BPSC132 Indian Government and Politics Text Book

BPSC132 Indian Government and Politics Text Book

Block-1 Approaches to Study Indian Politics Block-1

Course Contents
BLOCK 1 APPROACHES TO STUDY INDIAN POLITICS
Unit 1 Liberal
Unit 2 Marxist
Unit 3 Gandhian
Page No.
5
7
15
24

BLOCK 2 INDIAN CONSTITUTION
Unit 4 Basic Features
Unit S Fundamental Rights
Unit 6 Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties

BLOCK 3 INSTITUTIONS

Unit 7 Legislature
Unit 8 Executive
Unit 9 Judiciary

BLOCK 4 SOCIETY AND POLITICS

Unit 10 Caste, Class and Tribe
Unit 11 Gender
Unit 12 Workers and Farmers

BLOCK 5 RELIGION AND POLITICS

Unit 13 Secularism
Unit 14 Communalism

BLOCK 6 PARTIES AND PARTY SYSTEM IN INDIA

Unit 15 Parties and Party System

REFERENCES

COURSE INTRODUCTION
Purpose of this course is to introduce students to some basic features of
government and politics in India. The course has fifteen units which have been
grouped into six blocks based on thematic unity. The course starts with first
block which has units on approaches to understand politics in India. Block 2 has
units on basic features of Indian Constitution, Fundamental Rights, Directive
Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties. Block 3 has units on separation
of powers — on legislature, executive and judiciary. Units in Block 4 discuss
relationships among identities, classes and politics. Block 5 has units which
explain relationships between religion and politics. Block 6 is about parties and
party system in India.
The unit-wise description in each block is like this. Block 1 consists of three
units: Units 1, 2 and 3 on Liberal, Marxist and Gandhian approaches respectively
to study Indian politics. Three units in block 2 are about Indian Constitution:
unit 4 Basic Features, unit 5 Fundamental Rights, and unit 6 Directive Principles
of state Policy and Fundamental Duties. The Units in block 3are on the institutions
of separation of power in India: unit 7 Legislature, unit 8 Executive and unit 9
Judiciary. Three units in Block 4 discuss some ts of relationships of State
and Society: unit 10 Caste, Class and tribe; unit 11 Gender, and unit 12 Workers
and Farmers. Two units in block 5 deal with two different kinds of relationship
between religion and politics: unit 13 Secularism and unit 14 Communalism.
Block 6 has only one unit: unit 15 Parties and Party Systems.
Each unit has inbuilt Check Your Progress Exercises. After having read the units,
you can try to answer the questions given in these ercises. At the end of each
unit, there are answers to the questions mentioned in the Check Your Progress
Exercises. You can match your answers with the answers given in the unit. But
be careful to write answers in your own words. The course ends with a list of
references. You are advised to go through them.

BLOCK 1
APPROACHES TO STUDY INDIAN POLITICS

BLOCK 1 INTRODUCTION
Indian politics is a vast subject. It is difficult to understand it without some ways
or methods. Such ways are known as approaches or frameworks. There are various
approaches.This block deals with three of such approaches. Unit 1 Liberal
approach explains how different components of a political system seek to build
consensus, and how its scope changed over the time. Unit 2 Marxist approach
explains how principle of dialectical materialism has been used to explain some
features of Indian politics such as class formations, class mobilization and nature
of Indian state. Unit 3 Gandhian approach discusses application of Gandhian
principles such as satyagrah, ahinsa and ethics to understand Indian politics.

UNIT 1 LIBERAL*
Structure
1.0 Objectives
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Core Elements of Liberal Approach
1.2.1 Institutions: Political System, Not the State
1.2.2 Processes
1.2.3 Values
1.3 Liberal Approach to Study Politics
1.4 Changing Scope of Liberal Approach
1.4.1 Civil Society
1.4.2 Multiculturalism
1.4.3 Social Capital
1.5 Convergence of App
1.6 Let Us Sum Up
1.7 References
1.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises
1.0 OBJECTIVE
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
Define core elements of liberal approach to study Indian politics;
Understand liberal approach to study Indian Political system;
And define different perspectives of liberal approach

1.1 INTRODUCTION
Politics is about political institutions, processes and issues concerning sections
of society. Indeed, politics involves relationships among people with themselves,
state and non-state groups or organisations. Such relationships consist
competition, conflict and cooperation among people or their organisations and
response of the state and institutions to different sections of society and their
concerns. Scholars have explained politics in different ways. These ways are
known as approaches or perspectives. There are different approaches to study
Indian politics: liberal, Marxist and Gandhian. In this unit you will read about
liberal approach; in unit 2 and unit 3, you will read about Marxist and Gandhian
approaches respectively. As you will read in unit 2, the Marxist approach views
politics in terms of class relations and the state as a representative of different
class interests; in unit 2 you will read that Gandhian perspective which views
politics in ethical and moral terms. In liberal perspective, which is discussed in this unit, politics is viewed in terms of political structures and political processes
or political system. Its prime concern is to study consensus or corillict management
within a political system. Unlike the Marxist perspective which you will read in
unit 2, liberal perspective does not focus on class relations. Nor does it use the
concept of state. Rather, the liberal perspective prefers to use political system in
place of the state, and prefers to focus on consensus building rather than class
relations or class conflict within a political system; it prefers to use the term
political system and to explain how a system maintains itself by management of
conflict or reaching consensus. In fact, liberal perspective to study politics is a
non-Marxist perspective. It should not be confused with liberalism. Liberal
perspective to Indian politics is a variant of structural-functional or systemic
approach. When we use the term liberal according to liberalism, it mainly denotesto
freedom whether it is freedom of individual, community or group. Liberalism is
based on a commitment to individual freedom, tolerance and consent. The
liberalism came into existence as an outcome of protest against the hierarchical
and privileged authority and monarchy in England and Europe. The main purpose
of this protest was to achieve liberty of the individual and to challenge the authority
of the state.

1.2 CORE ELEMENTS OF LIBERAL APPROACH

As liberal approach to Indian politics is a variant of the non-Marxist structuralfunction or systematic approach. Its core elements are borrowed from the latter.
Following are these core elements:
1.2.1 Institutions: Political System, Not the State
Until Theda Sckocpol underlined the need for “bringing the state back in” in the
mid-1980s, under the influence of liberal approach as a variant of structuralfunctional approach the liberal approach preferred to use the term political system
rather than the state for polity of a country. The system consists of certain
institutions or structures such as political parties, interests-groups or civil society
organizations. They interact with social structures such as caste, language,
religion, region, tribe, etc. While interacting with other, they perform certain
functions. Or due to their interaction certain processes occur where different
components of an organization conflict and cooperate and reach a consensus.
Consequently, a system or institution maintains itself. Political institutions
generally include political parties, pressure group legislature and executive.
Indeed, this approach dominated the study of n politics for around four
decades from the 1950s.
1.2.2 Processes
Among the processes which this approach studies are the functions which are
performed by different institutions and organizations. These are conceptualised
as political mobilization, interest articulation and interest aggregation. With
reference to progress of democracy, the processes are also referred to as
democratization, deepening and consolidation of democracy. The liberal approach
views politicization of people as democratization through electoral mobilization
and political participation. By the late 1960s, the process of democratization had
begun to affect the lower social orders and has been continuing since then Consequently,
India’s traditional and semi-feudal society moved toward liberty and equality. Furthermore, different social and political movements of 1970s
and 1980s, emergence of institutions of civil society and multiculturalism have
promoted democratization of country and different institutions in India.

1.2.3 Values
The third core element of liberal approach includes values i.e. liberty, human
rights and equalities. It is more about individual or community rights. It is the
duty of state to provide protection to the vulnerable sections, ethnic groups,
scheduled tribes and minorities. However, liberal approach advocates individual
rights and freedom, but it also advocates protection of communities, especially
their language, culture and script. Democratic rights cannot be saved without
safeguarding these values in a nation like India.

1.3 LIBERAL APPROACH TO STUDY POLITICS
As mentioned earlier, liberal approach to study Indian politics is a varient of
systemic or structural functional approach . Thus, liberal approach when applied
to study Indian politics can also be called Systemic approach. System approach
emerged out of a broad movement in social sciences known as
movement. It was introduced by David Easton and James S. Colman to study
political systems in the developing countries in the 1950s-1960s. This framework
also came to be known as modernization or development framework. Its mains
purpose was to study development of modern political institutions in developing
societies. The notion of development according to this perspective was different
from economist’s notion of development. According to the economists
development generally means growth rate or development of infrastructure;
political scientist influenced by behavioural movement it meant development of
modern political institutions. Its main focus has been to see political institutions
or organizations development, maintain themselves by reaching consensus within
the factions of organization.
In this approach, the political system comprises of political institutions, structures
and processes and these three attributes keep interacting, conflicting and
with each other, balancing and counterbalancing to themselves. In such a situation
the political system maintains, it does not break down. During the initial period
of Independence, many political scientists have followed this approach to study
Indian politics. Rajni Kothari’s Politics in India is one of the most important
examples to study politics at India level. He advocates that the political system
is resilient, and it survives and his book was mainly followed structural functional
approach. Using this approach, Rajni Kothari categorised Congress party of the
1950s-1960s as Congress System. And the 1950s-1960s was called as the era of
Congress dominance. C.B. Bhambhri (1974) critiqued Rajni Kothari’s approach
to study Indian politics in a review of Kothari’s book Politics in India. According
to Bhambhri, Kothari’s framework prohibits raising basic questions in Indian
politics such as the class character of the state, location and distribution of political
power, and the role of imperialism. In this framework economic aspects are also
missing: Indian politics has been studied without the reference of role of trade
unions, big industrial houses, lobbies of the rich farmers and landless peasants.
He further adds that Kothari’s model of Indian democracy is similar to that of
Dahl which says society is plural and democratic government operates like a
market and this market is subject to all sorts of pulls and pressures. Bhambhri

underlines that this limitation in Kothari’s analysis is due to the limitation or
systemic or liberal approach. This approach does not look at the class conflict as
a process of social change. Rather it focuses on how a system maintains itself or
a consensus within its conflicting units. In response of Bhambhri’s critique,
Kothari suggests that his book is not based on Marxist approach to politics or
American brand of Functionalist approach. He has used Indian model which is
different from both the Marxist and Capitalist. He also emphasised that there are
two styles of theoretical analysis: polar and pluralistic. He has used pluralistic
analysis to study state politics.
During the 1970s, several individual scholars in case of studies of individual
state or a group of states used the systemic framework, and they also included
sub-system of state politics such as political parties, caste, religion, language,
leadership, election and pressure groups. Study of the Congress party presented
the most relevant example of applying liberalapproach to study party as a system.
Richard Sisson and Paul R. Brass studied Congress in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh
respectively. However, by the end of the 1970s transformation of the society
changed the character and nature of the state. Land reforms, green revolutions
and welfare policies were largely responsible for such changes. But the liberal
approach was unable to reflect these changes in y of Indian politics. Iqbal
Narain (1976) applied this framework to analyse state politics in India.
The liberal approach has undergone transformation after the 1970s. It is no longer
averse to using the concept of the state instead of political system. Following
“the return of state” in the 1980s as Zoya Hasan observes that a section of literature
focused on the study of the state. In this literature, unlike the classical Marxian
perspective (you will read in unit 2) which views e state as an agent of the
propertied classes, the state has been viewed as an autonomous institution. State
was not an agent of classes or groups; rather it functions independently of and in
the interest of all groups and classes. This approach is called Statist approach.
But there are limitations of statist approach because it gives insufficient
importance to the role of diverse groups in Indian society.

Check Your Progress Exercise
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) What are the core elements of liberal approach

2) Briefly explain how liberal approach is related to structural -functional,
Systemic or Development perspective to study politics.

 

1.4 CHANGING SCOPE OF LIBERAL APPROACH
Since the 1950s the liberal approach has changed in the following ways: there
has been a convergence between its elements of the 1950s-1960s and some
elements of Marxian approach it is no longer averse to using the concept of
state; and it studies the activities which aim to achieve social change or are
concerned with basic democratic values, people’s mobilization through civil
society organisations, multiculturism, social capital or in electoral
1.4.1 Civil Society
The core element of the liberal approach is individual freedom, but when we talk
about a nation or state, it also includes community, ethnic group, marginalized
sections and protection of their rights. In a democratic country like India, we
have Fundamental Rights that safeguard the basic rights and provide protection
to the citizen and community. However, there are many cases where states
failed to provide or protect their citizens or institutions. The liberal approach
views the role of civil society organizations in relation to democratic rights of
individuals. Civil society organizations are different from civil society. As Neera
Chandhoke (1995) explains, civil society is a space that exists between the family
and the state. In this space civil society organizations operate. The liberal approach
can help to explain the role of these organizations in democratization of the
society or protection of the rights of individuals and groups in the society:
of free expression, freedom to form associations, freedom to dissent, freedom to
generate and disseminate public opinion. It helps us to explain the relationship
between state and society.
1.4.2 Multiculturali
Liberal approach recognises the rights of not only individuals but also groups. In
a diverse society, recognition of rights of diverse groups — right to representation
and distributive justice, is indicative of multiculturalism. As Parekh (2006)
explains no multicultural society can or should ignore the demands of diversity.
Multiculturalism goes beyond the abstracted liberal individualism and assumes
that human beings are culturally embedded. It means that they grow up and live
within a culturally structured world. They organize their lives and social relations
in terms ofa culturally derived system of meaning and significance. These cultural
communities generally demand various kinds of rights to maintain their collective
identity. Such rights called group, collective or communal rights. Mahajan (2002)
states that multiculturalism is concerned with the issue of equality. It is concerned
with the question if different communities are living peacefully together as equals
in the public arena. She states that multiculturism is different from pluralism or diversity. While pluralism or diversity denotes just coexistence of different groups
in the society, but not whether they related to democratic pursuits or not.
Multiculturism is necessarily associated with democracy. It either guarantees or
attempts to provide cultural rights ofreligious and linguistic minority communities
to preserve their culture, language, and script, and other rights
1.4.3 Social Capital
Since the 1990s, the concept of social capital has been used to explain nature of
relations among communities. It is indicative of the existence of civil society
and democracy. The concept is taken from the Tocquevillian notion of
associations, and Italian political scientist Robert Putnam used this in his book
Making Democracy Work. Civic Traditions in Modern Italy. Social capital denotes
existence of networking among people in a group or community, who share
common values and trust each other. The rise of new social movements, civil
societies and realisation of the importance of study substantive democracy has
added to the significance to this perspective. Ashutosh Varshney’s book Ethnic
Confiict and Civic Life. Hindus and Muslims in India, in the study of ethnic riots
in six cities of India has been influenced by Tocqwevillian tradition.

1.5 CONVERGENCE OF APPROACHES
Study of politics in India in post Independent India has been basically studied by
two opposite approaches: non-Marxist and Marxist. You have read above about
the features of liberal approach. You will read about the Marxist approach in unit
2. These two approaches have traditionally been exclusive to each other. However,
both these frameworks are not as rigid since the 1980s as they were earlier.
There is convergence between them in terms: they use terms such as state, political
system or state interchangeably, and address similar kinds of issues. Since the
1980s, there has been a convergence of liberal and Marxist approach. Such
convergence is visible in the writings of scholars such as Francine Frankel, Lloyd
Rudolph and Sussane Rudolph and Pranab Bardhan. Francine Frankel looks at
the historical contradictions between the transformative goals of development
planning and the conservative forces of 1 democratic politics. She
makes a distinction between political and social issues. Bardhan, a neo-Marxist
scholar, contends that in India state is an autonomous actor, which plays an
important role in shaping and moulding power relations among classes. According
to Lloyd and Susanne Rudolph, Indian state is a centerist state, and Indian politics
is devoid of class politics. It functions as a third actor etween capital and labour.
The Indian state functions between ‘demand polity’ and ‘command polity’. In
the ‘demand politics’, the state has to deal with the pressure of various demand
groups such as students and farmers.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) Briefly describe the changes in the scope of liberal approach.

2) Briefly explain the convergence of liberal and Marxist approach to study
Indian politics.

1.6 LET US SUM UP
Politics in India or the state politics in India has been broadly studied in two
frameworks: Marxist and Non-Marxist (mainly liberal-institutional). The liberal
approach about which You have read in this unit was dominant approach to study
Indian politics between the 1950s-1960s. Its focus was to study how institutions
maintained themselves by maintaining consensus among their constituent units.
It had preferred to use political system rather than the state to designate a
In the post-colonial period, it was a product of behavioural movement in social
sciences. It was also known as systemic, modernization or development
framework. It ran as an alternative to the Marxist approach. From the 1980s, the
liberal approach had undergone changes. It has become flexible in using certain
concepts such as the state or political economy. Its scope has expanded to include
study of civil society, social capital and multiculturism. The broad concern of
the liberal approach has been to address issues concerning democracy.

1.7 REFERENCES
Bhambhri, C.P. (1974). Functionalism in Politics: A Rejoinder [with A Reply].
The Indian Journal of Political Science, Vol. 35. No. 2[April-June 1978].
Liberal
2) Briefly explain the convergence of liberal and Marxist approach to study
Indian politics.
185-191.
Chandhoke, Neera (1995). State and Civil Society Explorations in Political
Theory. New Delhi: Sage Publication.
Hasan, Zoya (Edited) (2000). Politics and the State in India. New Delhi: Sage
Publication.
Kothari, Rajni (1970 ). Politics ofIndia. New Delhi: Orient BlackSwan.
Mahajan, Gurpreet (1998). Democracy, Difference and Social Justice. Oxford :
Oxford University Press.
(2002). The Multicultural Path Issues ofDiversity and Discrimination
in Democracy. New Delhi : Sage Publication.

Narain, Iqbal (ed.), (1976), State Politics in India, Meenakshi Prakashan, Meerut.
Politics
Parekh, Bhikhu (2006). Rethinking Multiculturalism. New York, United States
of America: Palgrave Macmillan.
1.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) Institutions, structure and values are the core elements of liberal approach.
2) Liberal approach basically focuses on the individual’s democratic rights
and political institutions and democratic processes. It was influenced by the
behavioural movement in the 1950s-1960s, during the post-colonial period
in most parts of the world. Behavioural movement in social sciences,
especially in Political Science underlined the need to study political system
or structural-functional approach. Liberal approach, actually, is a variant of
system, structural-functional or development approach to study politics.
Check Your Progress Exercise
1) Since the 1980s, the scope liberal approach has widened. Unlike in the 1950s1960s, now it is not averse to using the concept of state or political economy
in place of political system. It also includes the study of social change, not
only consensus within an institution. Liberal approach’s expanded scope
includes study of civil society, civil society movements and community
2) The dilution of rigidity to use concepts and priority of analysis in both
approaches —the liberal and the Marxist has resulted in convergence between
them. Both use concepts of state, political economy, institutions, political processes and change interchangeably.

UNIT 2 MARXIST^
Structure
2.0 Objectives
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Meaning and Scope of Marxist Approach
2.3 Marxist Approach and Political Science in India
2.4 Class Relations
2.4.1 Marxist Perspectives and Classes in Rural Areas
2.5 Movements
2.5.1 Peasants’ and Farmers’ Movements
2.5.2 Working Class Movements
2.6 The Indian State
2.7 Let Us Sum Up
2.8 References
2.9 Check Your Progress Exercises

2.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you will be able
To explain the Marxist perspective to interpret Indian political processes;
To underline the differences between classical and Neo-Marxist approach;
To identify the issues which have been focus of study in Marxist approach;
and
To explain the differences between liberal approach which have read
unit 1 and the Marxist approach.
2.1 INTRODUCTION
Marxist approach is a way of studying society. It is influenced by Marxism
Generally, after the disintegration of Soviet Union in the 1980s, and after the rise
of non-communist parties in different parts of the world, the question is often
asked whether Marxism is relevant now. This question can be addressed in two
ways: One, Marxism as philosophy to change the world, and Marxism as a
perspective to explain the change in society or evolution of history. Nothing can
be definitely said about the change in society or revolution as envisaged by
Marxism. But Marxism as a tool or perspective to explain politics or changes in
society is being used by several scholars. This is known as Marxist or Marxian
approach or perspective. This unit will discuss how Marxist approach has been
used to explain politics in India.

2.2 MEANING AND SCOPE OF MARXIST
APPROACH
Marxist approach to Indian politics is guided by basic tenets of Marxism. These
tenets attempt to interpret society in such a way that it helps to change the society.
To put it differently Marxist approach implies application ofprinciple of dialectical
materialism or historical materialism and explain the nature of class struggle and
suggest ways to end class exploitation. According to dialectical materialism,
there are classes in a society. The relations between classes can be viewed in
terms of social relations of production and forces of production. The social
relations of production and forces of production together are known as mode of
production. Forces of production include the classes and resources and instruments
or means which are involved in production of goods. Social relations of production
denote patterns of ownership of means of production — land, industries or any
other unit of production, and patterns of working or larbour relations. Change in
means of production or in the forces of production lead to transformation of
society from one stage of development to the next. The Marxist perspective
underlines the relationship between class and other aspects of society —the state,
politics, culture, religion, etc. Class in known as base and the other aspects — the
state, culture, religion, etc, are known as superstructure. The core of Marxist
approach is to explain the relationship between base and superstructure. There
are broadly two groups of Marxist approach. One, suggests that base or class
determines the superstructure. The other, contends that class does not determine
the non-class aspects, or the base does not determine the superstructure: the
superstructure enjoys its relative autonomy. The former is known as classical or
mechanical Marxist approach, and the latter is known as neo-Marxist approach.
Neo-Marxist approach has been influenced by Gramsci, Frankfurt School
(consisting thinkers such as Kolakowski, Althusser, Paulantzas) and Ralph
Miliband. The Marxist approach views internal politics of county in relation to
international politics. It seeks to analyse the relationship between national politics
and imperialism or in relation to the role of international financial organisations
such as World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

2.3 MARXIST APPROACH AND POLITICAL
SCIENCE IN INDIA
Both types of Marxist approaches — classical and neo-Marxist have been applied
by to study Indian politics. The Marxist approach to explain Indian politics has
been used by professional academics as well as by the Marxist political activists,
politician or political parties. In unit 1, you have read about liberal approach. In
comparison to Marxist approach, the liberal approach has been applied more to
study Indian politics. Since the principal concern of the Marxist approach is to
explain class relations and role of the state, principal issues addressed in this
approach include changing class relations, movements of peasants and working
classes, role and nature of the state including the relationship between the state
and various classes. It is important to note that Marxist approach is used to address
similar issues by academicians across disciplines in social sciences.
Since the 1980s, a new strand of Neo-Marxist approach was added by historian
Ranajit Guha, influenced by Gramsci through series of books known as Subaltern
Studies. The scholars influenced by Subaltern approach argue that the subalterns,

i.e. ordinary people develop their consciousness. They take decisions according
to their consciousness without being affected by external forces. Marxist scholars,
who follow classical Marxist approach have criticised Subaltern approach as
non-Marxist.
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) What is the meaning of Marxist approach?

2) What is the difference between classical Marxist and neo-Marxist
approaches?
3) What is the difference between liberal and Marxist approaches?

2.4 CLASS RELATIONS
Class relations is the most important aspect of study in Marxist perspective. As
mentioned above, class relations are social relations of production. They indicate
the patterns of means of production, patterns of doing work to produce something,
their distribution: the means include land, natural resources, technology and inputs
used for producing something; working relations means process of producing
something by doing labour; distribution of produce means distribution of wages.
In an economy, three broad sectors can be identified: agriculture associated with
land and natural resources such as forest and natural resources, industry, service
sector, and informal or footloose economy. On the basis of the extent of ownership
of means of production and distribution of produce, different classes can be identified in different fields of economy. Marxist approach in India, has most
prominently been used to analyse the class formation and class relations in
agriculture and industry. However, some attempts have also been made to view
the class formation in a transition economy (Jan Breman 1996; Carol Upadhya
2016). But these are not exclusively done in typical classical Marxist approach:
they give space the non-economic aspects also.
2.4.1 Marxist Perspectives and Classes in Rural Areas
According to Marxist approach, the classes in agriculture in India have been
identified in the following ways: who owns the land and other resources such as
tools and instruments to cultivate land, who works in the land, and what is the
nature of relationship among those who work in land, land and other resources,
wage distribution. Using such perspective, Utsa Patnaik in Peasant Class
Differentiation (1986) identifies following classes in agrarian sector in Haryana
in India: The rural rich — landlords, rich peasants and middle peasants; and rural
poor — small and poor peasants and landless proletariat. The rural rich own land
and other resources, they generally do not work in the land but get the work done
by wage labourers. However, the family members of the middle peasants work
on land but like the landlords and rich peasants do not work on anybody
else’s land. The rural poor either own no land or own land and other resources
which are insufficient to meet family needs. They have to work in others’ land or
at any other places. Patnaik applies Marxist approach to identify classes in
agriculture which has seen green revolution, or which have seen development of
capitalism to a significant extent. But where elements of capitalism have not
developed, the Marxist approach broadly identifies following classes: feudal
landlords who get the land cultivated by tenants ough share cropping, and
whose position is impacted by economic exploitation and non-economic
dominance. In such areas the technology of development is traditional in
comparison to the areas which have seen development of capitalism or where
class formation is more crystallised. The Marxist perspective generally
undermines the role of caste in identifying classes. Moving away from this trend,
a Marxist scholar, Gail Omvedt(ed.) in Land, Caste and Politics in Indian States,
observed that class divisions in rural society are wined in castes hierarchies.
This is true in both areas where capitalism in agriculture has developed such as
Punjab, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat and as well as
in “feudal” and “backward” states such as Bihar.

