. E.g.: President, Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers etc.

3. Judiciary – All courts at the different levels of the country put together are called the Judiciary.
The Indian judiciary consists of the Supreme Court for the entire nation, High Courts at the State
Level and District and other courts at the Local Level.

Q3. What is Parliament? Discuss its powers and functions.

Ans. In all democracies, an assembly of elected representatives exercises supreme political authority
on behalf of the people. In India such an assembly of elected representatives is called Parliament.

Powers and Functions of Parliament:

1. It passes the ordinary and financial bills.

2. It has the power to legislate on all the subjects under the jurisdiction of the Central Government.

3. It approves emergency proclaimed by the President.

4. Elected members of the both the houses of Parliament participate in the Presidential elections in
India. Also, the Vice – President is elected by the members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
 5. It has the power to remove the President, Vice – President, judges of the High Court and Supreme
Court through special procedures (impeachment).

6. It also exercises control over the executive through question hour and no confidence motion.

7. It is the highest forum of debate and discussion on public issues and national policy of a country.

Q4. Distinguish between the two houses / chambers of Parliament.

Ans.

BASIS LOK SABHA RAJYA SABHA

OTHER NAMES Lower House or House of people Upper house or Council of states.

NO. OF Maximum cannot exceed 550 Maximum Strength: 250

MEMBERS States: 530 States and Union Territories: 238
Union Territories: 20 Nominated by President: 12
Anglo Indian : 2

MINIMUM AGE 25 years 30 years.

OF MEMBERS

TERM 5 years. Lok sabha can be dissolved
earlier by the President on
recommendation of the PM.
Rajya Sabha is a permanent house which
cannot be dissolved.
One third members retire after every 2
years. Each member of the assembly serves
for 6 years.

SYSTEM OF Directly elected by the people. Indirectly elected by the elected MLAs or
ELCTIONS Elections are held based on a secret nominated by the President.
ballot and candidate getting higher
no. of votes in a constituency is
declared elected.

PRESIDING Speaker presides over the meetings Vice President of India is the ex officio
OFFICER. of Lok Sabha. In his absence, it is Chairman of Rajya Sabha. In his absence
chaired by the Deputy Speaker. Deputy Chairman acts.

POWER ON Money bill can only be introduced in Rajya Sabha can only delay the bill by 14
MONEY Lok Sabha. days or suggest changes in it.
MATTERS
 Q5. ‘The Lok Sabha is more powerful than the Rajya Sabha.’ Justify the statement.

Ans. 1. Ordinary Bill – Any ordinary bill needs to be passed by both the houses. But if there is a
difference of opinion between the two houses, the final decision is taken in a joint session. Because
of the larger no. of members in the Lok Sabha, the view of Lok Sabha is likely to prevail in such a
meeting.

2. Money Bill – Lok Sabha exercises more power in all money matters. Once the Lok Sabha passes
the budget of the government or any other money related, the Rajya Sabha cannot reject it. The
Rajya Sabha can only delay it by 14 days or suggest changes in it. The Lok Sabha may or may not
accept these changes.

3. No – Confidence Motion – The Lok Sabha controls the Council of Ministers. Only a person who
enjoys the majority support in Lok Sabha is appointed as the Prime Minister. If the Lok Sabha
members say that they have ‘no – confidence’ in the council of Ministers, all the members along
with the Prime Minister have to resign. Rajya Sabha does not have this power.

Q6. Distinguish between the Political and the Permanent Executive.

Ans.

POLITICAL EXECUTIVE PERMANENT EXECUTIVE

1 They are elected by the people for specific period They are appointed by the government
of time. for a long duration.

2 They make law and policies of the They are in charge of execution of
Government by seeking advice from permanent policies and give advice to political
executive. executive.

3 They can be changed in the next elections. They are permanent and remain in
office even when the ruling party
changes.

4. President, Vice President, PM and his Council of Civil servants like IAS, IPS, IRS, IFS officers
Ministers

Q7. ‘The Political executive is more powerful than non – political executive’. Give reasons.

