Q – Which of the following statements is true?
(a) The Federal form of Government is in United States of America.
(b) The government of India is federal and unitary both.
(c) The government of France is of federal form.
(d) The Prime Minister of Pakistan is appointed by the people.
38th B.P.S.C. (Pre) 1992
Ans. (a)
Explanation – The government system of America is federal. The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of 50 States however India is a Union of 28 States and 8 Union Territories. Article I of Indian Constitution declares it as the Union of States. A federal government is one in which there is division of powers between the national government and state governments by the constitution itself and both operate in their respective jurisdictions independently.
Some of the Constitution experts called the Indian Constitution having unitary nature because at the time of emergency it provides a strong centre, but the reality is that Indian Constitution is of federal nature having some unitary features.
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Federal System with Unitary Bias
The Constitution of India establishes a federal system of Government. It contains all the usual features of a federation, viz.,
However, the Indian Constitution also contains a large number of unitary or non-federal features, viz.,
Moreover, the term ‘Federation’ has nowhere been used in the Constitution. Article 1, on the other hand, describes India as a ‘Union of States‘ which implies two things:
Hence, the Indian Constitution has been variously described as
The Supreme Court has spoken of the Indian Union as ‘federal’ , ‘quasi-federal’ or ‘amphibian’ meaning sometimes ‘federal’ and sometimes ‘unitary’. Source : Indian Polity – M Laxmikanth |