2.5 Movements
Since Marxism is sympathetic to lower classes — agricultural, labourers, working
classes or peasantry, it aims to end class exploitation. Marxist approach
emphasises in studying material conditions of classes, their social relations and
attempt by them to improve their conditions. Their attempts include collective
action or movements of different classes. Although Marxist perspective has been
used to study movements of several sections of society in India, it has been used
most prominently to study peasants’ and farmers’ movements, agricultural
labourers’ and workers’ movements. The movements which have been studied
include both which happened in colonial and post-colonial periods. Here are
some examples of how Marxist approach is used to study these examples.

2.5.1 Peasants’ and Farmers’ Movements
Although generally peasants and farmers are generally used interchangeably,
there is a difference between them. Peasant is a generic category; farmer is used
for agriculturists who use modern technology and are more resourceful than the
peasants. The prime focus in peasant studies has been to identify classes in
agriculture, process of class formation, social and economic relations in terms of
rent collection, indebtedness, nature of social oppression and economic
exploitation; to study the resistance of peasants to the exploitation —the demands
and patterns of mobilisation; and to study the response of the exploiting classes
and the state. In the studies of peasant movements during the colonial period in
India, the Marxist approach identified broadly following classes: peasants working
as tenants on the lands owned by landlords, landlords, moneylenders and officials
of the colonial government. It also explained the ways tenants were exploited —
eviction from land for being unable to pay rent and debt, physical coercion and
caste-based humiliation, and how the exploiting classes — the landlords,
moneylenders, colonial authorities allied with each other. In the postIndependence period, the focus of Marxist approach shifted to study the politics
of land reforms, movements for implementation of land reforms and impact of
land reforms. In studying land reforms, it attempted to analyse the impact
land reforms in terms of granting ownership of land to tenants, abolition of
landlordism and consolidation of land holdings. It also sought to assess the extent
of success of land reforms. The examples of using Marxist approach to study
peasant movements include: Dhanagre, Sunil Sen Majid Siddiqui, Girish Mishra
for the colonial period; Tom Brass’s Peasants’Populism and Postmodernism for
the post-colonial period. In Elementary Aspects ofPeasant Insurgency in Colonial
India, using Subaltern variant of Marxist approach, Ranajit Guha argues
during the colonial period, the peasants did not rebel against the landlords and
the British oppressors blindly. They did so with consciousness. Using “history
from below” perspective, which also focuses the underprivileged classes, Kapil
Kumar in Peasants in Revolt studied peasant movement during the colonial period
in Oudh region of Uttar Pradesh. He situated the peasant movement in context of
class relations and social and economic conditions of peasants in the Oudh
During the 1980s, different regions in India witnessed a spate of farmers
movements, which have been different from the peasant movements. Unlike the
peasants, they did not demand land reforms or end of oppression by landlords. In
fact, these have been beneficiaries of land reforms and other state policies such
as subsides and debt abolition. Their movements emerged in those regions which
have witnessed green revolution — Punjab, Haryana, western UP, Maharasthra,
Gujarat, Karnataka and Kerala. Their demands are generally related to capitalist
economy, i.e, subsidised inputs, better remunerative price of agricultural produce,
increase in time of availability of electricity, problem of getting labourers to
work on their field, etc. Scholars using Marxist approach have attempted to study
class character of these movements and link them with political economy of
capitalism in agriculture: for them, they are movements of the rural rich who
have are embedded in agrarian capitalism.

 

2.5.2 Working Class Movements
For studying working class or trade union movements Marxist perspectives
addresses the following issues: growth of working class; their social and economic
conditions; fulfilment of their basic needs — food, housing, education, health, etc.; payment of wages, bonus; right to organise and set up their organisations;
facilities for creches of workers children; the factors that lead to workers
movements; influence of ideological and political movements on workers
organisations; response ofthe state and owners of the firms where striking workers
are engaged. Ranajit Das Gupta(1996) points out that Marxist writings ofworking
class have not dealt with some relevant aspects such as labour and labour forms,
control over and subordination of labour, class formation, leadership patterns,
relationship between workplace and community life outside the workplace. He
also underlines that the Marxist scholars have neglected issues of culture and
gender. Studies of Jan Breman show that a huge working class is engaged in any
kind of work available has grown in India, which he terms as “footloose labour”.
This class has also not been adequately addressed by Marxist approach in India.

2.6 THE INDIAN STATE
State is a sovereign political institution in a country. You have read in unit 1,
liberal approach influenced by the behavioural movement in social sciences, has
preferred to use political system for sovereign political body over the state. But
in Marxist approach, the state is a crucial institution to study politics of country.
The Marxists view the state as an “executive of he bourgeoisie” or of the
propertied classes. It is different from the way the political system, as the term is
used for the state, is seen in the liberal approach. The liberal approach views the
political system in which consensus between differences is reached, and political
system remains resilient and maintains itself. Unlike the liberal approach, Marxist
approach analyses the state by using following parameters: (i) It views state as
representative of class interests and seeks to find the how different classes are
related to the state in terms of controlling it and uencing the state policies;
(ii) It attempts to see how state formulates its policies about the propertied and
poor classes; (iii) It seeks to trace the development of the state; (iv) to see the
ideological influences or orientation of the state; (v) and it attempts to link the
policies of a state with international political economy, especially financial
institutions such as World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF). On the
basis of these parameters, the Marxist perspective is used to explain what Marxists
call, the nature state of a country or nature of Indian ate with reference to India.
Marxist perspective has been used by Marxist political parties and by professional
academics. There are broadly three kinds of communist parties following Marxian
ideology, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India,
Marxist CPI(M), and several Naxalite parties, who define Indian state according
to Marxist approach. Though there are differences mong them, the common
feature of their approach is to analyse Indian state by seeking to establish
relationship of state classes within the country as well with the foreign capital or
imperialism which are generally represented by international financial institutions.
According to CPI(M), the Indian state is bourgeoisie- landlord (capitalists and
the landlords) which collaborates with the foreign capital; according to the CPI,
it is a national bourgeoisie (capitalists which represent national interests) state
which collaborates with the foreign capital. Different kinds ofNaxalites generally
view the state as representatives of comprador bourgeoisie or the propertied
classes which represent the interests of the foreign capital. Using Marxist
perspective, political scientist C.P. Bhambhri (1989) analyses the Indian state in
relation to development capitalism in India, class contradictions and conflicts in
the society. During the conflict situation, Indian state shows authoritarian

tendencies. The state shows weakness in dealing with contradictory pressures
from different classes in society. This weakness of the state makes it liable to the
pressure of imperialist forces. The imperialist forces have supporters within the
state. The Indian state faces challenge of traditionally social structure such as
caste and religious groups. Vivek Chibber in his book Locked in Place. StateBuilding and Late Industrialization in India discusses the attitude of Indian
industrialists about industrial policies of Indian state during Nehruvian period.
Contrary to a prominent argument that they favoured state-led development,
Chibber argues that Indian capitalists were not in favour of state-led development:
they wanted the private sector, capitalists or market to lead development. The
prominence of class politics as envisaged by Marxist perspectives and its influence
on the nature of state has been discounted by the non-Marist scholars. For instance,
Rudolph and Rudolph, in the book In Pursuit ofLakshmi. The Political Economy
ofIndian State, argue that India lacks class politics because the organised labour
forms a small fragment of India economy. The state in India works as “third
actor”, the other two being private capital and organised labour. The state plays
a centrist role in India. You can notice, it is just contrary to the view of Marxist
approach — Indian state is an ally of the propertied classes.
Check Your Progress Exercise
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) How do you study class relations according to Marxist approach?
2) How can you analyse the nature of Indian state
3) How do you analyse class movements according to Marxist approach?

2.7 LET US SUM UP
Marxist approach is a way to analyse society, which includes politics also. This
approach is based on Marxism. It uses principle of dialectical materialism to
explain various issues in society. According to this principle, change in social
relations of production, distribution of produce and resources leads to
transformation of society. There are two types of Marxist approaches — classical
Marxist approach and neo-Marxist approach. Subaltern approach is one of the
neo-Marxist approaches. The classical Marxist approach gives priority to class
over non-class issues or to the base over superstructure. The neo-Marxist approach
gives enough space to the role of non-class factors — such as culture, caste,
language, religion, etc. along with class factors: the non-economic factors are
considered relatively autonomous of class. The themes which are studied
according to Marxist approach cut across disciplinary boundaries. The most
common themes which have been studied in India according to this approach
are: class formation and class collaboration; movements of peasants, farmers,
workers and nature of Indian state.

2.8 REFERENCE
Bhambhri, C.P.(1989). “The Indian State: Conflicts and Contradiction”, in Zoya
Hasan, S.N. Jha and Rasheeduddin Khan (eds.), The State, Political Processes
and Identity. Rejections on Modern India. New Delhi: Sage Publication.
Brass, Paul (2002). Peasants, Populism and Postmodernism: The Return of the
Agrarian Myth. London: Frak
Breman, Jan (1996). Footloose Labour: Working in India’s Informal Economy.
Cambridge University Press.
Chibber, Vivek(2004). Locked in Place: State-Building andLate Industrialization
in India. (Indian edition), Delhi: Tulika Books.
Gupta, Ranaj it Das (1996). “Indian Working Class and Some Recent
Historiographical Issues”, Economic and Political Weekly, February 24.
Guha, Ranajit (1983). Elementary Aspects of Peasant Insurgency in Colonial
India. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Kapil Kumar (1984) in Peasants in Revolt: enants, Landlords, Congress and
the Raj in Oudh, 1986-1922. New Delhi.
Patnaik, Utsa (1987). Peasant Class Differentiation: A Study in Method with
Reference to Haryana. Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Rudolph, Lloyd I. and Rudolph, Sussan, H(1987). In Pursuit ofLakshmi: Political
Economy ofthe Indian State. Hyderabad: Orient Longman.
Singh, Jagpal(1992). Capitalism and Dependence. Agrarian Politics in Western
Uttar Pradesh, 1951-1991. Manohar: New Delhi.
Upadhya, Carol (2016). Reengineeringlndia. Work, Capital, Class in an Offshore
Economy. Delhi: Oxford University Press.

2.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1

1) Marxist approach means a way to explain the processes in society by looking
at the changes in social relations of production among classes, control on
means of production or resources and distribution of the produce.

2) The classical Marxist approach gives priority to class over non-class issues
such as culture, caste, religion, politics, etc. Neo-Marxist approach considers
both the class and non-class issues. It underlines that like class, caste, religion,
culture also play important role, some time relatively autonomous of class.

3) Liberal approach prefers to use political system for sovereign political
institution. It argues that different factions in a system interact, conflict and
adjust in order to reach consensus. Marxist approach prefers to use state
instead of political system. According to it, the state is an ally of propertied
classes. It takes a partisan role in managing class contradictions.

Check Your Progress Exercise
1) By using Marxist approach class relations are studied by addressing the
following questions: what the pattern of ownership of resources is — which
classes own them, and which is deprived of them; who works in the
production process; and how the produce or wages and profits are distributed.
It also explains how new classes emerge and old classes change or disappear.

2) Nature of Indian state according to Marxist perspective is analysed by looking
at the relationship between classes, Indian state and international capital. In
view of these relationships, different communist parties or Marxist scholar
describe nature of Indian state as bourgeoisie-landlord, national-bourgeoisies
or comprador state, which collaborates with the foreign financial capital.

3) Marxist perspective analyses class movements by linking the issues of class
with unequal social relations of production, impact of state policies,
which the propertied classes exert on the state, by viewing the role of
economic factors on mobilisation of classes, and by explaining to which
extent non-class factors impact class movements.

UNIT 3 GANDH¥AN^
Structure
3.0 Objectives
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Meaning and Scope of Gandhian Approach
3.3 In Search of Human Face
3.4 Gandhian Approach and Political Science in India
3.4.1 Social and Communal Harmony
3.4.2 Social Movements
3.4.3 Party System
3.4.4 Impact of Gandhian Philosophy on Public Policies
3.5 Gandhian Perspective and Postmodernism
3.6 Let Us Sum Up
3.7 References
3.8 Check Your Progress Excercises

3.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you will be able:
To explain basic tenets of Gandhian approach;
To use Gandhian approach to interpret Indian litics;
To identify the issues which have been focus of study by Gandhian approach
in India; and
To compare Gandhian approach with liberal and Marxist approach to explain
Indian politics

3.1 INTRODUC
In units 1 and 2 you have read about liberal and Marxist approaches to study
politics in India. Gandhian approach is different from the liberal approach in the
following way: liberal approach, especially its variant system approach does not
emphasises change, it uderlines the resilience of the system and consensus
building in it. But it has some similarities and differences with the Marxist
approach. Its similarities with the Marxist approach are that both approaches are
used as ways to interpret change the society, and as vision for social change.
Gandhian approach like the Marxist approach has been used both by politicians,
political activists/Gandhian reformers, politicians and intellectual like Charan
Singh, Ram Manohar Lohia and scholars: to critique the existing development
model and to provide an alternative. There are some basic differences between
Gandhian and Marxist approaches: Gandhian approach underlines significance
of non-violence, ethics and principles of trusteeship, the Marxist approach seeks
to explain nature of class struggles. Gandhism suggests that there should be trust among the workers and the propertied classes. The latter should establish
trusteeship and share their wealth. It will reduce the gap between rich and the
poor.

3.2 MEANING AND SCOPE OF GANDHIAN
APPROACH

Gandhian approach denotes using Gandhian tenets or Gandhism to explain the
social reality or truth and suggest ways to build new society. These tenets are
truth, non-violence, Satyagrah, Swaraj, Sarvodaya, justification of means to
achieve goals, ethics/morality, Ram Rajya. Non-violence is more than just
avoidance of violence and harming others: it is to harm oneself. To harm oneself
through activities such as fasting is to exercise moral authority on those who
possess power. Without disobedience a political action cannot be organized;
democracy must be structured in as a way that every citizen can question law
and institutions (Ramin Jahanbegloo, 2018, The Disobedient Indian: Towards a
Gandhian Philosophy ofDissent, Speaking Tiger, New Delhi). To use non-violent
and moral or ethical tool to achieve goals means to follow a method/strategy
which is known as Satyagrah according to Gandhism. The ultimate goal which
Gandhian tenets seek to achieve is establish swaraj or self-control or selfrealization. This will lead to formation of Ram Rajya or a society where people
live in peace and harmony, govern themselves, and enjoy security. In Ram Rajya,
an ideal society, people self-regulate, self-govern, through village panchayats/
village republics. It is high civil society; such societies have compassion and
fellow feeling. In Ram Rajya, the village panchayats performs the functions which
can be performed by the state. Ram Rajya/Swaraj implies minimum role to the
state, which is a coercive institution. When a scholar uses concept of Satyagrah,
non-violence, truth, etc. to anyalyse role of institutions such as state, sharing of
power(decentralization), mobilisation through non-violence and non-cooperation
it denotes usage of Gandhian approach. Gandhian approach has been used in
different disciplines in social sciences.

Check Your Progress Exercise
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) What is Gandhian Approach to politics and what are its core elements?

2) Compare Gandhian approach with liberal and Marxist approaches.

3.3 IN SEARCH OF HUMAN FACE
One of the most influential political scientists who has used Gandhian approach
to Indian politics is Rajni Kothari. He along with some other intellectuals founded
Lokayan with a group of intellectuals. According to Gail Omvedt Lokayan
(Reinventing Socialist Revolution, quoted by Rudolph and Rudolph) was a
“Gandhian-Socialist” civil society organization. As a member of Lokayan, Rajni
Kothari, has been influenced by Gandhian philosophy. This is reflected in his
academic and popular writings since the 1970s. As you read in unit 1, Rajni
Kothari used system approach, a variant of liberal approach to explain Indian
politics. Usage of Gandhian approach in his later writings emerged out of his
critique of the system approach. He rethought some of the premises which were
earlier analysed in the system framework. The changes that took place over four
decades following Independence could not be explained by the system approach.
The changes could be seen in influence of technology and subservience of the
state to it, and consequent problems in society (violence, etc.), people’s
movements, human rights violation, ethnicity (identities), erosion of institutions,
rise of individual leaders like Indira Gandhi, populism, personal loyalties. In
Kothari’s opinion, due to overinfluence of technology Indian state became
inhumane; it turned against people. A need for human face of the state was felt.
It necessitated rethinking of framework which could help in search of a new
India. Alien model of development, which was not pro-people worked under the
shadow of world capitalism. And the alternative is available in a human
framework, influenced by Gandhian principles. Kothari underlined“an approach
that was in many ways different from earlier selections” (Kothari 1989, Vol.
I:x); his new writings “contradict” his earlier work. The alternative framework
influenced by Gandhain philosophy was supposed to be more democratic than
the present one Westminster model. According to this perspective, the Westminster
model was implanted in India, from a prosperous milieu to a poor country. It
gave more powers to the executive and bureaucracy leading to undue
centralization of powers for policy initiative and implementation. There has often
been a talk of a “new constitution”. According to Rajni Kothari (1988),
development model in India where technology dominates the state, there are
“two Indians”: the state is being manipulated by corporate capitalism, and
common people are suffering; on the one hand democracy has been highjacked
by the rich, on the other it has become playground for communal, castiest and
the corrupt. In this context, when party and institutions are losing credibility,
“non-party politics” is happening in every part of the country. Alternative which
is emerging — “alternative movement”, peoples action

3.4 GANDIAN APPROACH AND POLITICAL
SCIENCE IN INDIA
In Political Science the most common themes which have been studied by
Gandhian approach are social movements and usage of Satyagrah in them; critique
of Indian state as a coercive institution; the notion of Swaraj, communal and
social harmony, and decentralisation (Panchayati Raj Institutions) or the 73rd
and 74* Constitutional Amendment Acts, and the influence of Gandhism on
development debate, and on perspectives, etc. Gandhian way is used to assess
the influence of Gandhism on intellectuals such as Charan Singh, Lohia and
other socialist leaders. Lohia and Charan Singh attacked industrialization in favour

of small-scale/village industries. Although Charan Singh was influenced by
Gandhi, he disagreed with Gandhi on some issues. For instance, he opposed to
Gandhi’s notion of cooperative farming. He opined Gandhi’s views in support of
cooperative farming. However, Charan Singh was not opposed to cooperative in
service in farming. The tenets of Gandhism/Gandhian philosophy which
influenced Lohia included — unsuitability of European model of socialism; he
critiqued Nehruvian model of development from the point of view of Nehruvian
model of development. He was most influenced by Gandhian ideas of civil
disobedience or Satyagrah and economic and political decentralization. As in
Gandhian perspective, the state has generally been viewed as a soulless machine
which uses coercive methods, Gandhian perspective seeks to explain the extent
to which state is required to provide security. Indeed, he is not opposed to state;
instead, he supports minimum state. It provides security. The role ofthe state can
be performed by Panchayati Raj Institutions. State should perform minimum
functions. Gandhism supports a kind of democracy in which people share power
and participate in decision making process through decentration or Panchayati
Raj Institutions.

3.4.1 Social and Social Harmony
The question how Gandhism has helped to combat communal polarisation has
been used by historians, especially with reference to Noakhali riot (Batbayal
2005): in Noakhali, Gandhi could use religion in politics, and sanctification/
justification of violence by religion, the question which was addressed in Noakhali
was if Gandhi’s doctrine was failing and how idea was of conversion made to
justify violence. In the case of Noakhali riots, the historians have attempted to
see the impact of Gandhian method of Satyagrah to achieve communal harmony
It was so despite the fact Gandhi was criticized both by Hindus and Muslism.
Bhikhu Parekh viewed Noakhali riot through the notion of inter-relatedness of
personal purity (Personal suffering through hunger strike, etc.) and political
success achieved in communal harmony. The Gandhian perspective attempts to
analyse how different communities can be brought together in situations
communal strife.

3.4.2 Social Movements
Studying Gujarat movement in Gujarat 1974 against the price rise, Ghanshyam
Shah shows the role of Satyagrah in anti-levy. The movement which was launched
by the students began against inflated mess bills took up varieties of issues, i.e.,
corruption, black-marketing, price rise, denationalisation, civil liberties. The
agitation forced Gujarat chief minister Chimanbhai Patel to resign. It later got
linked with JP movement. It provided a background to imposition of emergency
in 1975. Some scholars underline the importance of Satyagrah and non-violence
in farmers’ movements, and in movements against corruption.
Gandhians like Subba Rao and Rajagopal, P.V. and Jayprakash Narain used
Gandhian ways to convince dacoits in Chambal to surrender abjuring violence
and follow non-violence, to mobilize of youths in Bihar in the JP movements
against comiption and, against emergency. Balagopal founded Ekta Parishad to
mobilize tribals against encroachment of their land, and for granting land rights
to them. Ekta Parishad is inspired by Gandhian philosophy of non-violence and
non-cooperation. It sought to bring the state and society. For this purpose a Joint Task Force (JTF) was formed in the 1980s. It pressurised the Congress/Digvijay
Singh government to introduce land reforms. Over three decades from the 1990s,
Ekta Parishad took up various issues — wages, migration, bonded labour,
rehabilitation, employment, etc. Ekta Parishad launched an “alternative
mobilization”or new social movement in Bundelkhand and Chhattisgarh. It
organised long march (pad yatras, dhamas, chakkajams, etc, land satyagrah) of
peasants from MP to Delhi passing through different states of India (Pai 2010).
3.4.3 Party System
Revising his views on revisiting the Congress system in an article in Asian Survey
December 1974, 14 (2), Rajni Kothari states that a government will not be able
to deliver without grass-root organisation. In the post-Nehruvian period, the
Congress was lacking it. Even conflict which assumes the form of mass agitation
grows outside the legislature and electoral channels. It develops rapport with the
people. In the absence of organization, police and hirelings from outside make
up for the gap in organizational structure. If the Congress fails in building grassroot cadres, it can be filled up by the opposition. Without bring back the party
structure, elections will lose credibility.
3.4.4 Impact of Gandhian Philosophy on Public Policies
The Janata government’s policies attempted to replace Nehruvian model of
development: investment priorities and plan allocation in favour of agriculture
rather than industry; employment through investment in agriculture and small
scale industry, and“appropriate” policy. Through such policies India was supposed
to become a nation more of farmers than ofbureaucrats. These are some examples
of impact of Gandhism on state policies. Such s have been influenced by
Gandhian perspectives Charan Singh’s attack on Nehruvian model, and his views
on alternative model of development giving priority to agriculture, village
community and small scale industries can be viewed to be cast in Gandhian
framework. He accused Nehru of having “de-industrialized” India. Using
Gandhian approach, Rahul Ramagundam (2008) underlines role of material and
ethics in sustenance of life. The material aspect was influenced by Nehrurian
philosophy and ethical by the Gandhian. However e has been lack of adequate
policy-oriented assessment of Gandhian socio-economic practices.

3.5 GANDHIAN PERSPECTIVE AND
POSTMODERNISM
In their book Postmodern Gandhi and Other Essays, Lyod I. Rudolph and
Susannae H. Rudolph liken Gandhi to a postmodern thinker. They challenge the
general notion about Gandhi that he was a traditional leader. In their opinion,
Gandhi was a post-modernist. For understanding as to why Rudolph and Rudolph
consider Gandhi as postmodern thinker, it is relevant to identify some core features
of postmodernism. These features are as follows: primacy to the segment of a
whole or its fragments, truth as a contested reality and significance ofthe context.
In relation to these features, Rudolph and Rudolph also categorise Gandhi as a
postmodernist thinker. Quoting Gandhi’s book Hind Swaraj (1909) and My
Experiment with Truth, they argue that for Gandhi the authenticity of truth is
contextual and experimental. Gandhi’s emphasis on the need for decentralisation
of social and political power also qualifies him to be designated as postmodern
thinker.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) Discuss the impact of Gandhian approach on the approach of Rajni Kothari.

2) How is Gandhian approach used to explain Indian politics?

3) Which major issues are focus of Gandhian approach?

3.6 LET US SUM UP

Gandhian approach is a way to explain and vision to affect change in society. It
has been followed by three kinds of persons such as professional academicians,
activists and politicians inspired by Gandhian philosophy. The followers of this
approach try to see as to how basic tenets of Gandhism such as truth, non-violence,
Satyagrah, Swaraj, Ram Rajya, Sarvodaya, etc., can be applied to explain issues
in Indian politics. The issues which have received the most attention of political
scientists include decentration, dissent in democracy, social harmony, importance
rural society, place of agriculture and small-scale industries as alternative to
heavy industry-based development. They have also used Gandhian perspective
to critique Nehruvian model of development. Gandhian activists and politicians,
in addition, have used Gandhian tactics such as satyagrah, hunger strike to
mobilise popular support.

3.7 REFERENCES
Batbayal, Rakesh (2005). Communalism in Bengal: From Famine to Noakhalis,
1943-47, New Delhi: Sage Publications.
Economic and Political Weekly, Special Issue of Life and Ideas of Lohia, vol. 45,
no. 40, 2-8 October 2010.
Pai, Sudha (2010). Developmental State and the Dalit Question in Madhya
Pradesh: Congress Response. New Delhi: Routledge.
Parekh, Bhikhu (1989). Colonialism, Transition and Reform: An Analysis of
Gandhi’s Political Discourse. New Delhi.
Kothari, Rajni (1975). Democratic Polity and Social Change in India: Crisis
and Opportunities. Bombay: Allied Publishers.
(1989). Politics and the People: In Search ofa Humane India. Vols III, Delhi: Ajanta Books International.
Ramagundam, Rahul (2008). Gandhi’s Khadi. A History of Contention and
Conciliation. Hyderabad: Orient
Rudolph, Lyod I and Rudolph, S.H. (2008). Explaining Indian Democracy: A
Fifty-Year Perspective, The Realm ofIdeas — Inquiry and Theory, Vol. 1.
(2006). Postmodern Gandhi and Other Essays: Gandhi in the Modern
World and at Home, New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Shah, Ghanshyam (1974). “The Uprising in Guj ”. Economic and Political
Weekly, August 9.
Singh, Jagpal (2014). “Legacies of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and his Contemporaries
in Uttar Pradesh: A Comparison of Ambedkar, Charan Singh and Lohia”, in
Biswamoy Pati (ed.), Invoking Ambedkar: Contributions, Receptions, Legacies,
Primus Books, Delhi.