Ans. 1. In a democracy, the will of the people is supreme. The political leaders are elected by the
people and thus empowered to exercise the will of the people on their behalf as they are
answerable to them.

2. All the non – political executives are experts in their fields but the decision on all policies is taken
by the political executives.

3. The minister can take the advice of the experts on technical matters but the final decision lies
with them taking into account the overall objective of the policy decision.
Q8. Explain the powers and functions of the Prime Minister.

Ans. The Prime Minister is the head of the Central Government. He is the Chief Advisor of the

President and exercises all the powers rested in name of Parliament of India.

Powers and Functions of the Prime Minister:

1. He selects the members of the cabinet, allocate port – folios and can dismiss any minister.

2. He is the head of the Cabinet Ministers and presides over the meeting with them.

3. He also co – ordinates the work of different departments. In case of disagreement between the
departments, his decisions are final and binding.

4. He exercises general supervisions of different ministries.

5. He distributes and re – distributes work to the ministers. When he quits, the entire ministry quits.

Q9. ‘The Prime Minister of a coalition Govt. cannot take decisions as he likes’. Give reasons.

Ans. The Prime Minister of a coalition Govt. cannot take decisions as he likes:

1. He has to accommodate different groups, factions in his party as well as among alliance partners.

2. He also has to pay heed (attention) to the views of coalition partners and other parties on whose
support the survival of Govt. depends.

Q10. Discuss the powers and functions of President of India.

Ans. The President of India is the highest executive and head of State. He has wide ranging powers.
The powers of the President can be broadly classified as:

(a) He makes important appointments like those of Prime Minister, Council of Ministers, Governor of
States, Chief Justice, etc.

(b) He is the Supreme commander of armed forces of India and can declare war or make peace with
other countries.

(c) The Central Govt. executes all its powers in the name of the President. All international treaties
and agreements are made in his name.

(d) He can summon or prorogue either houses of the Parliament. He can dissolve the Lok Sabha.

(e) A bill passed by the parliament becomes a law only when the President gives his assent.

(f) He can grant pardon or reduce the punishment of any convict.

(g) The President also has the power to declare emergency to meet difficult situations.

Thus, the President enjoys many powers but all his powers are exercised on the advice of the Council
of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. Hence, he is the National Head.
Q11. Explain the composition of Council of ministers.

1. Council of Ministers is the official name for the body that includes all the Ministers. It
usually has 60 to 80 Ministers of different ranks.

2. Cabinet Ministers are usually top-level leaders of the ruling party or parties who are in
charge of the major ministries. Usually the Cabinet Ministers meet to take decisions in the
name of the Council of Ministers. Cabinet is thus the inner ring of the Council of Ministers. It
comprises about 20 ministers.

3. Ministers of State with independent charge are usually in-charge of smaller Ministries. They
participate in the Cabinet meetings only when specially invited.

4. Ministers of State are attached to and required to assist Cabinet Ministers.

5. Since it is not practical for all ministers to meet regularly and discuss everything, the
decisions are taken in Cabinet meetings. That is why parliamentary democracy in most
countries is often known as the Cabinet form of government. The Cabinet works as a team.
The ministers may have different views and opinions, but everyone has to own up to every
decision of the Cabinet.

6. No minister can openly criticise any decision of the government, even if it is about another
Ministry or Department. Every ministry has secretaries, who are civil servants. The
secretaries provide the necessary background information to the ministers to take decisions.
The Cabinet as a team is assisted by the Cabinet Secretariat. This includes many senior civil
servants who try to coordinate the working of different ministries.

Q12. A. What is independence of Judiciary?

B. How is independence of judiciary maintained in India?

Ans. A. Independence of judiciary means that is it not under the control of legislature and executive.
The judges do not act on the direction of government or according to the wishes of the ruling party.

