The President is the first citizen and the head of the State.

He
has an important role in the country’s governance as the
executive powers of the Union are vested in him.

President of India is a part of the Union Executive along with the

Vice-President, Prime Minister, Council of Ministers, and
Attorney-General of India.

The President’s basic and fundamental duty or obligation is to

preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and law of India.
Various powers and functions that are provided to the President
by the Constitution of India are discussed below.
 Executive Powers of the President of India
 Legislative Powers of the President of India
 Diplomatic Powers of the President of India
 Military Powers of the President of India
 Financial Powers of the President of India
 Ordinance Making Powers of the President of India
 Emergency Powers of the President of India
 Pardoning Power of the President of India
 Veto Power of the President of India

Executive Powers of the President of India

As the President is the executive head of the State, he enjoys
extensive executive powers conferred to him by
the Constitution of India. All the executive decisions are taken
in the name of the President.

He also has the power to make rules for the convenient

transaction of business of the Indian Government.

The President appoints the Indian Prime Minister and, on the

advice of the Prime Minister, other Ministers of the Union. Apart
from the Prime Minister, he also has the power to appoint and
remove the following constitutional officers and the members of
the Union Government.

Here is the full list of Constitutional officers appointed by the

Indian President:

1. The Prime Minister.

2. Judges of the High Court and the Supreme Court.
3. Governors of the State.
4. The Attorney-General.
5. The Comptroller and Auditor-General.
6. The Chairman and member of the Public Service Commission.
7. The member of the Finance Commission and Officials
Commission.
8. Chief Election Commissioner and other Election
Commissioners.
9. Special officers for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled
Tribes (ST).
10. Commission to report on the administration of Scheduled
Areas.
11. Commission to investigate the conditions of backward
classes.
12. Special Officer for linguistic minorities.

Important Note: The President exercises his executive powers

with the advice of the Council of Ministers.

Summary: The Executive Powers of the Indian President are:

 Executive decisions are taken in the name of the President.

 Power to make rules for the convenient transaction of
business of the Indian Government.
 Appoints the Indian Prime Minister, other Ministers of the
Union, etc.
 Appoint and remove several constitutional officers and the
members of the Union Government.

Legislative Powers of the President of India

The President of India possesses extensive legislative powers.
He can summon and prorogue (discontinue a session of) the
Parliament, and he can even dissolve the House of People (Lok
Sabha). However, this power can be performed by him only with
some restrictions. The President is bound to summon the
Parliament only within six months from the last sitting of the
former session. He also possesses the power to summon a joint
sitting of both the Houses of Parliament to resolve the deadlock.

For any bill to get the law’s sanction, it has to receive the
President’s assent. A bill for recognising a new State or
alteration of State boundaries can only be introduced in either
House of the Parliament after his recommendation. The State
Bills for imposing restrictions on freedom of trade and
commerce also require his recommendation.

The President can nominate 12 members of the Rajya Sabha and

two anglo-Indians to the Lok Sabha.

Summary: The Legislative Powers of the Indian President are:

1. Summon and prorogue the Parliament.

2. Dissolve the House of People.
3. President’s assent is needed for any bill to get the law’s
sanction.
4. Recommend bill in either house of the Parliament for
recognising a new state or alteration of state boundaries.
5. President’s recommendation is needed for imposing
restrictions on freedom of trade and commerce in state.
6. Nominate 12 members to the Rajya Sabha and two anglo-
Indians to the Lok Sabha.

Diplomatic Powers of the President of India

As the head of the State, the President sends and receives
Ambassadors and other diplomatic representatives. All the
international treaties and agreements are conferred and
concluded in the name of the President. The President is also
the representative of India in international forums and affairs.

Military Powers of the President of India

The President is considered as the Supreme Commander of the
Defence Forces of the Country. He has the exclusive power to
declare war and peace. He has the power to appoint Chief of the
Army, Chief of the Navy, and Chief of the Air Force. However, the
military powers of the President are regulated and controlled by
the Parliament.

Financial Powers of the President of India

The President is also vested with some financial powers. The
Money Bill is introduced with the prior recommendation of the
President. And, he also lays the Union Budget before the
Parliament. The President of India controls the Contingency
Fund. He has the power to establish the Finance
Commission every five years.

Ordinance Making Powers of the President of

India
To deal with unforeseen or urgent matters, the President has
been vested with the Ordinance-making power which is provided
under Article 123 of the Indian Constitution.

When either or both the Houses of the Parliament are not in

session, and the President is satisfied that the conditions exist
which makes it necessary for him to take immediate action, the
 President has the authority to issue an ordinance. And, the
ordinance issued by him has the same force as an Act of
Parliament.

He also has the power to withdraw such an ordinance at any

time. However, such ordinances need to be laid before both the
Houses of the Parliament. And, the Parliament is bound to
approve the ordinance within six weeks from the date of
resumption of the session of the Parliament.

Summary: The Indian President can:

 Issue an ordinance for taking immediate action when either or

both the Houses are not in session.
 Withdraw such an ordinance at any time.

Emergency Powers of the President of India

The President is empowered with the power to declare an
emergency either in the whole territory of India or in any State
or any part of India. He can impose three types of emergency:

1. National Emergency provided under Article 352 (due to war,

external aggression, or armed rebellion).
2. State Emergency provided under Article 356 (due to the
failure in constitutional machinery in States).
3. Financial Emergency provided under Article 360 (due to
threat to the financial stability in India).

He may also suspend the right to move to the courts for the
enforcement of fundamental rights except for Article
20 and Article 21 during the emergency. All the proceedings
 pending in any court for the enforcement of such rights also
remain suspended during the emergency period.

The President also has the power to give directions to any State
in which the State should exercise its executive powers. He may
extend the normal life of the Lok Sabha by 1 year each time up
to a period not exceeding beyond six months after proclamation
ceases to operate. Further, he can also reduce the salaries of
any class of State officials, the Judges of the Supreme Court and
the High Courts. During the period when the State emergency is
in the proclamation, the President may assume the powers
vested in the Governor.

Summary: The Emergency Powers of the Indian President are:

 He/She can declare an emergency.

 Suspend the right to move to the courts for the enforcement of
fundamental rights.
 Give directions to any State to exercise its executive powers.
 Extend the normal life of the Lok Sabha by 1 year.
 Reduce the salaries of any class of State officials, the Judges
of the Supreme Court and the High Courts.
 Assume the Governor’s powers.

Pardoning Power of the President of India

Question students often ask: Under which article of the
Constitution of India the President has the power of pardon or
remission?
Article 72 of the Indian Constitution grants pardoning powers to
the President. As per this power, the President of India can
pardon, reprieve, respite, commute, or remit the sentence of any
person who is convicted of any offence;

1. by Court Martial;
2. against any law relating to a matter to which the executive
power of the Union extends;
3. in which the sentence is one of death.

You may learn more about the pardoning powers of the Indian
President and Governor here.

Veto Power of the President of India

Article 111 of the Constitution of India deals with the veto
power of the President. A bill is introduced in the Parliament
after it is presented to the Indian President for its approval. The
President is free to either reject the bill, return the bill or
withhold his assent to the bill. The President’s choice over the
bill is called his Veto Power