3.8 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS XERCISES
Answers to Exercise 1
1) Gandhian approach is a way to interpret politics. Its core elements are truth,
styagrah, non-violence, swaraj, Ram Rajya, decentralizationof power,
social harmony, trusteeship, etc.
2) Gandhian approach is a vision for social change and a methodology to explain
politics. The liberal approach, especially its variant, system approach focuses
on resilience and consensus building of political system. Gandhian approach
has similarities with the Marxist approach: both are ways to explain politics
and vision for change in the society. They are different in the sense that
Marxist approach looks at the class struggle, the Gandhian approach looks
at social harmony and morality.
Answers to Exercise 2
1) For a few years of his intellectual careers, Rajni Kothari followed system
approach to explain Indian politics. But he did not find system approach adequate to explain several political and social change. This resulted in
change in his approach. The change was influenced by Gandhian philosophy.
Along with a group of intellectuals, Rajni Kothari founded Lokayan, which
according to Gail Omvedt was a “Gandhian-Socialist” civil society
organisation.
2) Gandhian approach is used to critique the development model which gives
priority to heavy industries. It underlines the significance of alternative model
of development which underlines the significance of small-scale industries,
cottage industries, village society, decentralization of power. It seeks to study
the role of Gandhian tools such as Satyagrah, morality, self-sacrifice in
popular mobilization. It also attempts to explain the extent to changes meet
the requirement of Gandhian principles — social harmony, decentralizations,
self-control, finally reflecting achievement of Ram Rajya.
3) The most common issues studied under Gandhian approach include
decentralization or Panchayati Raj Institutions, role of Satyagrah, nonviolence in mass movements; social or communal harmony, critiquing
development model and providing an alternative model; and influence of
Gandhi on some intellectuals, politicians and socialism in India.

Block-2 Indian Constitution Block-2

BLOCK 2 INTRODUCTION
Constitution of India guarantees security of rights of all individuals, promotion
of fraternity among them and ensures unity and integrity of nation. Purpose of
this block is to introduce you to the provisions dealing with the basic features of
the constitution, rights and duties of the people, relationships among them, and
about the directives which the constitution gives to the state (government) to
device policies for their welfare. These themes are discussed in three units of
this block. Unit 4 discusses the basic features of the constitution. Units 5 is about
Fundamental Rights. Unit 6 deals Directive Principles of the State Policy and
Fundamental Duties of citizens

UNIT 4 BASIC FEATURES^

Structure
4.0 Objectives
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Government of India Act, 1935
4.3 Constituent Assembly
4.4 Essential Features
4.4.1 Sovereign, Democratic, Republic

4.4.2 Union of States

4.4.3 Fundamental Rights

4.4.4 Directive Principles of State Policy

4.4.5 Fundamental Duties

4.4.6 The Union: Executive, Legislature and Judiciary

4.5 Emergency Provisions

4.5.1 General Emergency
4.5.2 Declaration of Constitutional Emergency

4.5.3 Financial Emergency

4.6 Federalism
4.6.1 Centre-State Relations

4.7 Relative Flexibility

4.8 Let Us Sum Up
4.9 References

4.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

4.0 OBJECTIVES

In this Unit we shall discuss the salient features of the Indian Constitution in the
backdrop of the relevant events that preceded the coming into force of the
Constitution. After going through this unit you should be able to:
List out the essential features of the Indian Constitution; and

Highlight the significance of the salient features.

Basic Features
Highlight the significance of the salient features.
4.1 INTRODUCTION
The constitution of India is the will of the people of the country. It sets the broad
functional parameters of governance. The Constitution was prepared after lengthy
deliberations in the Constituent Assembly, which began on 6 December 1946
and came into force on 26 January 1950. The precursor to the Indian Constitution
was the Government of India Act of 1935.

4.2 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA ACT, 1935

The 1935Act was the product of the Report of a Joint Select Committee that was
discussed in the British Parliament before finally receiving the assent of the
Queen, on 2 August 1935. Some of the features of the 1935 Act, with modification
though, were later incorporated in the Constitution of India. These include a
federal structure in the form of a Union government and State Government(s)
(Centre and State(s), and the division of powers between them (Union List, State
List and Concurrent List) bicameral Legislature —the Lower House and the Upper
House (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha at the Union level; and State Legislative
Assembly and State Legislative Council, at the State level), Federal Court (the
Supreme Court).

4.3 CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY

For the purpose of writing a constitution, a Constituent Assembly was convened.
Constitution making was no easy task. The Constitution had to live up to the
aspirations of the people who had been exposed to several centuries of injustice,
social exploitation and discrimination, as well as two centuries of colonial
dominance. Moreover, if it were to be applicable and acceptable to diverse
religious, political and regional sections, it had to embody their interests. The
motto with which the constitution-making exercise was undertaken was
‘consensus’ rather than the ‘majority principle’. In this, representatives from
diverse ideological backgrounds, and several of them with a legal background,
worked together. At the head of the exercise was Dr. Rajendra Prasad, a veteran
of the freedom movement who was later to hold oifice of the president of
India for two successive terms, and the leading light was the first Prime Minister
of Independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru. Renowned members of the Assembly
included T TKrishnamachari, Dr. B R Ambedkar, Alladi Krishna Swami lyer
and GopalaswamiAiyangar, Shyama Prasad Mukherji, J B Kriplani, Vallabhai
Patel and PattabhiSitaramayya.
There were to be 381 members in the Constituent Assembly. They represented
the various political parties and belonged to the ngress Party, Communist
Party of India, Praja Party, KrishakPraja Party, Scheduled Castes Federation,
Non-Congress Sikhs, Unionist Muslims and Provinces and the Princely States
were also represented in the Assembly.

The provisions of the Constitution were extensively ebated upon in the several
Committees that were formed for the purpose before being presented to the
Assembly for its consideration. On the basis of the deliberations in the Assembly,
the Drafting Committee, which was constituted on 29 August 1947, prepared the
draft text of the Constitution. Dr. B RAmbedkar was the chairman of the Drafting
Committee. The final document, after making amendments to the draft
Constitution, as signed on 26 November 1949, and two months later it came into
force.
It is, indeed, creditable that the Members of the Constituent Assembly completed
the exercise of preparing a Constitution within a period of three years while it
took many more years for other countries to have their first Constitution. Also,
it goes to the credit of the country and is a testimony to the broad vision of the
Constitution makers that the Constitution of India was never abrogated, and a new one introduced. The Indian Constitution was never seriously questioned
since the time it came into force. The changing requirements were attended to
through affecting amendments to the Constitution while its essential features
were retained; they occasionally came under strain, though.

4.4 ESSENTIAL FEATURES

The essential features of the Constitution of India are as follows: The Constitution
is supreme; The sovereignty of India cannot be surrendered or pledged; India is
Republic and cannot be turned into a monarchy; Democracy is a way of life than
merely providing for adult franchise; Secularism and independent judiciary are
two pedestals of this democracy. Amendments to the Constitution can be made
without altering its essentials. We shall discuss some of these features.
4.4.1 Sovereign, Democratic, Republic
The ‘Preamble’ to the Constitution declares that the people of the country are the
sovereigns. In other words, ‘Sovereignty’ rests in the people and is exercised
through the institutions that have been created for that purpose. The sovereignty
of the country can not be pledged, i.e., India can not be turned into a colony or
dependency of another country. The entire course of the Freedom Movement
was on this quintessential principle of sovereignty.
In the Preamble it is also stated that the country shall be a Republic and shall
adhere to a democratic form of government. In Republic there is no scope for a
Monarch to reign over the people, but the people themselves rule the county
through their elected representatives

4.4.2 Union of States
An important feature of the Constitution is that it has constituted India as a Union
of States (Art 1). There is also scope in the Constitution to create new States as
well as to admit new ones. Notable example of these are the formation of States,
for the first time after independence in 1956 by bifurcating some of the
existing States on a linguistic basis-Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and
Kerala. Through the bifurcation of the Bombay State Maharashtra and Gujarat
were formed. More recently, in the year 2000, three new States — Uttaranchal,
Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand — were created. An example of the admission of
new States into the Indian Union is the admission of Sikkim, in 1975, till then a
protectorate of India, into the some of the Princely States were yet not ready by
the time the Constitution would come into force to become part of India. The
Nizam’s State of Hyderabad is one such example.And, besides, there were French
and Portuguese colonies — Pondicherry and Goa that remained to be integrated
with India. On August 5, 2019 the State of Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated
into two union-territories — Jammu and Kashmir and Laddhakh.

4.4.3 Fundamental Rights
The Fundamental Rights provided for in the Constitution could be summarised
as Right to Equality, Right to Freedom, Right Against Exploitation, Right to
Religion, Cultural and Educational Rights and the Right to Constitutional
Remedies. The Right to Property was made a legal right through the Forty Fourth
Constitutional Amendment Act, and is hence, not a Fundamental Right now. In the large interests of the country, the property belonging to any person can be
acquired by paying a ‘compensation.’
The Fundamental Rights are enshrined in Part III of the Constitution, and their
implementation is guaranteed by the Supreme Court. In other words, Fundamental
Rights are justice able. Indeed, some of the Fundamental Rights, it might be
noted, are applicable only to the citizens of the country and not to foreigners.
Article 20, Article 21 and Article 22 are, however, applicable to all. At the same
time, it should also be borne in mind that what is applicable is the ‘restriction’ on
the Right.
Except during an ‘Emergency’, Fundamental Rights cannot be suspended.
However, even during an Emergency Article 20 and Article 21 cannot be withheld.
The Constitution was amended by the Forty Fourth Amendment Act and through
Article 359-1A it was stated that Article 20 and Article 21 cannot be suspended
even when a proclamation of Emergency is in operation.

 

Right to Freedom
The Constitution also ensures the Right to Freedom under Articles 19 to 22.
Article 19 guarantees the right to freedom of h and expression, right to
peaceful assembly, right to form associations, right to visit and reside’ in any
part of the country and the right to profess and practice ones religion. These
rights too, are subject to any reasonable restrictions that can be imposed by the
state under clauses 2 to 6 of Article 19.
Article 20 guarantees that no person shall be punished on the basis of laws that
are enacted after a crime has been committed ection from ex post facto
laws). Protection from being punished more than once for the same offence
(protection from ‘double jeopardy’) and protection from standing trial against
oneself(protection from self-incrimination). Article 21 ensures the protection of
‘personal life and liberty’. In other words, the state does not have the right to
take away the life of a person, except through the procedure established by law.
Article 22 prohibits detention of person’s without trial. However, preventive
detention of a person up to three months and, in ome cases, beyond that is
permitted.

Right to Equality
Article 14, guarantees the Right to Equality before the Law and the Right to
Equal Protection of the Laws. In other words, this article ensures that all persons
can be tried in a court of law and every person can approach the courts for justice
and that no person shall be discriminated against in the application of laws, nor
can any person claim special privileges and favouritism.
Article 15 guarantees protection from discrimination on the basis of ‘religion,
race, caste, sex or place of birth’. and provides for equal access to and thus the
Right against Discrimination. It also, however, states clearly that the state can
make special provisions for the uplift of certain categories of people like socially
and culturally backward classes and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. An
example in this context is the reservation provided in educational institutions
and in the public services to the disadvantages sections of the society. As one
commentator observed, “the framers of the Indian Constitution sought to shape
an overarching a) adequate means of livelihood for all,(b) distribution of wealth and control over it, rather than concentration, in the common good, (c) equal pay
for equal work for both men and women (d) non-abuse of the health of all workers
and (e) the protection of the children of the country from exploitation and their
growth in an atmosphere of freedom and dignity.
Article 16 provides for the Right to Equality of Opportunity in employment.
Continuing with its desire to ensure equality of all citizens, the Constitution also
abolished ‘Untouchability’ whose practice is a crime under Art 17, while Article
18 abolished Titles.

4.4.4 Directive Principles of State Policy
The Directive Principles of States Policy (DPSP) are an adaptation from the
Irish Constitution. These are broad guidelines which have to be borne in mind
while enacting laws and implementing them. Unlike the Fundamental Rights,
the DPSP are notjusticeable. Simplistically understood the DPSP have a ‘welfare’
connotation. The Constitution does not provide for their guarantee and, therefore,
their enforcement can not be questioned in a court of law.
Fundamental Rights and the DPSP “together, not individually” form the core of
the Constitution; “the true conscience”. The DPSP prescribes that the state
ensures.
4.4.5 Fundamental Duties
The Fundamental Duties enshrined in the Constitution are intended to obligate
all the citizens to strive for the common benefit of all. They are expected to
respect the Constitution, National Tri-colour and the Anthem. They are
upon to strive for upholding the unity and integrity of the country and work for a
harmonious society setting aside all divisive tendencies. The citizens of the
country have a duty to protect its resources both natural and material and work
towards higher levels of achievement.
4.4.6 The Union: Executive, Legislature and Judiciary
There are, as all students of Political Sciences know, three organs or branches of
government, i.e., legislature, executive and judiciary. A harmonious functioning
among the three is vital for the furtherance of a country
Legislature
At its Independence, India chose to adopt a parliamentary from of government.
In such a form of government, the President is the Head of the State while real
executive power is exercised by the Head of Government, the Prime Minister, in
association with his Council of Ministers, all of who are collectively responsible
to Parliament.
Executive
In India, the legislature and the executive are drawn from one another, while the
judiciary is an independent body. The legislature comprises of the House of People
(Lok Sabha), Council of States and the President of India. A member of the
Union Council of Ministers has necessarily to be a member of either of the lower
horse, the Lok Sabha or the Upper house, the Rajya Sabha.

President
Both the houses of Parliament and the legislatures in the States elect the President
by means ofa ‘single transferable vote’. The office of the President, its functions,
powers tenure, method of election and re-election, impeachment, and the
qualifications required to hold the office are enunciated in Articles 52 to 62. All
activities of the state are carried out in the name of the President as the executive
power is vested in the President (Art 52). As in the United States, in India, too,
the President is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. The President
summons both the houses of Parliament and addresses its joint sessions. He has
the power to remit sentences and grant reprieve. He appoints all the important
functionaries of the state such as the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers,
Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, the Attorney General, Governors
of States, Chairpersons of Commissions like the Election Commission of India
and heads of organisations like the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C
& AG).

The Union Council ofMinisters
It need to be kept in mind that there is a difference between the Cabinet and the
Council of Ministers; the Cabinet is composed of nisters of Cabinet rank and
Ministers of State, while the Council also includes the Deputy Ministers. The
Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to Parliament. Activities of the
Ministries are brought under scrutiny by the opposition during the two-hour long
Question Hour at the beginning of each day of the Session in Parliament. The
Council of Ministers makes recommendations to the President, in what is called
‘aids and advises’, in the affairs of the country. Important among the
recommendations that we should be aware are those relating to dissolution of
the Lok Sabha, declaring war or declaring a ‘state of Emergency’.
Legislature7P’arliament
The Indian Parliament is the supreme law-making body of the country. It is a
bicameral legislature as in the United Kingdom, the United States and several
other countries. The upper house is known in Hindi as the Rajya Sabha and in
English as the Council of States. It comprises the Chairman, who is also the
Vice-President of India, the elected members and 12 nominated members, each
holding a term of six years, with one-third of its membership retiring every two
years.
A significant aspect and point of difference between the Rajya Sabha and its
equivalent, the American Senate is that the membership of each State in it is
proportional to its population, whose legislative assembly elects the members of
the Rajya Sabha. Thus, all States of the Indian Union do not send an equal number
of representatives. The lower house of Parliament is the House of the People,
better known as the Lok Sabha. Its members are elected for single, term of five
years or less directly by all eligible voters by means of‘universal adult suffrage’
from territorially delimited constituencies.
The Rajya Sabha has little power over money bills. These can not be introduced
in the Rajya Sabha. It has to return such bills to the Lok Sabha with its
recommendations within 14 days, and it is for the Lok Sabha to accept or reject
any of its recommendations. In case ofa deadlock over a non-money bill between
the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, the President convenes a joint sitting of the
two houses to debate and vote on the bill.

A bill takes the form of an Act only after the President gives his assent to the
same. The President is empowered to withhold assent to a bill passed by both
houses of Parliament of refer it to Parliament with his suggestions. There have
been very few occasions when the President withheld his assent, but of course,
on the premise that the bill ran in contradiction with ‘public opinion”. One such
instance was the Postal Bill that was thought to be infringing on the privacy of
the people.
Check Your Progress 1
Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with model answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What rights do Article 20 and 21 deal with? Can these rights be restricted or
temporarily suspended?

2) The Union Cabinet consists of
a) The prime minister, Ministers of Cabinet rank and Ministers of State.
b) Cabinet rank Ministers and Ministers of
c) Prime Minister and Cabinet rank Ministers
judiciary
The third and very important organ of the government is the Judiciary. The Highest
court of appeal is the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has both appellate
original jurisdiction as do the High Courts in the respective States.
The Supreme Court is the custodian of the Constitution. Laws enacted by the
legislature can be declared invalid by the Supreme Court, if it is of the opinion
that they are not in conformity with the provisions of the Constitution. This power
is known as the power of ‘judicial review’. Besides, the Supreme Court and the
high Courts can also issue writes to the government and its agencies. A wellknown example is the Writ of Habeas Corpus. By pleading for the issuance of
such a writ an applicant asks the Supreme Court to direct the concerned police
authorities to present before the court a person who is missing and is believed to
be under their custody.

The President of India appoints all Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts
and the Chief Justices. The Constitution also clearly lays down the procedure for
impeaching the Judges and Parliament alone can impeach a judge of the Supreme
Court.
The supreme Court and Parliament have on occasion entered into a tug of war.
This was finally resolved with the Constitution Amendment Act stating that the
Supreme Court has the power.

4.5 EMERGENCY PROVISIONS
Emergency Provisions are enshrined in Part XVIII of the Constitution under
Articles 352 to 360. There are three types of Emergency that can be declared:
External aggression or armed rebellion (Article 352): Emergency was declared
under this provision for the first time in the wake of the war with China on
October 26, 1962. It continued upto January 10, 1968. Another proclamation of
emergency took place on December 3, 1971, in the wake of the India-Pakistan
war. During its continuation, a third Emergency was declared was on June, 1975.
It was revoked in 1977. Critics argue that the third emergency was intended
more to retain Mrs. Indira Gandhi in power than re was the actual threat. It
was the darkest period for Indian democracy as there were arbitrary detentions,
for a prolonged period of time and accusations of widespread infringement of
Fundamental Rights.
4.5.1 General Emergency
An emergency can be proclaimed when the security the country is under threat
or is under the danger of a threat from hostile countries during times of war or
only to state whether an Act was in contravention of the provisions of the
Constitution or not.
4.5.2 Declaration of Constitutional Emergency
The most contentious and abused emergency sion is Article 356. If the
President receives a report from the Governor of a state stating that the
constitutional machinery has broken down or that the administration of the State
can no longer be carried out in accordance with the provisions laid down in the
Constitution of India, and emergency can be declared in that State. The President
may do so even if he is otherwise satisfied of a stitutional breakdown in a
State. The provision allows dismissing the State government and bringing it under
President’s Rule or Central Rule. Under such a condition, the Governor of the
State assumes all functions and carries out the administration in the State, on
behalf of the President, i.e. the Centre, with the aid of his advisors appointed by
the President upon the recommendation of the Union Council of Ministers.
There were several instances when Article 356 was brought into force in various
State. The first instance of dismissing a State government by invoking Article
356 even while it continued to enjoy the confidence of the State Legislature
occurred in 1959, in Kerala, when the Communist government of the day was
dismissed. It generated a major controversy and it was argued that it was a wrong
decision as the government commanded a majority on the State Assembly. On

the other hand, the supporters of the decision held that public dissatisfaction
manifest in the form of agitation against the government and its policies was
reason enough to conclude that there, indeed, was a break down of law and
order, and, hence, it was correct to impose President’s Rule.
Other instances include the dismissal of State governments en masse twice, in
1977 after the Janata Party swept the general elections and subsequently in 1979
when the Congress Party returned to power. Other contentious occasions on which
invoking the provision was resorted are in 1984 in Andhra Pradesh and later in
Karnataka when the S R Bommai government was dismissed, and the court later
subsequently held that the decision was incorrect.
4.5.3 Financial Emergency
Financial emergency can be declared under Article 360 in conditions in which
the financial stability or credit of the country or any part of the country is
threatened. However, as provided for in the Forty Fourth Constitutional
Amendment Act of 1978, such a proclamation needs to be approved by the both
the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha within two months from the date of its
proclamation, or, if the Lok Sabha is at that time dissolved, within 30 days from
the date it (the new house) reconstituted.
4.6 FEDERALISM
At the time of Independence the diversity of the country was such that the
Constitution makers, thought it fit to have a strong Union government (centre)
within a federal framework. Provisions related to Centre-State relations are
enumerated in Part XI of the Constitution. The Indian Constitution provides for
governments with specified powers in the various States, too. India’s Constitution
thus has both centralizing and de-centralising features.
For more than a decade and a half after Independence, the Centre and the States
had almost no problems. Scholars attribute this to the existence of Congress
governments in most of the States in the country as well as at the Centre, the
towering personality of the then Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, and also the
leadership in the States as well as at the Centre that was less prone to schism, but
guided more by idealism. The balance in relations tilted more in favour of the
Centre when Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister of the country. This was due
not only to the Emergency that was imposed in 1975, but also because of weak
leaders at the State-level whose survival in political power was dependent on the
clout that they could wield at the Central level.
By the 1990s, at least a few of the States exercise greater leverage vis-a-vis the
Centre. A Central government that lacked an absolute majority in Parliament
had to depend on the support of its regional allies — the Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam and the All- India Anna DravidaMunnetraKazhagam, National
Conference in Jammu and Kashmir, the AsomGana Parishad in Assam, and the
more recent splinter groups of the erstwhile Janata Party that have established
themselves in the different Stats.

4.6.1 Centre-State Relations
Problems in Centre-State relations came to the fore after non-Congress
government came to power in several States — Orissa, West Bengal, Kerala,
Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the late 1960s.
Financial Relations
Another contentious issue is the sharing of financial resources between the Centre
and the States and allocation of Central grants to various States. While States
have since long been demanding the allocation of larger portions, a new
proposition suggested allocation on the ‘basis of performance’.

Governor’s Rule

Yet another point of difference is the ‘imposition of Governor’s Rule on a state
and his/her role while in office, besides that of his/her abrupt removal. Governors
are generally appointed with the concurrence of the Chief Minister of the
concerned State, and the Sarkaria Commission, too, in 1988, recommended the
same. The recommendation, however, has not always been adhered to. The
Sarkaria Commission sought to herald co-operative ederalism

4.7 RELATIVE FLEXIBILITY

According to several scholars, a Constitution is a living document and, hence, it
has to reflect the changing times. An amendment to the Preamble made the
principle of secularism an integral feature of the stitution.
When a Constitution is amended it is expected that it would bring a change for
the better. In other words, it would ‘give more’ than ‘take away any’. Article368
together with other articles, empowers Parliament to make amendments to the
Constitutions. In fact, the occasion for debate, on what the fundamental features
of the Constitution are, was created when certain amendments were made to the
Constitution. The amendment procedure laid down in the Constitution is both
rigid and soft for different articles. While some need only a simple majority,
most need a majority of two-thirds present and ng in both the Houses of
Parliament and the assent of the President. The toughest amendment procedure
prescribed requires, besides the two-thirds present and voting and requirement,
also the consent of at least half the number of Legislatures in States in the country.
And further more, it also requires the assent of the esident.
Indian Constitution 4.6.1 Centre-State Relations
Problems in Centre-State relations came to the fore after non-Congress
government came to power in several States — Orissa, West Bengal, Kerala,
Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the late 1960s.
Financial Relations
Another contentious issue is the sharing of financial resources between the Centre
and the States and allocation of Central grants to various States. While States
have since long been demanding the allocation of larger portions, a new
proposition suggested allocation on the ‘basis of performance’.
Governor’s Rule
Two of the most vehemently contested aspects were: one, the authority of
Parliament to effect amendment itself to any article of the Constitution; and two,
on who holds supremacy of decision over and amendment.
While the Indian Parliament held that it was the supreme authority and had,
therefore the right to amend any article in the Constitution, its critics said it was
the Constitution that is supreme and not Parliament, whose creation Parliament
was as much any other institution. It was, in the final analysis, resolved that
Parliament is rightfully authorised to amend the Constitution, but only so long as
it did not amend the ‘basic features of the Constitution. Besides, the Supreme
Court has the power to decide whether and amendment to constitution, indeed,
were against the basic features of the Constitutions or not.

Check Your Progress 2
Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with model answers given at the end of the unit.
1) Examine the Parliament’s powers to amend the Constitution of India.

2) Can the Indian Parliament amend the basic structure of the Constitution?