B.The constitution of India has made necessary provisions for ensuring independence of judiciary.
These are:

1. The judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are appointed by President on advice of
the Prime Minister for a fixed period in consultation with the Chief Justice of India.
2. In practice, it now means that the senior judges of the Supreme Court select the new judges
of Supreme Court and High Court.
3. They cannot be removed at the whims of executive. They can be removed on by an
impeachment motion passed separately by two – thirds members of the two houses of
Parliament.
4. No discussion on the conduct of a judge in the discharge of his duties can take place in the
Parliament or State Legislatures.
Q13. What is Judicial Review?

Ans. 1. The Supreme Court and High Courts have the power to interpret the constitution of the
country.

2. They can declare invalid any law of the legislature or the actions of the executive, whether at the
union level or at the state level, if they find such a law or an action which is against the constitution.

3. They can determine the Constitutional validity of any legislation or action of the executive in the
country, when it is challenged before them. This is called judicial review.

Q14. What is Public Interest Litigation (PIL)? State its importance.

Ans. The Courts have given several judgements and directives to protect public interest and human
rights. Anyone can approach the court if public interest is hurt by the actions of the government.
This is called Public Interest Litigation.

Importance:

1. The courts intervene to prevent the misuse of the government’s power to make decisions.

2. They check the malpractices on the part of public officials.

Q15. ‘The judiciary in India is also one of the most powerful in the world’. Justify.

Or

Q15. ‘The Indian judiciary enjoys high level of confidence among the people.’ Discuss.

Or

Q15. Enumerate the powers and functions of the Supreme Court of India.

Ans. 1. The Supreme Court and High Courts have the power to interpret the constitution of the
country.

2. They can declare invalid any law of the legislature or the actions of the executive, whether at the
union level or at the state level, if they find such a law or an action which is against the constitution.

3. They can determine the Constitutional validity of any legislation or action of the executive in the
country, when it is challenged before them. This is called judicial review.

4. The Supreme Court has also ruled that the core or the basic principles of the constitution cannot
be changed by the Parliament.

5. The Indian judiciary acts as the guardian of fundamental rights.

6. The Courts have given several judgements and directives to protect public interest and human
rights. Anyone can approach the court if public interest is hurt by the actions of the government.
This is called Public Interest Litigation.
 Q16. ‘In India, the PM is a real head while the President is a nominal head’. Justify.

Ans.

1. The real power rests with the PM in India who heads over the cabinet meetings and takes
decisions on all important matters in the country.

2. The PM is directly elected by the people and hence enjoys a popular mandate in contrast to the
President who is indirectly elected.

3. All the laws are actually made in the parliament in consultation with the PM and his council. The
President just provides his assent to the bill. Thus, he is a ceremonial head.

4. The PM provides necessary advice to the President on appointment of his council, proclamation of
emergency in the country etc.

5. The PM is the Chief Advisor of the President and exercises all the powers rested in name of
Parliament of India.

Q17. Compare and Contrast the Presidential system of US and the Prime Ministerial system of
India.

SNo. Basis Parliamentary system of India Presidential System of US

1. Power In India, the PM is the head of the In US, the President is the Head of the
government while the President is the state as well as head of the
head of the state. government.
2. Tenure The PM and President are elected for a The President is elected for tenure of 4
period of 5 years. years.
3. Elections The PM is directly elected and the The President of US is directly elected
President is indirectly elected by the by the people.
people.
4. Council of The Council of Ministers are appointed by The Council of Ministers are chosen
Ministers the President on advice of the PM. and appointed by the President in US.
5. Removal The PM of India is answerable to the The President of US is does not need
parliament and can be removed if the the support of the majority of
motion of no-confidence is passed in the members in the legislature and nether
parliament against him while the is answerable to them. He completes
President can be impeached by the his tenure even if he does not have a
Parliament. majority in the Congress.