4.8 LET US SUM UP
The Indian Constitution is a successful document and it has sought to foster the
best democratic tradition. The tradition that it had established had the
to correct occasional anomalies, which itself is proof of its success. The
Constitution incorporates federalism, guarantees the fundamental rights of the
people of the country, a system of checks and balances through the institutions
of President, Council of Ministers, etc.

4.9 REFERENCES
Bakshi, M.P. (1996). The Constitution ofIndia. Delhi: University law Publication.
Granvile, Aurtin (1996). The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone ofa Nation. New
Delhi: Oxford University Press.
4.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES
Check Your Progress 1
1) Article 20 guarantees fair trail and Article 21 protects an individual’s life
and liberty.

2) a) The Prime Minister, Minister of Cabinet rank and Minister of State
Check Your Progress 2
1) Parliament can amend some article of the constitution with a simple majority,
but most amendments require the approval of two-thirds of the members
sitting and voting and the accent of the President. A few even require the
additional consent of at least half of state legislatures.
2) Since the Constitution and not the Parliament is supreme, the Parliament
cannot amend or alter the basic feature of the Constitution.

UNIT 5 FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS^

Structure
5.0 Objectives
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Historical Background
5.2.1 The Commonwealth Bill of 1925
5.2.2 The Nehru Report of 1928
5.2.3 The Sapru Report of 1945
5.2.4 Sub-committee on Fundamental Rights

5.3 Salient Features of the Fundamental Rights
5.4 The Six Fundamental Rights
5.4.1 Right to Equality
5.4.2 Right to Freedom
5.4.3 Right against Exploitation
5.4.4 Right to Freedom of Religion
5.4.5 Cultural and Educational Rights
5.4.6 Right to Constitutional Remedies
5.5 The Basic Structure Doctrine
5.6 Reasonable Restrictions on Fundamental Rights
5.7 Let Us Sum Up
5.8 References
5.9 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercise

Basic Features

5.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit, you will be able to explain.
Historical background of Fundamental Rights
Their Salient Features;
Six Important Fundamental Rights; and
Reasonable restrictions on Fundamental Rights.

5.1 INTRODUCTION
The preamble to Indian constitution is about the resolution of Indians (“We, the
People of India”) for securing freedom, equality, justice, security, dignity to all
citizens. These commitments have been incorporated as Fundamental Rights and
Directive Principles of the State Policy the Part III and the Part IV respectively.
The Fundamental Rights are justiciable. It means that if Fundamental Rights of
citizen or persons are violated, she/he can approach the court for their protection.
They are different from the Directive Principles of the State Policy which are
non-justiciable. It means that if state does not follow the provisions of the Directive
Principles of the State Policy, a citizen can not approach court claiming them.

*(Adopted from BPSC-102, Unit 4), Divya Rani, Consultant, Faculty ofPolitical Science, IGNOU,
New Delhi 47

5.2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The notion of rights which finally came to be known as Fundamental Rights in
Indian constitution evolved from the nineteenth century. Galvine Austin opines
that the concept of Fundamental Rights was implicit in the formation of the
Indian National Congress in 1885, in which Indians wanted the same rights and
privileges that the British enjoyed in India and in England. Some of these rights
were included in the documents such as the Constitution of India Bill, 1895.
This bill sought for Indians rights such as free speech, imprisonment only by
competent authority, and free State education. In the following period, attempts
were made from quarters asking the British government to grant rights to Indian.
These demands were made in resolutions by the Indian National Congress between
1917 and 1919, in several bills and in committee reports. The Commonwealth
Bill of India Bill 1925 drafted by Annie Basent, the Nehru Report 1928, Sapru
Report of 1945, and Sub-Committee of the Constituent Assembly on Fundamental
Rights.

5.2.1 The Commonwealth of India Bill, 1925
The Commonwealth of India Bill demanded seven Fundamental Rights for
Indians. Among these rights included: individual liberty, freedom of conscience,
free expression of opinion, free assembly, and equality before law. The Bill also
had provisions for right to free elementary education, equal right to use roads,
court ofjustice and all other places of business or resort dedicated to public.

5.2.2 The Nehru Report, 1928
The printing of the Commonwealth Bill was followed by the visit of Simon
Commission in 1927, which aimed to study the possibility of introducing
constitutional reforms in India. In response to the Simon Commission, the
Congress passed a resolution to set up committee in its forty-third annual session
held at Madras for the purpose of drafting of“a Swaraj Constitution for India”. A
declaration of rights was to be the basis of this t constitution. The task to
draft the constitution was assigned to a committee. This committee came to be
known as Nehru committee after its chairman, Motilal Nehru. The Nehru report
underlined the need for securing Fundamental Rights that had been denied to
them by the colonial government. Indeed, the Fundamental Rights in the Nehru
report were reiteration of the rights mentioned in he Commonwealth Bill of
India Bill, about which you have read above. This report underlined prominently
the need to protect minority rights. The Congress party in its session in 1931
held at Karachi Resolution highlighted the need to end exploitation of masses
and to make economic freedomintertwined with the political freedom. It suggested
that suitable legislations should be made to safeguard the interests of working
classes.

5.2.3 The Sapru Report of 1945
The Sapru Committee was assigned the task of doing spadework for making
constitution for future India. The Committee consisted of thirty members. It was
known as Sapru Committee afte the name of its chairman, Tej Bahadur Sapru, an eminent lawyer. The report was published in 1945. The Sapru Committee is
distinguished for making two suggestions about rights. One, it made distinction
between justiciable rights and non-justiciable rights. Two, it suggested that rights
of the minorities must be protected.
5.2.4 Sub-Committee on Fundamental Rights
The Constituent Assembly had constituted various committees to give suggestions
for inclusion in the constitution. One such committee was to give suggestions
about Fundamental Rights, Minority Rights and Tribal and Excluded Areas. It
was headed by Sardar Ballabhbhai Patel. This Committee was divided into subcommittees. One such sub-committees was also on Fundamental Rights. The
Fundamental Right sub-committee or the Rights sub-committee as it was known
was headed by J.B. Kripalani. This committee had representation of diverse
sections of society, including women such as Amrit Kaur and Hansa Mehta. An
important decision which the Right sub-committee took was to include the
Fundamental Rights as justiciable right. The suggestions of the Rights subcommittee were incorporated as Fundamental Rights in Part III of the Constitution after they were discussed in the Constituent Assembly.

5.3 SALIENT FEATURES OF THE FUNDAMENTAL
RIGHTS

The important features of the Fundamental Rights are:
i) ‘All are equal before the law’. It means that all citizens are equal under law
They have equal the right to freedom of religion, assembly, association, and
movement. No person is to be deprived of his life, liberty, or property, except
in accordance with the law.
ii) Minorities are allowed to protect and conserve their language, script, and
culture. Fundamental Rights primarily protect individuals and minority
groups from arbitrary, prejudicial state action. Three of the articles have
been designed to protect the individual against the action of other private
citizens. Article 17 abolishes untouchability; Article 15(2) lays down that
no citizen shall suffer any disability in the use of shops, restaurants, wells,
roads, and other public places on account of his religion, race, caste, sex, or
place of birth; Article 23 prohibits forced labour- which, although it had
been practiced by the state, was more commonly a case of landowner versus
peasant.
iii) Various means are provided whereby the citizens can move the Supreme
Court and other courts for the enforcement of the Fundamental Rights. There
are two different mechanisms of enforcement of Fundamental Rights: first
judicial review and second writs against a public authority violating a
person’s rights. Both the remedies operate through Article 32.
Fundamental Rights
iV) The Fundamental Rights are both natural as well as legal.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) What was Commonwealth Bill of 1925?

2) What were the important features of Nehru Report and Sapru Report?

5.4 THE SIX FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
The original Constitution (1950) had seven Fundamental Rights. But after the
passage of the 44° Amendment in 1978, there are now six Fundamental Rights.
This Amendment deleted the seventh fundamental right, viz., right to property
(Art. 31) from the list of Fundamental Rights. In sub-sections below, you will
read about the six Fundamental Rights:
5.4.1 Right to Equality
Articles 14 to 18 deal with different aspects of right to equality. Article 14 states
that the state shall not deny to any person equality before the law and equal
protection of law within the territory of India. It, thus, provides equality before
to every person without discriminating on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or
place of birth. Articles 15, 16, 17 and 18 relate socio-economic equality.
Article 15 prohibits state from discriminating against any person on grounds
only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. However, the
state can make special policies of protective discrimination for welfare of women,
children, socially and educationally backward classes, and SCs and STs. It also
prohibits discrimination or restriction to any person from access to shops, public
restaurant, hotels and places ofpublic entertainment, or use ofwells, tanks, bathing
ghats, roads and places of public restaurant which are maintained wholly or partly
out of state funds or which are dedicated to the use of general public.
Article 16 guarantees equality of opportunity for all citizens in public employment
and prohibits ineligibility of or discrimination against, a citizen in respect of
employment or office under the state on grounds of religion, race, caste, descent,
place of birth, residence or any of them. However, the state may reserve offices

which relate to religious or denominated institutions for members professing the
concerned religions or denominated institutions. Article 17 abolishes
untouchability and prohibits its practice in any form. The enforcement of any
disability arising out ofuntouchability is punishable by law. According to Article
18, no title other than military and academic distinction shall be conferred by the
state. No citizen of India shall accept any title from a foreign state. No person
holding an oifice of profit or trust under the state shall accept a gift or present or
emolument or office of any kind from or under a foreign state.

5.4.2 Right to Freedom

Right to freedom are given in Articles 19 to 22. The right to freedom is not an
absolute right. It is subject to ‘reasonable restrictions’ that may be imposed by
law. The Article 19 guarantees the following rights:

i) Freedom of speech and expression: its main concern is the interests of
sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state, friendly relations
with foreign states, public order, decency or morality or in the relation of
contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence;

ii) to assemble peacefully and without arms: it is qualified by the interests of
security and integrity of India or public order;

iii) to form associations and unions: it is qualified by the interests of sovereignty
and integrity of India, or public or morality. It also includes “cooperative
societies” that was added by 97*Amendment in 2012;

iv) to move freely throughout the territory of India: general interests of the
public or the protection of interests of the scheduled tribes

V) to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and
Vi) to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business:
it is qualified by professionals’ qualification needed for practising them and
the power of the state or a corporation owned or controlled by the state to
the total or partial exclusion of citizen

The Articles 20, 21 and 22 assure personal freedom of persons. Central to them,
indeed central to all the Fundamental Rights, is the right to life and personal
liberty. In 2002, judiciary interpreted this right in a creative way. Right to life is
now seen as a right to life of dignity and fulfilment. Moreover, the 86*Amendment
in 2002 further added Article 21 A to the constitution that authorises the state to
provide free and compulsory education to children between the ages of six and
fourteen in such manner that the state may determine. Earlier it was present in
the Article 45 of the directive principles of state policy. Article 20 provides a fair
trial and freedom from arbitrary conviction by the state. No person can be
convicted except for the violation of an offence under the law prevalent at the
time of the commission of the act charged as an offence. Article 22 and its different
clauses provide protection against Arrest and Detention in certain cases.
5.4.3 Right against Exploitation
The Indian constitution guaranteed right against exploitation in Articles 23 and
24. Article 23 prohibits traffic in human beings and beggar (unpaid labour) and
other similar forms of forced labour. According to Article 24, no child below the
age of fourteen shall be employed in the factory, mine or hazardous occupations.

 

5.4.4 Right to Freedom of Religion
Article 25 entitles all persons equally to freedom of conscience and right to freely
profess, practice and propagate religion. But the freedoms are subject to public
order, morality and health, and to other provisions of part III of the constitution.
Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any existing law or prevent
the state from making a lawa) regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other secular
activity which may be associated with religious practice;
b) providing for social welfare and reform or throwing of Hindu religious
institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of the Hindus.
Freedom of conscience is strengthened by two articles, i.e., Articles 27 and 28.
Article 27 provides that no person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the
proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the
promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious domination.
Article 28 prohibits religious instructions in any educational institution wholly
maintained by state funds unless such an institution, even though administrated
by state, has been set up under and endowment trust which requires that
religious instructions be imparted in them.

5.4.5 Cultural and Educational Rights
Articles 29 and 30 are about cultural and educational rights. Article 29 grants
any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part of it,
possessing a distinct language, script or culture of its own, right to conserve it.
No citizen shall be denied admission into an educational institution maintained
by the state or receiving aid out of state funds on the basis of religion, race, caste,
language or any of them. According to the Article 30, all minorities, whether
based on religion or language, have the right to establish and administer
educational institutions of their choice.

5.4.6 Right to Constitutional Remedies
According to Article 32, the Indian Constitution has certain provisions which
give powers to the courts to enforce Fundamental Rights. The devices through
which the courts protect Fundamental Rights are known as writs or judicial
processes. These writs or judicial process are: habeas corpus, mandamus,
prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari. The Supreme Court may issue directions
or orders or writs to enforce Fundamental Rights. The meanings of the writs are
mentioned below:
Habeas corpus: It means “to have the body”. This write protects the righ to life
and personal liberty (Article 21). It can be issued by the courts to any authority
which has detained a person without trial to produce him to the court for trial. It
challenges the executive if it has detained anyone against the authority of law. It
can also challenge a law under which the detention has been made if that law is
unconstitutional. The court can free a persons if she/he is detained illegally.
Disobedience to this writ is met with punishment for contempt of court.
Mandamus: Mandamus means a command. It is an order issued to an authority
or a person to do the duty mandated to it by law which it has refused to perform.

Mandamus is not granted against the President, Governor of the state, the high
court or supreme court judges. It is not issued against a private individual or
body.
Prohibition: It is a writ issued by a higher court — the Supreme Court or a high
court to an inferior court. It prohibits the latter from continuing proceedings to
hear a case which is beyond the jurisdiction.
Certiorari: By this writ the Supreme Court, and the High Courts may call for the
record of a case from a lower court or semi-judicial body on an allegation of an
excess ofjurisdiction.
Quo Warranto: by this writ the court asks a person or body of persons under
which authority it is in a public office created by the constitution or a statute.

5.5 THE BASIC STRUCTURE DOCTORINE

According to the Basic Structure Doctrine, the Parliament can not change through
amendments the basic features of the constitution, which include Fundamental
Rights along withjudicial review, secularism and parliamentary democracy. This
doctrine emerged from the Supreme Court judgement in March 1973 about
KesavanadBharati vs. State ofKerala case. In this case, His Holiness Kesavanand
Bharati Spripadagalvanu, leader of a math in Kerala challenged in the Supreme
Court the decision of Kerala government about taking over the private land as
part of land reforms programme. In its judgement about this case, the Suprreme
Court pronounced that basic structure of the constitution, i.e., Fundamental Rights
can not be changed. However, the court also held that right to property did
constitute basic structure of the Constitution. The 44thAmendment, 1978 removed
the right to property as Fundamental Rights. As Fundamental Rights are
enforceable, the courts have a special responsibility to protect them. The courts
protect Fundamental Rights by issuing writs. Prior to Kesavanad Bharati case,
the Supreme Court protected Fundamental Rights in Golakhnath vs. State of
Punjab case (1967). In this case, the court restricted Parliament from curtailing
any Fundamental Right. In Indira Gandh vs. Raj Narayan case in 1975, the
Supreme Court used Basic Structure doctrine to strike down the 39° Constitutional
Amendment made, which sought to place elections of President, Vice-President,
Prime Minister and Speaker of Lok Sabha beyond the purview ofjudicial review.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.

ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) What are the six parts of Fundamental Rights?

2) What is Basic Structure Doctrine?

5.6 REASONABLE RESTRICTIONS ON
FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

Indian constitution has provided a safety net to all sections and groups through
various articles especially regarding Fundamental Rights of the citizens and the
persons. However, the Fundamental Rights are not absolute. There are subject to
reasonable restriction. The state can put restrictions on right to freedom for
protection of sovereignty and security of the country; for maintenance of public
order by imposing curfew and morality; and for maintaining friendly relations
with other countries. The state can also put reasonable restrinction of right to
equality by devsing welfare policies for marginalised sections of society such as
women, children, socially and educationally backward classes, Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes.

Article 33 empowers Parliament the power to restrict or abrogate the application
of Fundamental rights in relation to armed forces or the forces, police, etc. This
article is meant to instil discipline among the forces whose duties are related to
maintenance of public order and sensitive subjects. According to Article 32, a
person has fundamental right to approach the Supreme court but not the high
court to seek constitutional remedies for enforcement of Fundamental Rights.
High Court may decline to hear a petition seeking constitutional remedies.
5.7 LET US SUM
Fundamental Rights are given in Part III of the Constitution. They are essential
conditions for development of human beings. They provide freedom, equality,
security and dignity to all persons and citizens without discriminating on grounds
of religion, race, case, gender, place of origin, descent. They are justiciable. Their
violation can be challenged in the court of law. India, realization to have
Fundamental Rights which finally were included in the Constitution grew from
the nineteenth century. As per the Basic Structure Doctrine, the Fundamental
Rights represent basic structure of the constitution. They cannot be amended.
The courts can enforce the Fundamental Rights with the devices known as writs.
5.8 REFERENCES
Basu, Das Durga(2004). Introduction to the Constitution ofIndia. Nagpur: Lexis
Nexis Butterworths Wardha.
Chaube, Kinkar Shibani (2009). The Making and Working of the Indian
Constitution. New Delhi: National Book Trust.

Granville, Austin (2012). The Indian Constitution Cornerstone ofa Nation, New
Delhi: Oxford University Press: New Delhi.
Khosla, Madhav (2012), Oxford India Short Introductions: The Indian
Constitution, New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Sarkar, Sumit (1983), Modern India 1885-1947, New Delhi: MacMillan.

5.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) The Commonwealth Bill of 1925 laid down that individual liberty, freedom
of conscience, free expression of opinion, free assembly, and equality before
the law was to be ensured. The Bill also demanded right to free elementary
education, equal right to use roads, court of justice and all other places of
business or resort dedicated to public.
2) Nehru Report was a report prepared by a committee headed by Motilal Nehru
in 1928. It was assigned the task of preparing draft of a constitution of
India. The committee emphasized the need for securing Fundamental Rights
to Indians including the minority rights. The Sapru Report made two
important suggestions: to make distinction between justiciable rights and
non-justiciable rights, and to ensure the minorities’ rights.
Check Your Progress Exercise
1) The six parts of Fundamental Rights are: the right to equality, the right to
freedom, the right against exploitation, the right to freedom of religion,
cultural and educational rights and the rights to constitutional remedies.
2) The Basic Structure Doctrine denotes that basic structure of the constitution,
which includes among some other provisions, the Fundamental Right. It
was propounded in Keshavanand Bharati case in 1973

UNIT 6 DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE
POLICY AND FUNDAMENTAL
DUTIES^

Structure
6.0 Objectives
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Genesis of Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties
6.2.1 Evolution of Fundamental Duties
6.3 Fundamental Duties of Indian Citizens
6.4 Amendments to the Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental
Duties
6.5 Execution of Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties
6.6 Limitations of the Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental
6.7 Let Us Sum Up
6.8 References
6.9 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

6.0 OBJECTIVES
This Unit deals with the Directive Principles of the State Policy and Fundamental
Duties. It explains the genesis, characteristics, and limitations of the Directive
Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties outlined in the Constitution.
After reading this unit, you will be able to:
Understand Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties
ExplainAmendments to Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental
Duties; and
Limitation of Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties

6.1 INTRODUCTION
In unit 5, you have read justiciable rights, i.e. Fundamental Rights. In this unit,
you will read non-justiciable rights, i.e. Directive Principles of State Policies
and about Fundamental Duties. Directive Principles are the directions given by
the constitution to the state for the welfare of citizens of India. The Directive
Principles of State Policy are mentioned in Articles 36-51, Part IV of the
Constitution. Their main purpose is to achive social and economic development
of all sections of the society, aiming to set up an egaliterian society. In Granville
Austin’s views, Directive Princples of State Policy have been helful in achieving
the constitutional goals of social, economic and political justice to all. On the
other hand, Indian constitution contains not only positive laws but also describes
some duties of state as well as citizens. These duties are incorporated in the Part IV A of the constitution, which was added by the 42n
‘ amendment in 1976 and
further expanded by the 86° amendment in 2002.

6.2 GENESIS OF DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF
STATE POLICY AND FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES

As you have read in unit 5, the Fundamental Rights were incorporated in the
Constitution according to the suggestions of Rights Sub-committee of the
Constituent Assembly. Apart from giving suggestions on the Fundamental Rights,
this Sub-committee gave suggestions on Directive Principles of State Policy.
Indeed, there has been a debate in the Constituent Assembly whether the rights
should be divided into two parts —justiciable and non-justiciable or Fundamental
Rights and Directive Principles of State Policy. They provide directives or
instructions to the state to introduce policies about the welfare of different sections
of the society. Granville states that four members played decisive role in framing
Directive Principles of State Policy — B.N. Rau, A.K. Ayyar, B.R. Ambedkar and
K.T. Shah. Among them B.N. Rau was “the most influential”.
The origin of Directive Principles of State Policy can be traced to Karachi
Resolution, and socialist and nationalist ideas which were prevalent from
1920s in India. As you have read in unit 5, Sapru Committee suggested that
rights should be divided between two parts — justiciable and non-justiciable.
Even the Right Sub-Committee made these suggestions. At the time of discussion
on Directive Principles of State Policy in India, the inclusion of provisions about
the state’s role in social and economic development of society was not an
exception to India. In the opinion of Granville Austin, they attracted “a
range ofAssembly members”. Hindu outlook and Gandhian ideas also influenced
the decision to include provisions of social, economic and political development
of people. After serious deliberations, the Constituent Assembly included
Directive Principles of State Policy in Part IV in the Constitution. A list of
Directive Principles of State Policy is given below.

Durga Das Basu classifies the Directive Principles of State Policy into three
groups. First, certain ideals, which the members of the Constituent Assembly
expected the state to achieve. These ideals especially, were economic. Second,
certain directions to the Legislatures and the Executive which they were expected
to follow for exercising exercise their legislative and executive powers. Third,
certain rights of the citizens were not be enforceable by the Courts like the
Fundamental Rights, but which could be implemented by the state through it
legislative and administrative policies.
Apart from the articles mentioned in Part IV of the constitution, there are some
other articles in the constitution which enjoin on the state to make certain policies
for people and non-justiciable in nature. Such articles are Articles 335, 350A and
351. According to Article 335 the claims of the members of the Scheduled Castes
and the Scheduled Tribes shall be taken into consideration, consistently with the
maintenance of efficiency of administration, in the making of appointments to
services and posts in connection with affairs of the Union of a State. Article 350
A suggests that every state and every local authority within state will provide
adequate facilities for instruction in the mother-tongue at the primary stage of
education to children belonging to linguistic minority groups. Article 351 enjoins
the Union to promote the spread of Hindi language and to develop it so that it
may serve as a medium of expression of all elements of the composite culture of
India.

6.2.1 Evolution of Fundamental Duties
When the constitution was adopted, there was no provision on Fundamental
Duties. It was incorporated into the constitution in the late 1970s. However,
Article 33 provided for some Fundamental Duties mainly for armed forces and
police as they were supposed to maintain discipline and perform their duties.
The 42nd Amendment of 1976 has introduced Fundamental Duties in the Constitution.According to this amendment, the people (including police personnel
and armed forces) were expected to perform certain Fundamental Duties. The
42nd Constitutional Amendment was made according to the recommendations of
the Swaran Singh Committee Report. The Swaran Singh Committee was set up
in 1976 by Indira Gandhi Government. Sardar Swaran Singh was the Chairman
of the Committee. The Committee had recommended to include a new part in
the Constitution of India on the Fundamental Duties of the Indian citizen. Based
on the recommendations of the committee, government brought some changes
to the constitution through 42nd amendment of the constitution and that came
into effect on 3 January, 1977. These duties are further expanded in the 86″
Constitutional Amendment in 2002. The Fundamental Duties are enshrined in
Article-5lA have similarity with Article 29(1) of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights which states “everyone has duties to the community in which
alone the free and full development of his personality is possible”. There are 11
Fundamental Duties of the citizens of India which have been discussed in the
following section.

6.3 FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES OF INDIAN
CITIZENS

Article 51 A of Part IVA has listed the following Fundamental Duties of Indian
Citizens:
a) To abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, national
flag and the national anthem;
b) To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle
for freedom;
c) To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;
d) To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do
so;
e) To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the
people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional
diversities, to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;
f) To preserve and value the rich heritage of our composite culture
g) To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes,
rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures;
h) To develop the scientific temper, humanism and spirit of inquiry and reform;
i) To safeguard public property and abjure violence;
j) To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective
activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and
achievement;
k) To provide opportunities by a parent or guardian for education to his/her
child or, as the case may be, to the ward between the age of six to fourteen
years.

6.4 AMENDMENTS TO DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES
OF STATE POLICY AND FUNDAMENTAL
DUTIES

Some new clauses were added through constitutional amendments to the existent
articles in the Directive Policy. These amendments made the list of articles about
Directive Principles of State Policy more inclusive of social welfare. The 42nd
Amendment Act of 1976 added four new subjects that required the State to secure
healthy development of children (Article 39), to promote equal justice and to
provide free legal aid to the poor(Article 39 A), to secure participation of workers
in the management of industries (Article 43 A), to protect the environment, forests
and wildlife (Article 48 A). The 44* Amendment Act of 1978 added the Article
38 that required the State to minimize inequalities in income, status, facilities
and opportunities. The 86* Amendment Act of 2002 brought changes in both
DPSP and Fundamental Duties. In DPSP, it modified the content of Article 45
which required the State to provide early childhood care and education for all
children until they complete the age of 6 years and was directed in making
education a fundamental right under Article 21 A. In Fundamntal Duties, it made
parents or guardians of children from 6-14 years of ge to provide education to
them. The 97* Amendment Act of 2011 added Article 43 B in DPSP, which
required the State to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning,
democratic control and professional management of co-operative societies.
Check Your Progress Exercises 1

Note: i) Use the space below for your answers
ii) Check your answers with model answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What are the Fundamental Duties of the citizens of India?

2) Trace the origin of Directive Principles of State Policy

6.5 EXECUTION OF DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF
STATE POLICY AND FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES
Since Independence, various central state and governments in India have enacted
several acts, launched schemes and programmes, and set up commissions
according to Directive Principles of State Policy. The Planning Commission
(which has been abolished and replaced by Niti Aayog) through its Five-Year
Plans aimed to bring about social and economic equity and justice. Introduction
of land reforms in several states which included as Zamindari Abolition, tenancy
reforms, ceilings on land holdings, cooperative farming reduced inequalities in
agrarian rural society. The governments introduced several measures to help the
underprivileged sections. Such measures included acts to protect the interests of
the poor: ensuring minimum wages to workers, protecting contract workers,
providing free legal aid to the poor, abolition of child labour, abolition of bonded
labour, resolution of industrial disputes, etc. For helping women these measures
included: acts about maternity benefits and equal remuneration was enacted to
protect the interests of women. The government passed acts for protection of
wildlife and conservation of forest and set up central and state pollution boards
to protect environment. The government set up Khadi and Village industries
Board, Handlooms and Handicrafts Boards to develop cottage industries. It
enacted laws for protection of ancient and historical monuments and
archaeological sites and remains, and places of national importance. To protect
the interests of Reservation of seats for SCs, STs and OBCs. Reservations have
been given to them in government jobs and political institutions government and
representative, and enacted laws for protection of civil rights and for prevention
their social exploitation. Establishment of village panchayats and reservations
for weaker sections in them has empowered them. Programmes such as
Community Development Programme, Hill Area Development Programme,
Minimum Needs Programme, IRDP (Integrated Rural Development
Programmes), MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act) and NRHM (National Rural Health Mission), etc. have resulted
in social and economic inclusion of people. For executing DPSP efficiently central
and state governments have made several acts. There are many
made by Verma committee to make Fundamental Duties effective. This committee
was established under the chairmanship of Justice J S Verma which is famously
known as Fundamental Duties of the Citizens Committee (1999). This committee
was a response to a notice issued by Supreme Court of India to the Government
of India regarding its plan to teach Duties to the citizen of the country. The
Verma Committee made the following recommendations:
a) Fundamental Duties will raise standards of the citizen in public life.
Therefore, every individual entity should obey and promote these duties.
b) Public office holders should avoid selfishness or nepotism. Their foremost
priority must be to serve public interests rather than individual interests.
c) Integrity will be the main principle in the functioning of the public office.
d) Holders of public office must be accountable for their decisions and actions
to the public.

e) They should be as open as possible about all the decisions and actions were
taken by them.
f) Public officials will maintain honesty while in office.
g) Leadership is very important in the sense that holders ofpublic office should
promote these principles by leadership skill and set an example.
For strengthening the Fundamental Duties, the Verma Committee had identified
few existing acts by which a proper implementation of such duties can be
accomplished. These are: the Representation of People Act(1951); The Unlawful
Activities Protection Act (1967); The Protection of Civil Rights Act (1955) in
which the person who preach and practice untouchability must be punished in
accordance with the act; the Wildlife Protection Act (1972); The Prevention of
Insults to National Honour Act (1971); and the Forest Conservation Act (1980).
Ensuring the effective fulfilment of duties, the Supreme Court of India has issued
directions to governments to create encouraging environment and the apex court,
directed Central Government in August 2003 to implement the recommendations
of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (2000)
and Verma Committee (1
6.6 LIMITATIONS OF DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES
OF STATE POLICY AND FUNDAMENTAL
DUTIES
The main limitation of Directive Principles of Policy is that state is not
legally bound to implement them. This is despite the fact that the state has moral
duty to implement them. Exemption of Directiev Principles from being justiciable
may make the state vulnerable to the pressure of politically and econmically
infleuntial groups in the society. Some members of the Constituent Assembly
underlined the limitations, especially regarding their being non-justiciable.
K.T.Shah commented that the limitation would make Directive Principles of State
Policy ‘pious wishes’. T.T. Krishnamachari described hem as “a veritable dustbin
of sentiment”. K.Santhanam, member of the Constituent Assembly, asserted that
the Directives could lead to constitutional conflicts between the Centre and States,
Prime Minister and President, Governor and Chief Minister in terms of direction,
guidance, legislation, assent, enforcement with regard to the problem of noncompliance and discretion. Fundamental Duties are non-enforceable and nonjusticiable like DPSP and these constraints have limited the duties as no citizen
can be punished by a court for their violation. In this aspect both DPSP and
Fundamental Duties are same in nature. This characteristic of Duties differentiates
India’s Fundamnetal Duties from the other countries’ Duties. In USSR,
Yugoslavia, Republic of China, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Netherland, Japan,
Democractic Republic of Vietnam and Albania, Fundamental Duties are legally
enforceable. Fundamental Duties have ethical, social and economic significance.
It is important for every citizen to perform his/her Duties to claim their Rights.
The consciousness and realization to fulfil Fundamental duties have increased in
Indian in past some decades. The court and civil society organizations, political
parties and governments have also underlined the significance of Fundamentals
Duties for overall development of society.

6.7 LET US SUM UP
Directive Principles of State Policy are provisions which give direction or
instructions to the state to enact policies for social, economic and political
empowerment of people and Fundamental Duties assign duties to the citizen that
help them to grow morally and ethically. They seek to establish an egalitarian
society. Both are different from Fundamental Rights in the sense they are nonjusticiable while the Fundamental Rights are justiciable. It is state’s duty to take
care of Citizen’s duties. Rights can be protected if every citizen adheres to their
Fundamental Duties. However, despite being non-justiciable DPSP and
Fundamental Duties both play a very important role in safeguarding the
constitutional values.
Directive Principles of State
Policy and Fundamental
Duties
(17° ed.). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Laxmikanth, M (2013). Indian Polity. New Delhi: McGraw Hill Education.
6.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1. Article 51 Aof Part IVA has listed 11 Fundamental Duties of Indian Citizens
that has given in subsection 6.3.
Check Your Progress Exercises 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with model answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What are the limitations of the Directive Principles of the State Policy and
Fundamental Duties?

2) Trace of Directive Principles of State Policy first appeared in Karachi
resolution of the Congress in 1931 and can be linked to general atmosphere
prevailing since the 1920s where ideas of socialism became popular, and to
Hindu outlook and Gandhian principles. Sapru Report also made suggestions
to distinguish between justiciable and non-justiciable rights. These
suggestions were also made by the Rights sub-committee of the Constituent
Assembly. They were finally accepted by the Constituent Assembly and
incorporated in Part IV of the Constitution.
Check Your Exercise 2
1) Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties are not legally
binding on the state and citizens, though it is the moral duty of the state to
implement them. The state can be vulnerable to public pressure to implement
DPSP or to not implement them

Block-3 Institutions Block-3

BLOCK 3 INTRODUCTION
Legislation, execution and adjudication of rules, their implementation and
evaluation are important functions ofa government. In the modern democracies,
these functions are performed by the legislature, executive and judiciary, which
function under the principles of checks and balances. The nature of a political
system or the government depends to a large extent on the relations and
functioning of these institutions. The sharing powers between the three organs
of government — the legislature, the executive and judiciary is called separation
of powers.
This block deals with the institutional framework of Indian political system in
which three organs of government, i.e., Legislature, Executive and Judiciary
have been discussed. In other words, this block is about the separation of powers.
All the three organs have different characteristics and role in Indian Constitution.
Unit 7 discusses the Legislature, Unit 8 deals with the Executive and Unit 9
provides a whole perspective of Judiciary System of India

 

UNIT 7 LEGISLATURE^

Structure
7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Union Legislature
7. 2.1 The President
7.2.2 Lok Sabha
7.2.3 Rajya Sabha
7.2.4 Special Powers of Rajya Sabha

7.3 The Presiding Officers

7.3.1 The Speaker
7.3.2 The Chairperson of Rajya Sabha

7.4 Legislative Procedure
7.4.1 Money Bills
7.5 Parliamentary privil
7.6 Parliamentary devices to control the executive
7.6.1 Parliamentary Committees
7.7 State Legislature
7.8 Let Us Sum Up
7.9 References
7.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Excercises

7.0 OBJECTIVES
This unit examines the evolution, structure and functioning of the Indian
Parliament. After going through this unit, you will be able to:
Trace the evolution of modern legislature in India
Discuss the organisation and functions of the Parliament; and
Explain parliamentary procedures
7.1 INTRODUCTION
UNIT 7 LEGISLATURE^
Structure
7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Union Legislature
7. 2.1 The President
7.2.2 Lok Sabha
7.2.3 Rajya Sabha
7.2.4 Special Powers of Rajya Sabha
7.3 The Presiding Officers
The term legislature has been derived from the Latin word lex, which means a
distinct kind of legal rule mainly of general application. This rule is named
legislation, and the institution, which enacts it on behalf of the people is known
as legislature. Essentially, there are two models of legislative structure: the
Parliamentary and Presidential. In the parliamentary model, the executive is
selected by the legislature from among its own members. Therefore, the executive
is responsible to the legislature. The Presidential system is based on the theory
of separation of powers and does not permit any person to serve simultaneously
in both executive and legislature.
In India, the legislature exists at two levels: at the union level, i.e. the Parliament
of India, and the State level, i.e. State legislatures. The unit deals specifically
with the Parliament of India. In sub-section 7.7, you will also read about the
State legislature. The Parliament of India, which is the creation of the Constitution,
is the supreme representative authority of the people. It is the highest legislative
organ and the national forum for the articulation of public opinion.
7.2 UNION LEGISLATURE
Under the provision ofArticle 79, the Parliament of India consists of the President
and the two Houses – the Lower House or Lok Sabha (House of the People) and
the Upper House or Rajya Sabha (Council of States). While the Lok Sabha is
subject to dissolution, the Rajya Sabha is a permanent chamber which cannot be
dissolved. The office of the President also never remains vacant.
7.2.1 The President
While the American President is not a part of the Legislature (Congress), the
President of India is an integral part ofthe Indian Parliament. However, he cannot
sit and participate in the deliberations in any of the two Houses. The President of
India performs certain important role vis-à-vis the Parliament. The President
summons and prorogues the House from one session to another and has the power
to dissolve the Lok Sabha. A bill can not become law without the President’s
assent even though the bill may be passed by both the Houses. The President
also has the power to promulgate Ordinances when both the Houses are not in
session. Thèse Ordinances, though temporary in nature, have the same force and
power as a law passed by Parliament. In Unit 8, we will examine the position and powers of the President of India in detail.

7.2.2 Lok Sabha
The Lower House or the House of the People is popularly known as Lok Sabha.
People of the country directly elect members of the Lower House. It includes not
more than 530 members chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies
in the States and not more 20 members to represent the Union Territories.
Moreover, the President may nominate two members of the Anglo-Indian
community if in his opinion the community is not adequately represented in the
Lok Sabha.

The distribution of seats among the States is based on the principle of territorial
representation, which means each State is allotted seats on the basis of its
population in proportion to the total population of all the States. For the purpose
of election, each state is divided into territorial units called constituencies which
are more or less of the same size in terms of the population.
The members of the Lok Sabha are elected on the basis of the adult franchise;
every adult who has attained 18 years of age is eligible to vote. The candidate
who receives the largest number of votes gets elected. The tenure of the Lower
House is five years. However, it can be dissolved earlier by the President.
To be a member of the Lok Sabha, a person should be the citizen of India and
must have completed 25 years of age. The person must also possess all other
qualifications that are prescribed by the law. A candidate is free to contest from
any parliamentary constituency of any States in India. The Constitution has laid

down certain disqualifications for membership of parliament. A person can not
be a member of both Houses of the Parliament. A candidate may contest from
several seats. However, he/ she can have only one seat according to his/her choice
despite being elected from more than one seat; If a person is elected from both
the State Legislature and the Parliament, and if he does not resign from the State
legislature within the defined time period, he/she will forfeit his seat in Parliament;
A member should not hold any office of profit under the Central or State
government except those that are exempted by a law of Parliament and should
not have been declared as an insolvent or of unsound mind by a competent court.
A member also gets disqualified on the following conditions such as when he
remains absent from the sessions of the House for a period of sixty days without
prior permission; or when he voluntarily acquires the citizenship of another
country; or is under any acknowledgement of allegiance to a foreign state.

7.2.3 Rajya Sabha
According to Indian constitution, the Rajya Sabha or the Council of States is the
house of representatives of the States. The Rajya Sabha or the Council of States
consists of not more than 250 members out of which 12 members are nominated
by the President from amongst persons having ‘special knowledge or
experience in literature, science, art, and social service.’ The remaining members
are elected by the members of the State Legislative Assemblies on the basis of
the population of the state. Unlike Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha adopts the method
of indirect election. There is no uniformity in the members of representatives of
the Council of States. It largely depends on the population of the state. It means
that the state which have larger population has more representative in the house
compared to the states which have small population. The number
representatives of the States to the Rajya Sabha varies from one (Nagaland) to
34 (Uttar Pradesh) depending upon the population of a state. The Council of
States thus reflects the federal character by representing the States or the units of
the federation.
Rajya Sabha is a continuing chamber as it is a permanent body not subject to
dissolution. One-third of its members retire at the end of every two years,
elections are held for the vacant positions. A member of Rajya Sabha has a sixyear term unless she/he resigns or is disqualified.

7.2.4 Special Powers of Rajya Sabha
It has every right to seek information on all matters which are exclusively in
domain of Lok Sabha. It has no power to pass a vote of no-confidence in the
Council of Ministers. It also does not have much influence on the matters of
Money Bill. However, the Constitution grants certain special powers to the Rajya
Sabha. As the sole representative of the States, the Rajya Sabha enjoys two
exclusive powers which are of considerable importance. First, under Article 249,
the Rajya Sabha has power to pass a resolution by a majority of not less than
two-thirds of members present and voting, declaring that it is ‘necessary or
expedient in the national interest’. The matter in such resolution should belong
to the State List. The law passed on the matter in the resolution shall be valid for
one year. The second, Article 312 also provides special power to the Rajya Sabha
to pass a resolution on another matter, i.e. to create one or more All India Services.
Like the resolution to be passed under Article 249, under Article 312 also, the resolution should be passed by two-third of members present and voting in the
House. Thus, these special provisions make the Rajya Sabha an important
component of Indian Legislature rather than just being an ornamental body. Its
compact composition and permanent character provide continuity and stability
in the system.

7.3 THE PRESIDING OFFICERS

Each house of the Parliament has a presiding officer. The Lok Sabha has a Speaker
as its principal presiding officer and a deputy speaker to assist him and he acts as
presiding officer in the absence of the speaker. The Rajya Sabha is presided by
the Chairperson, assisted by a deputy chairperson. The latter performs all the
duties and functions of the former in case of his/her absence.

7.3.1 The Speaker
The position of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha is more or less similar to the Speaker
of the English House of Commons. The oifice of the Speaker is a symbol of high
dignity and authority. Once elected to the office, the speaker does not have
affiliation to any party but works in an impartial anner. He/ She acts as the
guardian of the rights and privileges of the members.
The Speaker has the power to ensure an orderly and efficient conduct of the
proceedings of the House. He/She conducts the proceedings of the house,
maintains order and decorum in the house and decides points of order, interprets
and applies rules of the house. The Speaker’s decision is final in all such matters.
The Speaker certifies whether a bill is money or not and he/she also
authenticates that the house has passed the bill before it is presented to the other
House or the President of India for his assent. The Speaker in consultation with
the leader of the house determines the order of business. He/she also decides on
the acceptability of questions, motions and resolutions. The Speaker does not
vote in the first instance but can exercise a casting vote in case of a tie. The
Speaker appoints the chairpersons of all the Committees of the House and
exercises control over the Secretarial staff of the se. The Speaker’s conduct
cannot be discussed in the House except in a substantive motion. His/Her salary
and allowances are charged to the Consolidated Fund of India.
A special feature of the Speaker’s office is that even when the House is dissolved,
the Speaker does not vacate his/her office. He/She continues in office until the
new House elects a new Speaker. In the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy
Speaker presides the House.

7.3.2 The Chairperson of Rajya Sabha
The Vice-President of India is the ex-officio chairperson of the Rajya Sabha. But
during the period when the Vice-President acts a President or discharges the
functions of the President, he/she does not perform the duties as a presiding
officer of the Rajya Sabha. The Vice-President is elected by the members of both
the Houses of Parliament assembled at a joint meeting, in accordance with the
system of proportional representation by means of single transferable vote and
the voting at such elections is by secret ballot. The Vice-President is not a member
of either House of Parliament or a House of the Legislature of any State. He holds oifice for a term of five years from the date on which he enters his office or
until he resigns or is removed from his office by a resolution passed by a majority
of members of the Rajya Sabha and agreed by the Lok Sabha. The functions and
duties of the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha are the same as those of the Speaker
of the Lok Sabha.
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) What are the qualifications and disqualifications for a member of Indian
Parliament?

2) What are the powers of Speaker of the Lok Sabha?

7.4 LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURE

Law making is the primary function of the legislature. The Constitution of India
prescribes the following stages of the legislative procedure:
The first stage of legislation is the introduction of a bill which embodies the
proposed law and is accompanied by the “Statement of Objects and Reasons”.
The introduction of the bill is also called the first reading of the bill. There
two types of bills: ordinary bills and money bills. A bill other than money or
financial bill may be introduced in either House of Parliament and requires passage
in both the Houses before it can be presented for the President’s assent. A bill
may be introduced either by a minister or a private member. Every bill that is
introduced in the House has to be published in the Gazette. Normally, there is no
debate at the time of introduction of a bill. The member who introduces the bill
may make a brief statement indicating broad the aims and objects of the bill. If
the bill is opposed at this stage, one of the members opposing the bill may be
permitted to give his reasons. After this, the question is put to the vote. If the
House is in favour of the introduction of the bill, then it goes to the next stage.
In the second stage, there are four alternative courses: first, after its introduction,
a bill may be taken into consideration; second, it may be referred to a Select

Committee of the House; third,it may be referred to a Joint Committee of both
the Houses; and fourth , it may be circulated for the purpose of soliciting public
opinion. While the first three options are generally adopted in the case of routine
legislation, the last option is resorted to only when the proposed legislation is
likely to arouse public controversy and agitation.
The day one of these motions is carried out, the principles of the bill and its
general provisions may be discussed. If the bill is taken into consideration,
Amendments to the bill and clause by clause consideration of the provisions of
the bill is undertaken. If the bill is referred to the Select Committee of the House,
it considers the bill and submits its report to the House. Then the clauses of the
bill are open to consideration and amendments are admissible. This is the most
time-consuming stage. Once the clause by clause consideration is over and every
clause is voted, the second reading of the bill comes to an end.
In the third stage, the member in charge moves that “the bill be passed”. At the
third reading, the progress of the bill is quick as normally only verbal or purely
formal amendments are moved, and discussion is very brief. Once all the
amendments are disposed, the bill is finally passed in the House where it was
introduced. Thereafter, it is transmitted to the other ouse for its consideration
When the bill comes up for consideration of the other House, it has to undergo
all the stages which it has undergone in the House where it was originally
introduced. There are three options before this House: first, it may finally pass
the bill as sent by the originating House; second, it may reject the bill altogether
or amend it and return to the originating House; and, third, it may not take any
action on the bill and if more than six months passes after the date of receipt of
the bill, it is considered as rejection
The originating House now considers the returned bill in the light of the
amendments. If it accepts these amendments, it sends a message to the other
House to this effect. If it does not accept these amendments, then the bill is
returned to the other House with a message to that effect. In case, both the Houses
do not come to an agreement; the President convenes a joint-sitting of the two
Houses. The disputed provision is finallyadopted or ected bya simple majority
of vote of those who are present and voting.
A bill that is finally passed by both the Houses is presented with the signature of
the Speaker to the President for his assent. This is normally the last stage. If the
President gives the assent, the bill becomes an Act and is placed in the Statute
Book. If the President withholds his assent, there is an nd to the bill. The President
may also return the bill for the reconsideration of the Houses with a message
requesting them to reconsider it. If, however, the Houses pass the bill again with
or without amendments and the bill is presented to the President for his assent
for the second time, the President has no power to withhold his assent.
Thus, law-making is along, cumbersome and time-consuming process; it becomes
difficult to pass a bill within a short time. Proper drafting of the bill saves time,
and skilful soliciting of opposition support makes the task easier.

7.4.1 Money Bills
Finance bill may be said to be any bill which relates to revenue and expenditure.
But the finance bill is not a money bill. Article 110 states that no bill is a money bill unless it is certified by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. A money bill cannot
be introduced in the Rajya Sabha. Once a money bill is passed by the Lok
Sabha, it is transmitted to the Rajya Sabha. The Rajya Sabha cannot reject a
money bill. It must, within a period of fourteen days from the date of receipt of
the bill, return the bill to the Lok Sabha which may thereupon either accept or
reject all or any of the recommendations. If the Lok Sabha accepts any of the
recommendations, the money bill is deemed to have been passed by both Houses.
Even if the Lok Sabha does not accept any of the recommendations, the money
bill is deemed to have been passed by both the Houses without any amendments.
If a money bill passed by the Lok Sabha and transmitted to the Rajya Sabha for
its recommendations is not returned to it within fourteen days, it is deemed to
have been passed by both the Houses at the expiry of the said period in the
original form.

7.5 PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGES

Parliamentary privileges are certain rights which assure free and efficient
functioning of the members of Parliament. There are two types of privileges for
the members of Parliament: enumerated and unenumerated. The enumerated
privileges are: i) Freedom of speech in each House of the Parliament, ii)
from proceedings in any Court in respect of anything said or any vote cast, iii)
Immunity of liability in respect of publication by or under the authority of either
House of Parliament of any report, paper, votes or proceedings, iv) Freedom
from arrest in civil cases for duration of the session for a period of 40 days
before and after the session, and v) Exemption from attending as a witness in a
Court. The unremunerated privileges empower the Indian Parliament to punish a
person, whether a member or a non-member, in the case of contempt of parliament.

7.6 PARLIAMENTARY DEVICES TO CONTROL
THE EXECUTIVE

One of the important functions of the Parliament is to control the executive. A
number of mechanisms are available to it for this purpose. The rules of procedure
and conduct of business in Parliament provide that unless the presiding officers
are otherwise direct, every sitting begins with the Question Hour, which is
available for asking and answering questions. Asking question is an inherent
parliamentary right of all the members irrespective of their party affiliations.
The real object of the member in asking the question is to point out the
shortcomings of the administration, to ascertain the thinking of the government
in formulating its policy and where the policy already exists, in making suitable
modifications in that policy.
In case, the answer given to a question does not satisfy the member who raised it
and if he/she feels the need for detailed ‘explanation in public interest’, he/she
may request the presiding officer for a discussion. The presiding officer can
allow discussion, usually in the last half an hour of a sitting.
Members can, with the prior permission of the presiding officer, call the attention
of a Minister to any matter of public importance and request the Minister to
make a statement on the subject. The Minister may either make a brief statement
immediately or may ask for time to make the statement at a later hour or date.

The adjournment motion is intended to draw the attention of the house to a recent
matter of urgent public importance having serious consequences for the country,
and regarding which a motion or a resolution in the proper notice will be too late.
Adjournment motion is an extraordinary procedure which, if admitted, leads to
setting aside the normal business of the House for discussing a definite matter of
public importance. Adoption of an adjournment motion amounts to the censure
of the government. Besides these devices, Parliament exercises control over the
executive through various house committees. You will read about them in the
next sub-section.

7.6.1 Parliamentary Committees

The accountability of the Executive to the Parliament and the Parliament’s right
to oversee, and scrutinise the way in which the executive functions are accepted
as a matter of routine. But in practice, it is difficult for parliament to undertake
thorough scrutiny of details of the functioning of the executive on daily basis.
Parliament has solved this problem by establishing a series of committees. These
committees have necessary powers to scrutinise the working of the different
departments of the government.

Among the important Committees, which scrutinise the government’s works,
particularly in the area of public finances, two committees need special mention:
Public Accounts Committee and Estimates Committee. These two and other
Committees are expected to keep an eye on the executive. They ensure an effective
and comprehensive examination of all the proposed policies. Often, Committees
provide an ideal context for discussing controversial and sensitive matters in
impartial manner, away from the glare of publicity. hey provide a useful forum
for the utilisation of experience and ability that may otherwise remain untapped.
They also constitute a valuable training ground for future ministers and presiding
officers.

7.7 STATE LEGISLATURE

The State legislature consists of the Governor and e Legislative Assembly. In
many aspects, state legislatures are similar to the Parliament of India. However,
all state legislatures do not have both houses, Legislative Assembly (Vidhan
Sabha) and Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad). The state legislatures which
have both houses are known as bicameral, and those which have only one house,
i.e. Vidhan Sabha are known as uni-cameral. The choice of having unicameral or
bicameral legislature was left to the states. It depended on the assessment of a
state whether it wanted to have both houses or only one (Vidhan Sabha). The
principal reason for not having both houses has generally been financial. Some
states found it difficult to maintain cost of two houses. They preferred to have
only one house of the state legislature. Very few states (seven out of twenty
nine)have opted to have bicameral legislature consisting of the Legislative
Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) and the Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad). As of
2019, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telengana and Uttar
Pradesh have legislative councils. In 2019 Jammu and Kashmir was divided into
two union territories — Jammu and Kashmir and Laddakh with the Jammu and
Kashmir having assembly and Laddakh without it.
The Legislative Assembly of each State is composed of members chosen by
direct election on the basis of adult suffrage from territorial constituencies. The size of the Assembly varies from a minimum of 60 to no more than 500. The
duration of the Legislative Assembly is for five years.
The membership of the Legislative Council shall not be less than 40 but not
more than one-third of the total membership of the Assembly. The House is
composed of partly elected and partly nominated members. Normally, 1/6 of
total members are nominated by the Governor, and the rest are indirectly elected
on a complicated formula involving graduates, educators and members of the
Assembly. The role of legislative councils, where they exist, are considered as
weaker than the legislative assemblies compared with the Status of the Council
of States vis-a-vis the House of the People. It may be considered as unnecessary
due to some reasons: A) The very nature of the composition of the Legislative
Council makes its position weak, being partly elected and partly nominated, and
representing various interests; B) Its survival depends on the will of the Assembly,
as the latter has the power to abolish the Second Chamber by passing a resolution.
C) The Council of Ministers is responsible only to the Assembly and not to the
Council. D)As regard, any ordinary bill originating in the Assembly, the Council’s
position is very weak for it can only delay its passage for a limited period. Hence,
the second chamber of the State legislature is not a revising body, but a
dilatory body.
The legislative process in the State Assembly is similar to that in the Parliament
with one significant exception. The Governor can reserve any bill passed by the
State legislature for the consideration of the President. Particularly in one case,
it is obligatory on the Governor to reserve the bill, i.e., when the bill is derogatory
to the powers of the High Court. If the President directs the Governor to return
the Bill for reconsideration, the Legislature must reconsider the bill within six
months, and if it is passed again, the bill is presented to the President again. But
it shall not be obligatory on the President to give his assent. Thus, it is clear that
once the Governor reserves a bill for the President, its subsequent enactment
remains with the President and the Governor has no further role in it. Since the
Constitution does not put any time limit on the President either to declare his
assent or withhold, the President can keep the bill in cold storage for an indefinite period without revealing his intention.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) What is Question Hour?

2) Bring out the significance of adjournment motion.

7.8 LET US SUM UP

The Parliament of India, the supreme legislative organ in the country, has a long
historical background. The Parliament consists of the President, the Lok Sabha
and the Rajya Sabha. To get elected to the Parliament, one has to fulfil certain
qualifications prescribed by the Constitution and the Parliament. Members of
the Parliament have certain privileges to enable them to function better. Each
house has its presiding officer to conduct the meetings of the House and to protect
the dignity and honour of the
The primary function of the Parliament is to enact laws and to hold the Council
of Ministers responsible for its policies and criticises the policies wherever
necessary. It also has the powers to amend the constitution and to impeach the
President. There are several Committees appointed from among its members for
effective functioning. Devices like the question hour, adjournment motion, calling
attention motion, etc. are available for Parliament to check the government. The
passing of the budget as an important function of e Parliament, provides an
opportunity to scrutinise the activities of the government.

7.9 REFERENCES
Basu, D. D. (1983). Commentary on the Constitution ofIndia. New Delhi: Prentice
Hall.
Chaube, S. K. (2009) The Making and Working of the Indian Constitution, New
Delhi: National Book Trust.
Granville, Austin (1966). The India’s Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation.
Bombay: Oxford University Press.
Mukherjee, Hiren (1978). Portrait ofParliament: Rejections and Recollections,
IRStltUtiORS
76
2) Bring out the significance of adjournment motion.
7.8 LET US SUM UP
New Delhi: Vikas.
https://rajyasabha.nic.in/rsnew/practice rocedure/polity.pdf

7.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress Exercise -1
1) To be a member of the Lower House of the Parliament(Lok Sabha), a person
should have completed 25 years of age; and for being the member of the
Upper House of Parliament, a person should have completed 30 years of age; for being members of the both Houses, a person should be a citizen of
India. A person gets disqualified to be a member of the either House of
Parliament, if as an MP he/she is absent from meetings in the House for
more than 60 days without the permission of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha
or Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, holds an office of profit under Government
of India, is found to be of unsound mind, is declared insolvent, acquires
citizenship of another country or is under any acknowledgement of allegiance
to a foreign state. A member elected to the State Assembly forfeits his/her
membership of Parliament if he/she does not resign from the State Assembly
within a specified period.
2) The Speaker of Lok Sabha has wide and extensive powers. These include
power to preside over the sitting of Lok Sabha, to conduct the Lok Sabha
proceedings, to maintain order in the house and determine the order of
business in the house. He/she also acts as spokesperson of the house,
interprets and applies rules of the House, and authenticates bills, certifies,
Money Bills- etc

Check Your Progress Exercise-2
1) The first hour of the sitting of a house that is available for asking
answering questions.
2) It is an extraordinary procedure to call the attention of the House to a matter
of grave importance and affecting the whole country. Normal business is set
aside to discuss the motion. And adoption of this motion amounts to the
censure of the government.

UNIT 8 EXECUTIVE^

Structure
8.0 Objectives
8.1 Introduction
8.2 President of India
8.2.1 Qualifications
8.2.2 Method of Election
8.2.3 Term of Office and Removal of the President
8.3 Powers of the President
8.3.1 Emergency Power
8.4 The Prime Minister
8.4.1 The Council of Ministers and the Cabinet
8.4.2 Collective Responsibility
8.5 The Cabinet and the Parliament
8.5.1 Sources of Prime Minister’s Power and influence
8.6 The President and the Prime Minister
8.7 Let Us Sum Up
8.8 References
8.9 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

8.0 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit, you should be able to:
Describe the powers of the President of India;
Explain the procedure for the election of the President of India;
Describe the composition and functions of the Council of Ministers;
Identify the sources of power and influence of e Prime Minister; and
Discuss the position of the President and Prime Minister in the Indian political
system.

8.1 INTRODUCTION

The executive power of the government of India is vested in the President of
India, who is both the formal head of the state and the symbol of the nation. The
Constitution of India, however, bestows authority and dignity on the office of
the President without providing adequate powers to rule. The President performs
essentially a ceremonial role. The Prime Minister exercises real executive power.
While the President is the head of the state, the Prime Minister is the head of the
government. The President carries out the actual functions of the government
only with the aid and advice of the Prime Minister. How are the incumbents of
these two important offices of the executive elected or selected? What is the position of the President and the Prime Minister in the Indian political system?
What is the relationship between the executive and legislature in a parliamentary
system such as one prevailing in India? These are some of the questions that we
seek to address in this unit.

8.2 PRESIDENT OF INDIA

The constitution has made detailed provisions to see that the President, the head
of the state, is a ceremonial head and that he does not arrogate to himself any real
power. The President is indirectly elected for a term of five years and can be
removed on the basis of impeachment proceedings brought against him by the
Parliament. The Constitution also provides for the post of a Vice -President. He/
she is also indirectly elected, who would serve as head of the state in the event of
the President’s resignation, removal by impeachment or death.

8.2.1 Qualifications

Articles 58 and 59 of the Constitution of India lay down the qualifications for the
oifice of the President of India. A candidate for the oifice of the President should
be a citizen of India, must have completed 35 years of age and posses
qualifications which are necessary to become a member of the Lok Sabha. He/
she should not hold any office ofprofit under the Union, State or local governments
at the time of his election, nor should he/she be a member of either House of
Parliament or state legislature. Besides, the candidate should possess such other
qualifications as may be prescribed by the Parliament from time to time.

8.2.2 Method of Election

The Constitution prescribes an indirect election through an electoral college
(composed of the elected members of Parliament and the elected members of the
state legislative assemblies) on the basis of proportional representation and by
means ofa single transferable vote. Based on the system ofprinciples of uniformity
among states and parity between the centre and the states, the election procedure
is designed to ensure the election of a truly national candidate.

To ensure uniformity among states, the value of the votes of elected members of
the state assemblies is calculated on the basis of the total population of the state.
The value of a state elector’s vote is worked out by dividing the total population
of the state, by the total number of elected members in the assembly. The quotient
obtained is divided by 1000 to obtain the value of the vote of each member
assembly in the presidential election. The value of the vote of a member of
Parliament is obtained by dividing the total number of votes given to all the
elected members of the States assemblies by the total number of elected members
of both the houses of the Parliament.

Voting is by single transferable vote, with electors casting first and second
preferences. A candidate who receives an absolute majority of votes cast by the
Electoral College is declared the winner. In case no candidate secures an absolute
majority in the first counting, the second preference votes of the lowest polling
candidate are transferred to the other remaining candidates until one candidate
crosses the threshold of 50 percent of the votes cast.

This method of election was intended to make the Presidential election broadbased to achieve a political balance between the Centre and the States.

Consequently, the President represents not only the Union but also the States
and it shows the federal character of the Indian polity.
8.2.3 Term of Office and Removal of the President
The tenure of the office of the President of India is five years. His/her term
commences from the date on which he/she assumes office after taking an oath
administered by the Chief Justice of India. However, the President can seek a
second term. For instance, Rajendra Prasad was elected as the President twice
despite not being favoured by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru but
strongly supported by a large number of Congress leaders.
The President remains in office until his/her successor enters the office. However,
if the President wishes to resign, he can send his resignation letter to the VicePresident. If the post of the President falls vacant, the Vice-President takes over
the charge. But the election for the post of President must be conducted within
six months from the date of occurrence of the vacancy.
Articles 56 and 61 deal with the procedure for impeaching the President of India.
In this regard, the constitution lays down ‘violation of the Constitution’ as the
ground for removal. The process of impeachment can be initiated in either house
of parliament and must be passed by not less than two-thirds of the total
membership of the House in which it has been moved. If the other House
investigates the charge and two-thirds majority of that house find him guilty, the
President stands impeached from the office from the date of passing of the
resolution. Thus, the procedure of removal of the President is difficult and has
been made so to prevent misuse of this power by e Parliament. Till date, no
President of India has been impeached.

8.3 POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT

Article 53 deals with the executive powers of the President of India. The powers
of the President are broadly divided into two types, namely, ordinary and
emergency powers. The ordinary powers of the esident can be defined as
executive, legislative, financial and judicial powers.
The executive powers of the Union are vested in the President. Article 53 confers
all executive powers in him and empowers him to exercise these powers directly
by himself or through officers subordinate to him. Article 75 requires the Prime
Minister to communicate to the President regarding all decisions of the Union
Council of Ministers. Article 77 holds that all executive powers of the Union
government shall be exercised in the name of the President.
The President has both administrative and military powers. The supreme command
of the armed forces is vested in him/her and all appointments in the armed forces
are made under the authority of the President as the supreme commander of the
armed forces. The President appoints the Prime Minister and, on the latter’s
advice, the council of ministers, the Attorney-General, the justices of the Supreme
Court and High Courts, members of special commissions (such as the Union
Public Service Commission and the Election Commission), and the governors of
states. The choice of the Prime Minister is not a discretionary prerogative of the
President but is usually dictated by the party commanding a majority following
in the Lok Sabha.

The President of India is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces.
He appoints the Chiefs of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. He has the
power to declare war and conclude peace. But all these powers have to be
exercised by him subject to the ratification of the Parliament. However, the
President is not a member of either house of Parliament; Article 79 states that the
President is an integral part of the Union Parliament. As we saw in Unit 7, the
President has the power to summon both the Houses of Parliament, nominate
twelve members to the Rajya Sabha, has the right to address either house or their
joint session at any time and the power to dissolve the Lok Sabha. All money
bills to be introduced in the Parliament have to obtain the recommendation of
the President. Such a prior recommendation is also necessary for introducing
bills regarding the formation of new states, alteration of areas, boundaries, names
of the existing states, etc. Finally, when any bill is passed by the Parliament, it
can become an Act only when it has the assent of the President. The President
can withhold or return a non-money bill for the reconsideration of the Parliament.
However, if the same is passed by both the houses with or without modifications
and returned to the President, the latter is bound to give his assent.
When the Parliament is not in session, the President can promulgate ordinances
in public interest. These ordinances have the same force and effect as the
passed by the Parliament. However, they have to be placed before the Parliament
within a period of six weeks from the day of the reassembling of Parliament.
Without the Parliament’s approval, the ordinance will become invalid.
Article 254 empowers the President to remove inconsistencies between laws
passed by the Parliament and State Legislatures and the subjects included in the
concurrent list. There is another legislative function of the President which has
bearing on states; the Governor of a state can reserve certain bills passed by the
State Legislatures for the consideration of the President.
The judicial powers of the President of India include the appointment of the
justices of the Supreme Court and High Courts, and the power to grant pardon,
reprieve, suspension, remission or commutation of punishment or sentence of
the court. These powers of granting pardon are given to the President for
the extreme rigidity in the criminal laws and for protecting the persons on
humanitarian considerations. The President also has the right to seek the advice
of the Supreme Court on some important constitutional, legal and diplomatic
matters. In 1977, the President sought the advice of the Supreme Court for creating Special Courts to try the emergency excesses.

8.3.1 Emergency Power
With the intention of safeguarding the sovereignty, independence and integrity
of Union of India, the constitution bestows emergency powers on the President
of India. The President is empowered to declare three types of emergencies,
namely, a) national emergency arising out of the war, external aggression or
armed rebellion, b) emergency arising due to the breakdown of the constitutional
machinery in the States, and c) financial emergency.
The President can make a proclamation of national emergency at any time if he
is assured that the security of any part of India is threatened by war, external
aggression or armed rebellion. This proclamation must be submitted to the Parliament for its consideration and approval. It must be accepted within one
month by both the Houses of Parliament by two-thirds of the members present
and voting. If the Parliament fails to approve the proclamation bill, it ceases to
operate. If approved, it can continue for a period of six months. However, it can
continue for any length of time if the President approves the proclamation for
every six months. The Parliament, however, has the power to revoke the
emergency at any time by a resolution proposed by at least one-tenth of the total
members of the Lok Sabha and accepted by a simple majority of the members
present and voting. National emergency under Article 352 was proclaimed for
the first time in 1962 when the Chinese aggression took place. The second
proclamation was made in 1971 during the Bangladesh war. On 25 June 1975,
for the first time, the President proclaimed, on the advice of the Prime Minister,
emergency in the name of grave danger to internal security.

According to Article 356, the President can impose emergency in a state when
there is a breakdown of the constitutional machinery. However, imposition of
President rule in a state has become more difficult after the supreme Court verdict
in a case known as Bommai Case. According to this case the President can dismiss
a state government only after the approval of the amation by the both houses
of Parliament. If both houses of Parliament do not approve the proclamation, it
lapses at the end of two months and the dismissed government is revived. In this
case, in 1989, Nineteen letters from Council of Ministers were sent to the Governor
of the State (Karnataka) for withdrawing support from the ruling party under the
S.R. Bommai leadership (as Chief Minister). Following this the Governor
dismissed the Bommai government. But within a short period, the defected MLAs
promised to support back the Bommai government. But the governor did not
give an opportunity to Bommai to produce his majority on the floor of house.
The Governor dismissed the government on the plea that the Chief Minister lost
majority in the house. S.R. Bommai challenged the Governor’s decision in the
Supreme Court. The Supreme Court gave its verdict in 1994.

The proclamation of this type of emergency, popularly called as President Rule,
which can remain in force for a period of six months By the 44th Amendment,
the Parliament can extend the duration of the state emergency for a period of six
months at one instance. Ordinarily, the total period of such emergency cannot
exceed one year unless there is a national emergency in force. However, the total
period of state emergency cannot go beyond three years.

The President can impose financial emergency. Article 360 states that if the
President is satisfied that a situation has arisen where the financial stability or
credit of India or any part of the country is threatened, he may declare a financial
emergency. Like the National emergency, such a proclamation has to be laid
before the Parliament for its approval.

On its face value, one can say that the President enjoys formidable powers. In
reality, however, he can exercise his powers only on the aid and advice of the
Council of Ministers, headed by the Prime Minister. In this respect, the Presidents
position is more like that of the British Monarch rather than that of the President
of the United States of America. While the President of India may be the head of
the state, the head of the government is the Prime Minister

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
i) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) How is the President of Indian Republic elected?

2) What are the legislative powers of the President of India?

8.4 THE PRIME MINISTER
The real executive power under the Constitution vests with the Union Council of
Ministers with the Prime Minister as its head. The President is obliged to act
according to the advice of the Council of Ministers which is responsible in the
real sense of the term, not to the President but the Lok Sabha.
As in Britain, the Prime Minister in India is usually a member of the lower house
of Parliament. When Indira Gandhi was selected as a Prime Minister in 1966,
she was a member of the Rajya Sabha. By getting elected to the Lok Sabha, she
strengthened the convention of the Prime Minister being a member of the lower
house.
The Prime Minister is appointed by the President. However, the President has
hardly any choice in selecting the Prime Minister. He can only invite the lender
of the party in majority in the Lok Sabha or a person who is in a position to own
the confidence of the majority in the house. The Prime Minister holds office
during the pleasure of the President. The ‘pleasure’ of the President in this regard
is related to the unwavering majority support which a Prime Minister receives in
the Lok Sabha.
The President appoints the other members of the Council of Ministers on the
advice of the Prime Minister. A minister may be chosen from either house and
has a right to speak and take part in the proceedings of the other house, though
he can vote only in the House to which he belongs. Even a person who is not a
member of either house of Parliament can be appointed as a minister, but he has
to qualify for it by being elected or nominated to either house within a period of
six months.

8. 4.1 The Council of Ministers and the Cabinet
The term ‘Cabinet’ is used interchangeably with that of Council of Ministers.
But they are different. The Council of Ministers, or the Ministry, consists of
different categories of ministers. At the time of independence, there was no such
institution as a cabinet in India. What existed then was the Executive Council.
On 15 August 1947, the Executive Council was transformed into a Ministry or
Council of Ministers that is responsible to the Parliament.

The term ‘Cabinet’ was used thereafter as an alternative to the Council of
Ministers. At this stage, all the members of the ministry or the Cabinet except
the Prime Minister had the same status. But the situation changed once junior
ministers were appointed to the Council of Ministers. In 1950, based on the
recommendations of the Gopalswamy Ayyangar’s report, a three-tier system of
the ministry was established with the cabinet ministers at the top, ministers of
the state at the middle, and deputy ministers in the lowest rung. The Cabinet,
composed of the ‘senior-most ministers’ whose responsibilities transcended
departmental boundaries into the entire field of administration, is a smaller body
and the most powerful body in the government. The Cabinet serves three major
functions: i) It is the body which determines government policy for presentation
to the Parliament, ii) It is responsible for implementing government policy, and
iii) It carries out inter-departmental coordination and cooperation.

The cabinet meets regularly, as it is a decision-making body. It is assisted by the
cabinet secretariat, headed by a senior member of the civil services, the cabinet
secretary. To manage the volumes and complexities of work that comes before
it, the cabinet members have developed standing ad hoc committees. There
are four Standing Committees which are permanent in nature. These are the
defence committee, economic committee, administrative organisation committee
and parliamentary and legal affairs committee. Ad-hoc Committees are constituted
from time to time.

Next in rank are the ministers of state who hold independent charge of individual
ministries and perform the same functions and exercise the same powers as a
cabinet minister. The only difference between a ster of state and a cabinet
minister is that he/she is not a member of the cabinet, but attends cabinet meetings
only when specially invited to do so in connection with the subject that he/she is
given charge of. There are other ministers of state who work directly under cabinet ministers.

At the bottom of the hierarchy are the deputy-ministers who do not have specific
administrative responsibilities. However, their duties include: i) Answering the
questions in parliament on behalf of the ministers concerned and helping to pilot
bills, ii) Explaining policies and programmes to the general public and maintaining
liaison with members of parliament, political parties and the press, and iii)
Undertaking special study or investigation of particular problems, which may be
assigned to them by particular minister.

From the above, it is clear that the Cabinet is the nucleus of the Council of
Ministers. Precisely because of this reason Walter Bagehot calls the Cabinet ‘the
greatest committee of the legislature’. It is the ‘connecting link between the
executive and legislative power’.

8.4.2 Collective Responsibility
The Council of Ministers functions on the principle of collective responsibility.
Under this principle, all ministers are equally responsible for each and every act
of government. That is, under the collective leadership, each minister accepts
and agrees to share responsibility for all decisions of the cabinet. Doubts and
disagreements are confined to the privacy of the cabinet room. Once a decision
has been taken, it has to be loyally supported and considered as the decisions of
the whole government. If any member of the Council of Ministers is unable to
support government policy in the Parliament or the country at large, that member
is morally bound to resign from the Council of Ministers.
Executive
The Prime Minister’s prerogative of constituting, reconstituting and reshuffling
the Ministry as well as chairing the meetings vests the office with considerable
influence over the members of Parliament. It must, however, be noted that the
Prime Minister’s has the freedom to select his colleagues and it is subjected to
his/her own position within the party. For example, India’s first Prime Minister,
Jawaharlal Nehru, could not ignore Sardar Patel who was very powerful in the
Congress party. He was, therefore, appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister and
Home Minister. Some of Patel’s followers were also made members of the
ministry. Similarly, Indira Gandhi in the early years of her office had to
accommodate powerful leaders of her party in the ministry. Emerging as an allpowerful leader after the 1971 mid-term elections, she had complete freedom in
choosing and reshuffling ministers. In coalition governments, the Prime Ministers
Even if the Council of Ministers is formed as a result of a coalition of various
political parties, a minimum common programme becomes essential for
maintaining the solidarity of the ministry, and the various political parties forming
the coalition government have to stand behind that programme. Unless they do
so, the Cabinet cannot survive. Unity within Council of Ministers is not only
essential for its very survival but also necessary for its efficiency and efficacy,
and it is also necessary to enjoy the confidence of the people. Open bickering
between members of the Janata government on matters of public policy was the
prelude to the collapse of the government in 1979.

8. 5 THE CABINET AND THE PARLIAMENT

The core of the parliamentary government is the accountability of the Prime
Minister and the Cabinet to the Parliament. The Parliament does not govern but
critically examines the policies and acts of the government, and approves
disapproves of them as the representative of the people. The very existence and
survival of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers depend upon the
support they receive in the Parliament. As we observed, the Council of Ministers
is collectively responsible to the Parliament. Thus, the general feeling is that the
Parliament controls the Executive. But in reality, the Prime Minister with his  majority support controls the very working of the parliament.

8.5.1 Sources of Prime Minister’s Power and Influence

Though the Constitution does not enumerate the powers and functions of the
Prime Minister, in practice he/she enjoys a wide range of powers as a leader of the Council of Ministers and the Loksabha.

The Prime Minister’s prerogative of constituting, reconstituting and reshuffling
the Ministry as well as chairing the meetings vests the office with considerable
influence over the members of Parliament. It must, however, be noted that the
Prime Minister’s has the freedom to select his colleagues and it is subjected to
his/her own position within the party. For example, India’s first Prime Minister,
Jawaharlal Nehru, could not ignore Sardar Patel who was very powerful in the
Congress party. He was, therefore, appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister and
Home Minister. Some of Patel’s followers were also made members of the
ministry. Similarly, Indira Gandhi in the early years of her office had to
accommodate powerful leaders of her party in the ministry. Emerging as an allpowerful leader after the 1971 mid-term elections, she had complete freedom in
choosing and reshuffling ministers. In coalition governments, the Prime Ministers
do not have much choice in choosing ministerial colleagues. In the Janata
government, Mor@i Desai had many ministers whom he never knew before. In
H.D. Deve Gowda’s and later I.K. Gujral’s governments, the ministers were
selected not by the Prime Minister but by the leaders of the 14 regional parties
that formed the United Front.
The Prime Minister also derives power and influence from the fact that he/she is
the leader of the majority party in the legislature, and sometimes even the leader
of the parliamentary wing of the party. As a leader of the Lok Sabha, the Prime
Minister has enormous control over parliamentary activities. He/she advises the
President on summoning and prorogation of the sessions of Parliament. The
Speaker consults the Prime Minister in finalising the agenda of the Lok Sabha.
The Prime Minister enjoys enormous legislative power in the form of
recommending Ordinances to the President for promulgation when the Parliament
is not in session. But the most important power of the Prime Minister regarding
Parliament is to recommend dissolution ofLok Sabha. The President has to accept
the advice of the Prime Minister. It is the power by which the Prime Minister
controls even the opposition.
As the head of the government, the Prime Minister enjoys the power of patronage.
All the major appointments of the Central government are made by the Prime
Minister in the name of the President, which include Chief Justice and judges of
the Supreme Court and High Courts, the Attorney-General, the Chiefs of the
Army, the Navy and the Air Force, Governors, Ambassadors and High
Commissioners, the Chief and members of the Election Commission, etc. Further,
the Prime Minister’s control over the administration, including the intelligence
agencies and other administrative wings of the ernment enhances his/her
influence over other members of parliament and administration. Apart from these
structural factors, there are other features that increase the power and authority
of the Prime Minister. In several instances, the general elections in most
democratic systems virtually become an election of the leader, and it is interpreted
as a popular mandate. Sometimes a leader derives strength from his/her charisma.
Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Narendra Modi present examples of charismatic leaders.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this unit.
1) What are the three most important functions of a Cabinet?

2) What is collective responsibility?

8.6 THE PRESIDENT AND THE PRIME MINISTER

Article 78 enumerates the duties of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is to:
a) communicate to the President all decisions of the Council of Ministers relating
to the administration of the affairs of the Union and proposals for legislation; b)
furnish such information relating to the administration of the affairs of the Union
and proposals for legislation as the President may call for; and c) if the President
so requires, to submit for the consideration of the Council of Ministers any matter
on which a decision has been taken by a Minister but which has not been
considered by the Council. These duties of the Prime Minister seem to suggest
that the President is the real executive with vast power. But as we saw, the
President can exercise his powers only with the aid and advice of the Council of
Ministers. The Prime Minister, heading the Council of Ministers, is, therefore,
the real executive. However, there have been occasions when the President had
differences of opinion with the Prime Minister on the policies of the government.

The first President of India, Rajendra Prasad, tried to break from the British
convention that the head of the state is always bound by the advice of the Prime
Minister and the Cabinet. For instance, he was unhappy with the
government’s attempt to reform Hindu personal law. In 1987, President Zail Singh
withheld his assent to the Indian Postal (Amendment) Bill, despite its having
been passed by both the Houses of Parliament. This was a reflection of differences
between the President and the Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

8.7 LET US SUM UP

Following the pattern of British Westminster model, India evolved its system of
the parliamentary form of government in which the executive is responsible to
the legislature. The executive power of the government of India is vested in the
President of India, who is both the formal head of the state and the symbol of the
nation. The President is endowed with authority and dignity without adequate
powers. The President can exercise his/her authority only with the aid and advice
of the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minster. It is the Prime Minister
who exercises real executive power in the Indian political system. As the head of
the Council of Ministers, the leader of the majority party in the Lok Sabha and
often the leader of the Parliament, the Prime Minister enjoys considerable power
and authority. Though the Prime Minister is appointed by the President and holds
office during the pleasure of the President, the Prime Minister is in reality
responsible to the Parliament. The Council of Ministers and the informal cabinet
headed by the Prime Minister work on the principle of collective responsibility.
Sometimes here have been differences between the President and the Prime
Minister. But these did not assume serious proportions culminating in any
constitutional crisis.

8.8 REFERENCES

Das, C. B. (1977). The President ofIndia. New Delhi: RR Printers.
Jennings, Ivor Sir (1969). Cabinet Government. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Kashyap, Subhas (1995). History of the Parliament ofIndia, Vol. 2, New Delhi:
Shipra Publications.
Patnaik, Raghunath (1996). Powers of the President and Governors of India,
New Delhi: Deep and Deep.

8.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) The President is elected by the members of the Electoral College, in
accordance with the system of proportional representation and by means of
a single transferable vote. The Electoral College comprises of the elected
members of the Union Parliament and State Assemblies.
2) To summon and prorogue the Parliaments; to dissolve the Lok Sabha-power
to promulgate Ordinances; to summon and address the joint sitting of the
two houses of Parliament; to veto of non-money bills-powers; to nominate
members to the Parliament,
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) The Council of Ministers functions on this principle. Each member accepts
and agrees to share responsibility for all decisions of the cabinet. It’s
necessary for efficiency and efficacy but also for the very survival of the
cabinet system of government.
2) In a parliamentary system, the Prime Minister is the head of the Council of
Ministers, leader of the majority party in the Lower House and head of the government.

UNIT 9 JUDICIARY^

Structure
9.0 Objectives
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Evolution of Judiciary in India
9.3 The Supreme Court
9.3.1 Composition and Appointments
9.3 2 Tenure
9.3.3 Salaries
9.3.4 Immunities
9.4 Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court
9.4.1 Original Jurisdiction
9.4.2 Appellant Jurisdiction
9.4.3 Advisory Jurisdiction
9.4.4 Review Jurisdiction
9.5 The High Court
9.5.1 Composition of the High
9.5.2 Jurisdiction
9.6 Subordinate Courts
9.7 Judicial Review
9.8 Judicial Reforms
9.9 Let Us Sum Up
9.10 References
9.11 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises
9.0 OBJECTIVES
After going through this unit, you will be able to
Trace the evolution of the judicial system in India;
Describe the composition of the courts in India;
Explain the functions and jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, the High Courts,
and the Subordinate Courts; and
UNIT 9 JUDICIARY^
Structure
9.0 Objectives
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Evolution of Judiciary in India
9.3 The Supreme Court
9.3.1 Composition and Appointments
9.3 2 Tenure
9.3.3 Salaries
9.3.4 Immunities
Executive
Explain the concept of judicial review and its importance in safeguarding
fundamental rights.
9.1 INTRODUCTION
In a political system based on constitutional government, the functions of rule
making, rule enforcement and rule interpretation are separated into the three
institutions – the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. A judiciary that is
independent of and acting as a check on the arbitrary exercise of legislative and
executive power is an essential feature of a constitutional government. The judiciary is also the final arbiter of what that Constitution itself means. In a
federal system, the judiciary also serves as a tribunal for the final determination
of disputes between the union and its constituent units. Given the tremendous
importance of the role and functions of the Supreme Court and the High Courts,
various measures have been adopted to ensure the independence of the judiciary

9.2 EVOLUTION OF JUDICIARY IN INDIA

The evolution of the contemporaryjudiciary in India can be traced to the colonial
period. It was with the Regulating Act of 1773 that the first Supreme Court came
into existence in India. Located at Calcutta(Kolkata), the Supreme Court consisted
of Chief Justice and three judges (subsequently it was reduced to two judges)
appointed by the Crown, and it was made a King’s court rather than a Company’s
court. The court held jurisdiction over “his majesty’s subjects” wherever the
Supreme Courts were established. Supreme Courts were established in Madras
(Chennai) first and in Bombay (Mumbai) later. Judicial system during this period
consisted of two systems, the Supreme Courts in the Presidencies and the Sadr
courts in the provinces. While the former followed the English law and procedure,
the latter followed regulation laws and personal laws. Subsequently, these two
systems were merged under the High Courts Act of 1861. This Act replaced the
Supreme Courts and the native courts (Sadar Dewani Adalat and Sadr Nizamat
Adalat) in the presidency towns of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras with High
Courts. The highest court of appeal, however, was the judicial committee of the
Privy Council.

At this stage of development of the Indian legal system, we see the beginning of
a new era in the emergence of a unified court system. The Federal Court of India
was established in Delhi by the Act of 1935. It was to act as an intermediate
appellant between the High Courts and the Privy Council regarding matters
involving the interpretation of the Indian constitution. In addition to this appellate
jurisdiction, the Federal Court had advisory as well as original jurisdiction in
certain other matters. This court continued to function until 26 January 1950, the
day independent India’s constitution was implemented.

9.3 THE SUPREME COURT

The entire judicature has been divided into three tiers. At the top there is a Supreme
Court; below it is the High Court; and, the lowest rank is occupied by Session’s
The Supreme Court is the highest court of law. The Constitution says that the
law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all small courts within
the territory of India. Below the Supreme Court, the High Courts are located in
the states. Under each High Court, there are District Sessions Courts, Subordinate
Courts and Courts of Minor Jurisdiction that is called Small Cause Courts.
Given the importance of the judiciary in a federal system resting on limited
government, the Supreme Court was designed to make it the final authority in
the interpretation of the Constitution. While framing the judicial provisions, the
Constituent Assembly gave a great deal of attention to such issues as the
independence of the courts, the power of the Supreme Court, and the issue of
judicial review.

9.3.1 Composition and Appointments

The Supreme Court consists of the Chief Justice of India and not more than
twenty-six other Judges. When the Supreme Court was inaugurated, it had only
eight judges. Its strength has risen to twenty-six judges. The President of India,
who is the appointing authority, makes these appointments on the advice of the
Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers.
The Constitution stipulates in Article 124 (2) that the President shall appoint
judges of the Supreme Court after consulting other persons besides taking the
advice of his ministers. In the case of the Chief Justice of India, the President
shall consult such judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts as he may
deem necessary. In spite of this clear constitutional provision, the appointment
of the Chief Justice of India has become a matter of political controversy. Here,
it may be worth recalling the issues that were raised in 1973 when the Government
of India appointed Justice SS Ray as the Chief Justice of India superseding four
other judges, against the recommendations of the outgoing Chief Justice, SM
Sikri.Avoiding political interferences in the appointment of Judges of the Supreme
Court, some important qualifications have been set for the post such as: a person
should be a citizen of India; a Judge of the High Court for at least five years;
should have been an advocate of High Court for at least ten years; or a
distinguished jurist in the opinion of the President of India.
The Collegium System of appointment of judges is unique in nature. It is also
popularly referred to as judges-selecting judges. This system was created by two
judgements of the Supreme Court in 1990s. In this, a body of senior apex court
judges are responsible for appointment and transfer of judges of the
court and High Court.

9.3.2 Tenure

Once appointed, a judge holds office until he attains 65 years of age. A judge of
the Supreme Court may resign his office or may be removed in case of
misbehaviour or incapacity. According to the procedure laid out in the
Constitution, each house of the Parliament will have to pass a resolution supported
by two-third of the members present and voting. The device to remove a judge is
known as impeachment. The motion of impeachment against a judge was tabled
in Parliament for the first in 1991. It involved Supreme Court Justice V.
Ramaswami. When an audit report revealed several irregularities committed by
the judge during his tenure as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana g
Court, a three-man judicial committee was set up with a serving and a retired
Supreme Court judge and the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. The
Committee concluded that there had indeed been a wilful and gross misuse of
official position and intentional and habitual extravagance at the cost of the public
interest which amounted to ‘misbehaviour’. Justice V. Ramaswami was the first
judge of the Supreme Court against who impeachment proceedings were initiated.
Justice Ramaswami, however, maintained that there were procedural irregularities
in the notice of the motion, the constitution of the committee and its functioning.
The impeachment motion which was moved in May 1993 failed with 196 out of
401 voting for it and the remaining 205 abstaining. However, the Judge eventually
resigned.

9.3.3 Salaries
A very important element that determines the independence of the judges is the
remuneration received by them. The salaries and allowances of the judges are
fixed high to secure their independence, efficiency and impartiality. Besides the
salary, every judge is entitled to a rent-free official accommodation. The
Constitution also provided that the salaries of the judges cannot be changed to
their disadvantage, except in times of a Financial Emergency. The administrative
expenses of the Supreme Court, the salaries, allowances, etc., of the judges, are
charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.

9.3.4 Immunities
To shield judges from political controversies, the Constitution grants them
immunity from criticisms against decisions and actions made in their official
capacity. The Court is empowered to initiate contempt proceedings against those
who impute motives to the judges in the discharge of their official duties. Even
the Parliament cannot discuss the conduct of the judge except when a resolution
for his removal is before it.
Check Your Progress Excersise
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) What are the qualifications required for appointment as a judge of the Supreme court.

2) What is the procedure for removing a judge of the Supreme Court.?

9.4 JURISDICTION OF THE SUPREME COURT

Article 141 declares that the law laid down by the Supreme Court shall be binding
on all courts within the territory of India. The different categories into which the
jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is divided are as follows: 1) Original
Jurisdiction, 2) Appellate Jurisdiction, 3) Advisory Jurisdiction, 4) and Review
Jurisdiction.

9.4.1 Original Jurisdiction
The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction initially as a federal court. In a
federal system like India, both the Union and the State governments derive their
powers from and are limited by the same constitution. Differences of interpretation
of the Union-States distribution of powers or conflicts between States governments
require authoritative resolution by a judicial organ independent of both levels of
government. Under Article 131, the Supreme Court is given exclusive jurisdiction
in a dispute between the Union and a State or between one State and another, or
between a group of States and others. When we say that the Supreme Court has
an exclusive jurisdiction, we mean that no other court in India has the power to
entertain such disputes. Similarly, the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court
will mean that the parties to the dispute should be units of the federation. Unlike
the Supreme Courts in Australia and the United States, the Indian Supreme Court
does not have original jurisdiction to decide disputes between residents of different
states or those between a State and the resident of another State.

The Supreme Court also has an extensive original jurisdiction as the protector of
Fundamental Rights. As you have read in the unit 5 Article 32 of the Constitution
gives citizens the right to move the Supreme Court directly for the
of any of the fundamental rights enumerated in Part III of the Constitution. As
the guardian of Fundamental Rights, the Supreme Court has the power to issue
writs such as Habeas Corpus, Quo Warranto, Prohibition, Certiorari, and
Mandamus. Habeas Corpus is a writ issued by the court to bring before the courta
person from illegal custody. The court can decide the legality of detention and
release the person if the detention is found to be illegal. By using the writ of
Mandamus, the court may order the public officials to perform their legal
Prohibition is a writ to prevent a court or tribunal from doing something in excess
of its authority. By the writ of Certiorari, the court may strike off an order passed
by any official of the government, local body or a statutory body. Quo warranto
is a writ issued to a person who authorised occupies a public office to step down
from that office. In addition to issuing these writs, the Supreme Court is
empowered to issue appropriate directions and orders to the executive.

9.4.2 Appellate Jurisdiction
The Supreme Court is the highest court of appeal from all courts in the territory
of India. It has comprehensive appellant jurisdiction in cases involving
constitutional issues; civil and criminal cases involving specified threshold values
of the property or a death sentence; and wide-ranging powers of special appeals.
Article 132 of the Constitution provides for an appeal to the Supreme Court
from anyjudgement or final order ofa court in civil, criminal or other proceedings
of a High Court; if it involves a substantial question of law as to the interpretation
of the Constitution. The appeal again depends upon whether the High Court
certifies, and if does not, the Supreme Court may grant special leave to appeal.
Article 133 of the Constitution provides that an appeal in civil cases lies to the
Supreme Court from any judgement, order or civil proceedings of a High Court.
This appeal may be made, if the case involves a substantial question of law of
general importance or if in the opinion of the High Court the said question needs
to be decided by the Supreme Court.

Article 134 provides the Supreme Court with appellate jurisdiction in criminal
matters from any judgement, final order, or sentence of a High Court. This
jurisdiction can be invoked only in three different categories of cases: a) if the
High Court on appeal reverses an order of acquittal of an accused person and
sentenced to death; b) if the High Court has withdrawn for trial before any case
from any Court subordinate to its authority and has in such a trial convicted the
accused person and sentenced him to death; c) if the High Court certifies that the
case is fit for appeal to the Supreme Court.
Finally, the Supreme Court has the special appellate jurisdiction. It has the power
to grant, in its discretion, special leave appeal from anyjudgment, decree sentence
or order in any case or matter passed or made by any court or tribunal.

9.4.3 Advisory Jurisdiction
The Supreme Court is vested with the power to render advisory opinions on any
question of fact or law that may be referred to it by the President. The advisory
role of the Supreme Court is different from ordinary adjudication in three senses:
first, there is no litigation between two parties; second, the advisory opinion of
the Court is not binding on the government; and ly, it is not executable as a
judgement of the court. The practice of seeking an advisory opinion of the
Supreme Court helps the executive to arrive at a sound decision on important
issues. At the same time, it gives a soft option to the Indian government on some
politically difficult issues.

9.4.4 Review Jurisdiction
The Supreme Court has the power to review any judgement pronounced or order
made by it. It means that the Supreme Court may review its judgement order.
The Supreme Court in India is far more powerful than its counterpart in the
United States of America. The American Supreme Court deals primarily with
cases which arise out of the federal relationship or those relating to the
constitutional validity of laws and treaties. Apart from interpreting the
Constitution, the Indian Supreme Court functions the court of appeal in the
country in matters of civil and criminal cases. It can entertain appeals without
any limitation upon its discretion from the decisions not only of any court but
also of any tribunal within the territory of India. The advisory jurisdiction of the
Indian Supreme Court also is something absent from the purview of the American
Supreme
Despite these powers, the Indian Supreme Court is a creature of the Constitution
and depends on the continuation of these powers on the Union legislature which
can impose limitations on them by amending the Constitution. Moreover, all
these powers can also be suspended or superseded whenever there is a declaration
of emergency in the country.

9.5 THE HIGH COURT
The Constitution provides for a High Court at the apex of the State judiciary.
Chapter V of Part VI, from Articles 214 to 231 of the Constitution of India contains
provisions regarding the organisation and functions of the High Court. By the
provision of Article 125 which says “there shall be a High Court for each state”,  and these courts have a constitutional status. The parliament has the power to
establish a common High Court for two or more states. For instance, Punjab and
Haryana have a common High Court. Similarly, there is one High Court for
Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh.
In the case of Union Territories, the Parliament may by law extend the jurisdiction
of a High Court to, or exclude the jurisdiction of a High Court from any Union
Territory, or create a High Court for a Union Territory. Thus, Delhi, Madras even
when it was a Union Territory, had a separate High Court while, this High Court
has been having jurisdiction over Pondicherry, the Kerala High Court over
Lakshadweep, the Bombay High Court over Dadra and Nagar Haveli, the Calcutta
High Court over Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Punjab Haryana High Court
over Chandigarh.

9.5.1 Composition of the High Court
Unlike the Supreme Court, there is no minimum number ofjudges for the High
Court. The President, from time to time will fix the number of judges in each
High Court. The Chief Justice of the High Court is appointed by the President of
India in consultating with the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of the
State, which in actual term means the real executive of the State. In appointing
the judges, the President is required to consult the Chief Justice of the High
Court. The Constitution also provides for the appointment of additional judges
to cope with the work. However, these appointments are temporary not exceeding
two years period. There is also a provision for direct appointment of Judges of
Supreme Court and High Court through the Collegium System, in which Senior
Judges ofApex Court select or recommend the names for appointment of judges.

A judge of a High Court normally holds office until he attains the age of 62
years. He can vacate the seat by resigning, by being appointed a judge of the
Supreme Court or by being transferred to any other High Court by the President.
The President can remove a judge on the grounds of misbehaviour or incapacity
in the same manner in which a judge of the Supreme Court is removed.

9.5.2 Jurisdiction
The original jurisdiction of a High Court includes enforcement of Fundamental
Rights, settlement of disputes relating to the election to Union and State
legislatures and jurisdiction over revenue matters. Its appellant jurisdiction extends
to both civil and criminal matters. In civil matters, the High Court is either a first
appeal or a second appeal court. In criminal matters, appeal from decisions of a
session’s judge or an additional sessions judge where a sentence of imprisonment
exceeds seven years, and other specified cases other than petty crimes constitute
the appellant jurisdiction of a High Court. In addition to these normal original
and appellant jurisdictions, the Constitution vests the High Courts with four
additional powers. These are:
The power to issue writs or orders for the enforcement of the Fundamental
Rights. Interestingly, the writ jurisdiction of a High Court is larger than that
of the Supreme Court. It can not only issue writs in cases of infringement of
Fundamental Rights but also in cases of an ordinary legal right.
The power of superintendence over all other courts and tribunals except
those dealing with the armed forces. It can frame rules and also issue instructions for guidance from time to time with directions for speedier and
effective judicial remedy.
The power to transfer cases to itself from subordinate courts concerning the
interpretation of the constitution.
The power to appoint officers and servants of the High Court.
In certain cases, the jurisdiction of High Courts is restricted. For instance, it
has no jurisdiction over a tribunal and no power to invalidate a Central Act
or even any rule, notification or orders made by any administrative authority
of the Union, whether violates of Fundamental Rights or not.
Check Your Progress Excercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
i) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) In what areas does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction? Which
area is an exclusive preserve of the Supreme Court?

9.6 SUBORDINATE COURTS

Under the High Court, there is a hierarchy of courts which are referred to in the
Indian constitution as subordinate courts. Since these courts have come into
existence because of enactments by the state government, their nomenclature
and designation differ from state to state. However, there is a uniformity regarding
its organisational structure

The state is divided into districts, and each district has a district court which has
an appellant jurisdiction in the district. Under the district courts, there are the
lower courts such as the Additional District Court, Sub-Court, MunsiffMagistrate
Court, Court of Special Judicial Magistrate of the II Class, Court of Special
Judicial Magistrate of I Class, Court of Special Munsiff Magistrate for Factories
Act and Labour Laws, etc. At the bottom of the hierarchy of Subordinate Courts
are the Panchayat Courts (Nyaya Panchayat, Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Adalat,
etc.). These are, however, not considered as courts under the purview of the
criminal courts jurisdiction.
The principal function of the District Court is to hear appeals from the subordinate
courts. However, the courts can also take cognisance of original matters under
special status, for instance, the Indian Succession Act, the Guardian Act and
Wards Act and Land Acquisition Act.
The Constitution ensures the independence of the subordinate judiciary.
Appointments to the District Courts are made by the Governor in consultation
with the High Court. A person to be eligible for appointment should be either an
advocate or a pleader of seven years standing, or an officer in the service of the Union or the State. Appointment of persons other than the District Judges to the
judicial service of a State is made by the Governor in accordance with the rules
made by him in that behalf after consultation with the High Court and the State
Public Service Commission.
The High Court exercises control over the District Courts and the Courts
subordinate to them, in matters as posting, promotions and granting of leave to
all persons belonging to the State judicial service.

9.7 JUDICIAL REVIEW

The notion ofjudicial review means the revision of the decree or sentence of an
inferior court by a superior court. Judicial review has a more technical significance
in public law, particularly in countries having a written constitution, founded on
the concept of limited government. Judicial review, in this case, means that Courts
of law have the power of testing the validity of legislative as well as other
governmental action concerning the provisions of the constitution.

In England, there is no written constitution. Here the Parliament exercises supreme
authority. The courts do not have the power to review laws passed by the sovereign
parliament. However, English Courts review the legality of executive actions. In
the United States, the judiciary assumed the power to scrutinise executive actions
and examine the constitutional validity of legislation by the doctrine of ‘due
process’. By contrast, in India, the power of the court to declare legislative
enactments invalid is expressly enacted in the constitution. Fundamental rights
enumerated in the Constitution are made justiciable and the right to constitutional
remedy has itself been made a Fundamental right.

The Supreme Court’s power of judicial review extends to constitutional
amendments as well as to other actions of the legislatures, the executive and the
other governmental agencies. However, judicial review has been particularly
significant and contentious regarding constitutional amendments. Under Article
368, constitutional amendments could be made by the Parliament. But Article 13
provides that the state shall not make any law which takes away or abridges
fundamental rights and that any law made in contravention with this rule shall
void. The issue is, would the amendment of the constitution be a law made by
the state? Can such a law infringing fundamental rights be declared
unconstitutional? It was a riddle before the judiciary for about two decades after
India became a republic.

In the early years, the courts held that a constitutional amendment is not law
within the meaning ofArticle 13 and hence, would not be held void if it violated
any fundamental right. But in 1967, in the famous Golak Nath Case, the Supreme
Court adopted a contrary position. It was held that a constitutional amendment is
a law and if that amendment violated any of the fundamental rights, it could be
declared unconstitutional. All former amendments that violated the fundamental
rights to property were found to be unconstitutional. When a law remains in
force for a long time, it establishes itself and is observed by the society. If all past
amendments are declared invalid, the number of transactions that took place in
pursuance of those amendments become unsettled. It will lead to chaos in the
economic and political system. In order to avoid this situation and for the purpose
of maintaining the transactions, in fact, the past amendments were held valid.
The Supreme Court clarified that no future transactions or amendments contrary  to fundamental rights should be valid. This technique of treating old transactions
valid and future ones invalid is called prospective over-ruling. The Court also
held that Article 368 with amendments does not contain the power to amend the
constitution, but only prescribes the procedure to amend. This interpretation
created difficulty. Even when there is a need to amend a particular provision of
the constitution, it might be impossible to do so if the amendment had an impact
on fundamental rights.
In 1970, when the Supreme Court struck down some of Indira Gandhi’s populist
measures, such as the abolition of the privy purses of the former princes and
nationalisation of banks, the Prime Minister set about to assert the supremacy of
the Parliament. She was able to give effect to her wishes after gaining a twothirds majority in the 1971 General Elections. In 1972, the Parliament passed the
25th Constitutional Amendment Act which allowed the legislature to encroach
on fundamental rights if it was said to be done by giving effect to the Directive
Principles of State Policy. No court was permitted to question such a declaration.
The 28 h Amendment Act ended the recognition granted to former rulers of Indian
states and their privy purses were abolished.
These amendments were challenged in the Supreme Court in the famous
Kesavananda Bharathi Case (otherwise known as the Fundamental Rights Case)
of 1973. The Supreme Court ruled that the while the parliament could amend
even the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution, it was not competent
to alter the ‘basic structure’ or ‘framework’ of the Constitution. Under the newly
evolved doctrine of ‘basic structure’, a constitutional amendment is valid only
when it does not affect the basic structure of the constitution. The second part of
Article 31C (no law containing a declaration to implement the Directive Principles
contained in Article 39 (b) and (c) shall be questioned) was held not valid because
the amendment took away the opportunity for judicial review, which is one of
the basic features of the Constitution. The doctrine of basic features gave wide
amplitude to the power ofjudicial review.
Later history shows the significant role played by this doctrine in the review of
constitutional amendments. For challenging the election to Parliament of a person
who holds the office of Prime Minister, the 3 onstitutional Amendment
provided a different procedure. The election can be challenged only before an
authority under special law made by Parliament, and the validity of such as law
shall not be called in question. The Supreme Court held that this amendment was
invalid as it was against the basic structure of the Constitution. It argued that free
and fair elections are essential in a democracy. Excluding judicial examination
of the fairness of the election of a particular candidate is not proper and goes
against the democratic ideal which is the base of our constitution.
In a later case, the Minerva Mill Case, the Supreme Court went a step ahead. The
42’l d Constitutional Amendment of 1976, among other things, had added a clause
to Article 368 placing a constitutional amendment beyond judicial review. The
Court held that this was against the doctrine ofjudicial review, the basic feature
of the constitution.
Since the late 1970s, the judiciary began to take an active role to protect and
implement the constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights of citizens. It is
commonly described as judicial activism; the Supreme Court has stepped to
protect the rights of the disadvantaged sections which on account of poverty,
social disability or lack of awareness, could not approach the courts for denial of
their rights. The Supreme Court did this by diluting the principle of locus standi
which limited the Court’s power of judicial review. By the principle of locus
standi, only persons aggrieved by an administrative action or by an unjust
provision of law had the right to move the court for denial of rights. In 1979 the
Supreme Court, however, decided to hear a case filed not by the aggrieved persons
but by others on their behalf as the case involved a consideration of public interest.
Again in 1982, the Supreme Court in judgement on the democratic rights of
construction workers of the Asian Games granted the Peoples Union for
Democratic Rights, the right of Public Interest Litigation (PIL). Taking recourse
to epistolary jurisdiction under which the US Supreme Court treated a post card
from a prisoner as a petition, the Supreme Court of India stated that any ‘public
spirited’ individual or organisation could move the court even by writing a letter.
It opened the gates for a large number of cases where a large number of pubic
spirited individuals and non-governmental organisations sought judicial
intervention for the protection of existing rights, the betterment of life of the
poor, protection of the environment, etc. The momentum for the implementation
of rights generated byjudicialactivismultimately led to the setting of mechanisms
for the protection of rights of the weak and the deprived. In the 1990s, the National
Commission of Minorities, the National Commission on Women, the National
Commission for Backward Classes, the National Commission for Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes were established by law to protect the rights of the
minorities, Dalits, Backward classes, tribals and women. Further, the National
Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was established in 2000 to protect the
fundamental and other kinds of rights. The NHRC conducts an enquiry on its
initiative or petition presented to it by a victim into complaints of human rights
violations. Although the NHRC does not have the power of prosecution, it can
make a recommendation to the government or to the courts to initiate proceedings
against the violators of human right.

Since the granting of the right to PIL, what some claim to be the only major
democratic right of the people of India, and granted not by the Parliament but by
the judiciary, the courts have been flooded by PILs. While the flood of such
litigation indicates the widespread nature of the deprivation of democratic rights;
they also pose the danger of adding further pressure on the courts that are already
overloaded.

9.8 JUDICIAL REFORMS

While the judiciary has earned respect for its contribution to protecting citizens
from arbitrary exercise of power, a large number of pending cases and the delays
in the dispensation of justice are seen as its major drawbacks At the All India
Seminar on Judicial Reforms in August 2010, the Chief Justice of India, S.H.
Kapadia pointed out that there are over one crore cases pending for more than
one year. Reasons for the piling of a large number of cases can be attributed to
structural and procedural flaws in the judiciary. The availability of multiple
remedies at different rungs of the judicial ladder also enables dishonest and
recalcitrant suitors to abuse the judicial system. It leads to the piling up of cases
as well as a delay in the dispensation ofjustice.
Another weakness of the judicial system is cumbersome procedures and
forbidding cost ofjustice. Suggestions for judicial reforms have been helpful to
achieve a new order and bring economic, political and social justice.

9.9 LET US SUM UP
As we saw in this unit, the existing judicature in India can be traced to the British
period. The Regulating Act of 1773, the Indian High Courts Act of 1861 and the
Act of 1935 are the important milestones in the evolution of the modern judicial
system in India. According to the Constitution of India the Supreme Court is the
highest court of law. The law declared by the Supreme Court has been made
binding on all small courts, that is, the High Courts and the Subordinate Courts
Given the importance of judiciary as a federal court and as a guardian of
fundamental rights of the citizen, the framers of the Indian Constitution gave a
great deal of thought to such issues as the independence of the courts and judicial
review.

Judicial review is a technique by which the courts examine the actions of the
legislature, the executive and the other governmental agencies and decide whether
or not these actions are valid and within limits set by the constitution. The
foundation ofjudicial review is (a) that the constitution is a legal instrument, and
(b) that this law is superior in status to the laws made by the legislature that is
itself set up by the constitution. It is now well established in India that judicial
review constitutes the basic structure or feature of e Constitution of India.

9.10 REFERENCES

Basu, D. D. (1983). Commentary on the Constitution ofIndia. New Delhi: Prentice
Hall.
Chaube, S.K. (2009). The Making and Working
Delhi: National Book Trust.
Indian Constitution. New
Granville Austin (1964). Thelndia’s Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation.
Bombay: Oxford University Press.
Mukherjee, Hiren (1978). Portrait ofParliament: Rejections and Recollections.
New Delhi: Vikas.

9.11 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress Excercise
IRStltUtiORS
100
9.9 LET US SUM UP
As we saw in this unit, the existing judicature in India can be traced to the British
period. The Regulating Act of 1773, the Indian High Courts Act of 1861 and the
Act of 1935 are the important milestones in the evolution of the modern judicial
system in India. According to the Constitution of India the Supreme Court is the
highest court of law. The law declared by the Supreme Court has been made
binding on all small courts, that is, the High Courts and the Subordinate Courts
Given the importance of judiciary as a federal court and as a guardian of
fundamental rights of the citizen, the framers of the Indian Constitution gave a
great deal of thought to such issues as the independence of the courts and judicial
review.
1) A person to be appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court should be a
citizen of India, should have been a High Court judge for at least five years,
and an advocate of High Court for at least ten years or a distinguished jurist.
2) A Supreme Court judge can be removed by the impeachment motion.
According to this procedure each house of the Parliament has to pass a
resolution supported by the two third of the members present and voting.
Check Your Progress Excercise 2
1) It has original jurisdiction as a guardian of Fundamental rights and as a
federal court. As a federal court, it has exclusive jurisdiction in disputes
between the Union and a State or between one State and another, or between
a group of States and others.

Block-4 Society and politics

BLOCK 4 INTRODUCTION

India is a diverse society consisting multiple social identities such as caste, tribe,
gender, etc., and social classes – farmers and workers. They have relationship
with politics. Politics is a process through which multiple identities and social
groups seek to resolve their conflicts and have their issues addressed. Overall,
politics is about being able to participate in making decisions about these issues
through their representatives or by participating in political activities. Politics
occurs within the institutions and outside them — in public spaces or even within
private spaces. The identities represent society, and they interact with politics.
Thus, there is relationship between society and politics. This relationship is
reciprocal: the society impacts politics and vice-versa.The 3 units in this block
are about such relationship. Unit 10 is about caste, class and tribe. Unit 11
discusses social and political issues in relation to gender. Unit 12 deals with the
issues of farmers and workers in India, and their ionship with politics.

UNIT 10 CASTE, CLASS AND TRIBE^

Structure
10.0 Objectives
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Caste
10.3 Class
10.4 Tribe
10.4.1 Meaning
10.4.2 Characteristics
10.4.3 Tribes and Political Movements
10.5 Let Us Sum Up
10.6 References
10.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

10.0 OBJECTIVES

This unit is about three important aspects of Indian society. After reading this
unit, you will able to:
Explain the meanings and differences between caste, class and tribe;
Understand the changes which have taken place in their features; and
Analyse their impact on politics and vice-versa

10.1 INTRODUCTION

This unit is about identities. Identities denote relations among social groups.
Some identities are hereditary. The nature of such identities may undergo changes,
but these identities remain. Caste is such an identity. Some identities are not
hereditary. They depend upon the economic conditions. Such identities are classes.
Some identities are defined by certain characteristics which members of such
group have. Such identities are known as tribes. Caste, class, tribe are among
several other identities such as religion, language or region. As you will read in
this unit, caste, class and tribe are crucial identities that impact social, economic
and political aspects in India.

10.2 CASTE

Caste denotes position of a social group in a hierarchy of relations. This position
is based on the birth of a person. Apart from the caste being hereditary, it is also
endogamous. It means that a person can marry within his or her caste. These are
the notional features of caste. Traditionally, every caste was assigned specific
occupation in society. The caste-based occupations also indicated the social
hierarchy in the society.Different castes were grouped into four vamas: Brahmins,
Khatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The erstwhile untouchable castes which are
placed in the Scheduled Caste (SC) category in the government gazette are also known as Dalits. Over the years especially after Independence, these ideal features
of castes have undergone significant changes. However, its two features — its
hereditary nature and endogamy remain largely enduring. According the Louis
Dumont, the author of Homo Hierarchicus, different castes in India are placed in
a graded hierarchy. He argues that in power relationships among castes, Brahmins
enjoy more decisive role than the Kshatriya. Dumont’s notion of caste has been
challenged by Nicholas Dirks and others. The Dumont’s notion was criticized as
it failed to explain the social change, dynamism and individualistic strivings
even within the traditional Indian society. Gerald Berreman pointed out that
principle of Brahmanical hierarchy was not uniformly followed by all Hindus.
He also criticised the Dumontian notion that power and economic factors are
distinct and epiphenomenal to caste. It has been pointed out by others that caste
hierarchy is not a fixed hierarchy; rather it is context-specific and fluid and
contains seeds of contestation among various castes. Nicholas Dirks cites
ethnographic and textual evidence to demonstrate that Brahmans and their texts
were not so central to the social fabric of Indian life. According to this view,
power relations and command over men and resources were more important.
Brahmans were merely ritual specialists, often subordinate to powerful ruling
families. According to this view the caste-based scriptural or Brahmanical model
of traditional India was an invention of the British ntalists and ethnographers.
However, caste played a very critical role in the Indian social-reformers’ and
nationalists’ perception of caste. It was certainly not a mere product of British
imagination. Disagreeing with Louise Dumont, sociologist Dipankar Gupta argues
that though different castes are placed in a hierarchical order, they have emerged
as discrete caste or distinct caste identities.

The policies of the state — social welfare schemes for he welfare of marginalised
groups, implementation of Constitutional provisions prohibiting caste-based
untouchability, reservation for the SCs in government jobs, political institutions,
land reforms, etc. diluted the rigidity of caste relations. Specifically, the notion
of purity and pollution do not impact the role of caste outside family as rigidly as
it did earlier, in the public sphere. This phenomenon is called as secularisation of
caste by political scientists such as Rajni Kothari and D.L. Sheth. Caste has
played an important role in Indian democracy. owing the introduction of
universal adult franchise with the commencement of Indian Constitution, as every
adult citizen of India got an opportunity to participate in electoral democracy,
caste became an important tool for political mobilisation. Castes formed caste
associations. According to Lyod Rudolph and Sussan Rudolph caste associations
have played crucial role in mobilising castes for getting their democratic rights.
In the book edited by Christophe Jaffrelot and Sanjay Kumar, Rise of the
Plebians*,Seve al scholars have argued that participation of Dalits and OBCs
(Other Backward Classes) in different states has increased, especially since the
last decades of the twentieth century. This is reflection of change in nature of
caste in the post-Independence period. Apart from caste associations, several
parties which address the issues of specific castes or caste groups have emerged
in India. These parties aim to empower specific castes. In Uttar Pradesh, the BSP
(Bahujan Samaj Party) attempted to empower majority sections (Bahujan Samaj),
mostly Dalits and Backward Classes. Similarly, in the 1970-80s, political parties
led by Charan Singh, the BKD (Bharatiya Kranti Dal), BLD (Bharatiya Lok
Dal) or LD (Lok Dal) mobilised the backward classes farming communities in
north India. In Tamil Nadu, the DMK, AIADMK mobilised the backward classes
or dravidas. Support bases of the Congress, especially till the 1980s, and that of the BJP from the 2014 consist of multiple castes. The policies of the governments
led by these parties devised policies to mobilise their support. This helped them
to get support of various castes.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of the
unit.
1) What are the features of caste and what changes have taken place in them?

2) Discuss the role between caste in politics?

10.3 CLASS

Class is different from the caste. Unlike caste, class is not hereditary. It is also
not restricted to any religion. Class denotes economic position of a group or a
person belonging to such group. Class is generally associated with the relationship
of a person to economic aspect. It shows the relationship of a group with the
economic resources, control of the resources and their distribution among groups
or individuals. Although class is an economic category, it is not devoid of its
relationship with non-economic aspects such as caste, tribe or religion. In Marxian
terms, there are basically two types of classes: the haves and the have-nots. The
haves own resource or means of production, and the have- nots do not own
resources but have labour power. In a capitalist society, those who own means of
production are called bourgeoisie. They do not work, and work in their enterprise
is done by workers or the proletariats. The bourgeoise make profit from the labour
of the workers. Thus, in a capitalist society, there are basically two classes: the
bourgeois or capitalists and the proletariat or the working classes. Harish
Damodaran in India’s New Capitalists explains that caste background of the
capitalists became since the last few decades of the twentieth became wider than
it was till a few years after the Independence. Since, in India, the industries form
a smaller proportion of economy in comparison to agriculture, the industrialist
and working classes form smaller part of classes. Lylod Rudolph and Sussan
Rudolph In Pursuit ofLakshmi underline that working classes form tiny section
of Indian classes. Classes can be observed in agrarian sector also. But composition
and formation of classes in Indian agriculture have varied in different regions. In the post-Independence period, the agrarian classes can be described as follows:
landlords and tenants; kulaks/rich peasants/middle peasants and agricultural
labourers; marginal and small farmers, and footloose labour. Landlords and tenants
generally had existed before the implementation land reforms in different states
in India. However, they have not completely disappeared in every state. In several
parts of the country, new classes emerged abolition of zamindari following
implementation of land reforms. These classes came to be known as rich farmers,
kulaks or self-cultivating middle farmers. In the areas which have witnessed
green revolution, these classes got involved in cash crops. These areas also seen
the emergence of agricultural labouers, who work on the land of the landowning
classes. Besides, there are classes who own small landholdings. These
landholdings are not enough to meet their family needs. Apart from working in
their land, they work in others’ land or somewhere else. These are known as
marginal or small farmers. Apart from these classes, there are some social groups
who are not engaged in some fixed occupation. They do whatever work is available
to them. They do not own land or do not have any durable means of livelihood.
In his book Footloose Labour, Jan Breman terms these classes as footloose
labour.Classes have close relationship with caste. Although all classes are found
in all castes, generally the low castes — Daits and lower section have larger share
of poorer classes than the high castes. The rich farmers or middle farmers mostly
belong to high castes and middle classes such as Jats, Yadavs, Marathas, Reddis,
Kammas, Vokaliggas and Lingayats. The agricultural labourers, small and
marginal farmers, footloose labour mostly belong to Dalits and lower backward
classes. Besides, industry and agriculture, there are classes in service sectors
which consist of multiple middle classes. Middle classes generally denote those
classes who are engaged in salaried occupations in public or private sectors.
They also include professionals or self-employed persons such as doctors, lawyers
or journalists. Middle classes are not homogeneous groups. Depending on their
economic conditions and positions in public or private jobs, middle classes can
be grouped as lower, middle or upper middle classes.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2

Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of the
unit.

1) What is the difference between caste and class?

2) What is the composition of India’s New Capitalists?

3) What is footloose labour?

10.4 TRIBE

10.4.1 Meaning

Tribes refers to a group of people who share some characteristics which are
different from those of castes. As you have read section 10.2, caste is basically
associated with Hindu communities (though there are castes among other religion
such as Muslims or Sikhs) social status and caste occupations have been
traditionally defined by birth into caste and by endogamy. The principal defining
characteristic of a tribe is not birth into a specific religion; tribes belong to different
religions — animists, Christians, Buddhists or Muslims. Some scholars regard
tribals as ‘indigenous’. In Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and a section of tribals in
Assam are also known as adivasis. Tribals in India have been subjected to
prolonged exploitation and deprivation. Tribe as a concept was introduced by
the British during the nineteenth century in India. It was used to differentiate the
communities which did not fit into the definition of castes. The concept of tribe
was officially defined in the Government of India Act, 1935. In India, tribals
predominantly inhabit the states of northeast India(with largest numbers of tribes
in India), Jharkhand (earlier — Chhotanagpur), Andaman Nicobar and some other
regions in the country such as Odisha, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telengana,
Nilgiris, central India, Gujarat, Rajasthan. According to Article 341 of the
Constitution, the President of India may specify tribes or tribal communities,
groups within certain tribes in a state for the purpose of the Constitution. In view
of this notification, the Parliament may include or exclude tribes from the list
Scheduled Tribes in a State.
The constitution of India has several provisions for the welfare of the Scheduled
Tribes in India. Article 342 provides for special administrative measures for the
welfare of the ‘Scheduled Tribes’. The state shall provide special provisions for
the welfare of such tribes such as reservation in public offices and in the Parliament
and Vidhan Sabhas(Articles 16, 46, 335 (consideration of members of these groups
in making appointment to services, etc.), 330 and 332). The constitution also
ensures protection of the ‘tribal’ languages, dialects and culture (article 29).The
VI Schedule provides for establishment of Autonomous District Councils in the
hills inhabited by the tribes in northeast India. The V Schedule Area provides for
the establishment of Tribal Advisory Councils in ‘tribal’ dominated areas of
mainland India. Tribal Advisory Councils consist of members of which three
quarters are to be representatives of the Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative
Assembly of the respective state. The function of the council is to advise the
state government on matters pertaining to welfare and interests of the ‘tribes’ in
the state. Autonomous District Councils on the other hand provide ‘tribal’
communities space for a certain legal and administrative autonomy, a form of self-governance. Thus, a clear and strong legal framework exists, anchored in
the constitution of India, within which the national state’s agenda for the social,
economic and political ‘upliftment’ (as it is locally referred to) of‘tribal’ people
has to be understood. The constitution of India contains many special assertions
for the ‘tribes.’

10.4.2 Characteristics
Tribes are generally identified by certain features. It is important to note that as
tribal societies are undergoing transformation, the characteristics of tribes are
getting affected by the transformation. However, we can identify certain features
which are associated with tribes. These are given below:
i) Traditionally tribes have been inhabiting hills and forests, which are generally
located in areas which lack basic facilities — roads, schools, health facilities;
ii) The agriculture in such areas mostly involve family labour. In the tribaldominated areas, Tom or shifting cultivation is practiced, and people are
engaged in livestock, fishing, hunting, forestry, etc. — construction sector,
mining and quarrying
iii) Usage of relatively traditional means of cultivation.
iV) The tribals do not have access to developed market to sell their products.
V) In comparison to women in the non-tribal societies women generally enjoy
more equality.
vi) Tribal chiefs or community leaders play decisive roles in the adjudication
of affairs within the tribes.

During the post-Independence period, the tribal communities have witnessed
changes. However, these changes have not impacted tribes all regions equally;
there exist inequalities in their economic and educational standards within the
same tribes and same regions. These changes have mainly occurred due to policies
of the state and central governments made according to the special provisions of
the Constitution. The Sixth Schedule and Fifth dules of the Constitutions
protect the customs and economic interests, and political rights of tribes in the
hills and plain areas. Policies for reservation in public employment, the elected
bodies and welfare schemes have contributed to change in tribal society to a
considerable extent. As a result of these changes new classes have emerged among
different tribes in India. These classes are middle classes such as teachers,
engineers, doctors, businessmen, politicians. Some of them are contributing to
the welfare of tribal societies. Besides, the rise of new classes, intrusion of market
has disrupted the tribal economy, leading to ecological degradation and depletion
and extraction of natural resources. The tribal-inhabited areas have been subjected
to exploitation and suffered deprivation.

10.4.3 Tribes and Political Movements
Tribes in different regions of India have been engaged in political movements
against their exploitation and for their political autonomy from time to time.
During the nineteenth century, the tribes were involved in a series of revolts
against the colonial rule and its interference in the lives, culture and rights of
tribal communities. Consequently, an administrative system for ‘tribal’ areas was created which was different from the general Indian administration. The distinct
legislative and executive measures were adopted which primarily aimed at
protecting and safeguarding the interests and welfare of the ‘tribes.’ From 1874
onwards, ‘tribes’ or ‘tribal areas’, i.e, the areas that had a majority of ‘tribal’
population, were governed by the Scheduled District. As per this Act, the
Government was required to specify what laws were to be enforced in the
ScheduledAreas or Districts; these laws were from different from the ones applied
elsewhere in India. These Provisions were continued in post-independent India
despite their colonial roots and origins.
In post-Independence period also, the tribals have been involved in movements
for ending backwardness of their regions and their political marginalisation.
Through the movements, they seek political and regional autonomy by rearranging
existing relations between vertical units of governance —the local self- governance
institutions, state and the centre. The rearrangement of these relations range from
district, regional level autonomy within a state, to creation of new state out of an
existing state or even to getting a sovereign state. Some tribal groups have been
involved in insurgency, which means they get popular support in their movement,
which often become violent. Among the examples of different types of autonomy
movements in northeast India are the movements of Nagas in the Naga inhabited
areas, of Mizos in Mizoram and of Bodo tribes in Assam.

Check Your Progress Exercise 3
Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answer given at the end of the
unit.
1) What is a tribe? How is different from caste?

2) What the characteristics of a tribal society?

3) What are special constitutional provisions for the welfare of tribes?

10.5 LET US SUM UP

In this unit you have read about three identity groups — caste, class and tribe.
Caste is a hereditary and endogamous category. Although nature of caste has
undergone changes, it remains an enduring identity. Caste-based hierarchies exist.
But different castes have emerged as discrete units. Castes have formed caste
associations. They have contributed to increasing role of castes in Indian
democracy. In the past few years, lower castes’ participation in democratic process
has increased. Class denotes relationship of a group or person with the resources
and their distribution. Unlike caste, class is not a permanent category. Class of a
person may change with the change in his or her relations with the resources and
their distribution. There are rich farmers, kulaks, middle farmers and agricultural
labourers, small or marginal farmers and footloose labour in agriculture sector;
capitalists and working classes in industrial sector; and middle classes in the
salaried or professional groups. Tribes are identified on the basis of some
characteristics: their closeness to natural resources such as forests; relatively
more equality for in comparison to women in non-tribal societies; decisive role
of the tribal chiefs in affairs of the community; and relatively traditional tools in
agriculture. However, these characteristics are undergoing considerable changes.

10.6 REFERENCES

Breman, Can (1966). Footloose Labour, Working in India’s Informal Economy.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Damodaran, Harish(2008). India’s New Capitalists: Caste, Business, andIndustry
in a Modern Nation. Rishikesh: Permanent
Gupta, Dipankar (2000). Interrogating Caste: Understanding Hierarchy and
Difference in Indian Society. Penguin.
Jaffrelot, Christophe and Kumar, Sanjay (eds.), Rise of the Plebians?: Changing
Face of the Indian Legislative Assemblies. New Delhi: Routledge.
Kothari, Rajni (1970). Caste in India. Hyderabad: ient Blackswan.
Shah, Ghanshyam (2001) (ed.), Social Movements and the State. New Delhi:
Sage Publications.
(2014). Social Movements in India: A Review ofLiterature, Second
Edition, New Delhi: Sage
Rudolph, Lyod I. and Rudolph, Sussan, H. (1967). Modernity of Tradition.
Political Development in India. Orient Longman.
Singh, K.S. (ed.) (1982,1983). Tribal Movements in India. Vols. I&II, New Delhi:
Manohar.

10.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISE

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) Caste is a social group in which position of a person is determined by birth.
It is dedicatory system. A caste follows endogamy. Traditionally, castes can be identified with specific occupations. In this post-Independence period,
various state policies such as land reforms, social welfare and reservations
of the SCs and OBCs in public jobs and political institutions have diluted to
the rigidity of caste relations.

2) Introduction of universal adult franchise following the commencement of
Constitution in 1950, provided all castes equal opportunities to participate
in politics. They formed caste associations which helped in empowerment
of castes, especially the Dalits and the OBCs. Particularly, since the 1990s
of the twentieth century, the participation of the Dalits and OBCs in
democratic politics has increased.

Check your Progress Exercise 2
1) Caste is a hereditary and endogenous category. Class denotes the relationship
of a group or persons with resources and their distribution.
2) Composition of new capitalists is different from the earlier capitalists. Unlike
the latter, the composition of the new capitalists in wider.
3) Footloose labour consists of social groups who do not have any fixed means
of livelihood. They do whatever work is available to them. They do not own
land or any other means of livelihood.

Check your Progress Exercise 3

1) Tribe is a group of people who are conscious that they share all or some of
several common markers — culture, language, race, religion, history,
The tribes generally have some features such as distant location of their
habitat from the areas which are supposed to be mainstream, relative equality
of women in comparison to non-tribes, and prominence of the role of chief
of tribes. Tribes are different from caste. Caste is mainly a feature of Hindu
society. The identity of caste is not religion specific. Tribes belong to different
religions — Muslims, Buddhists, Christians or animists.

2) Characteristics of tribes are undergoing change. However, their general
features are as follows. Tribes have traditionally been inhabiting hills and
forests.The agriculture in such areas mostly involve family labour and they
use relatively traditional means of cultivation. They are engaged in livestock,
fishing, hunting, forestry, etc. — construction sector, mining and quarrying.
They practice Tom or shifting cultivation. They do not have easy access
market

3) Articles 16, 46, 335 (consideration of members of these groups in making
appointment to services) 330 and 332. The constitution also ensures
protection of the ‘tribal’ languages, dialects and culture (article 29). The V
and VI Schedules of the constitution provide for protection of tribal culture
and autonomy.

UNIT 11 GENDER^

Structure
11.0 Objectives
11.1 Introduction
11. 2 Gender and Issues
11.3 Gender and Development
11.4 Gender and Movements
11.4.1 Historical Background
11.4.2 Post-Independence Period
11.5 LGBTQ or Transgender Persons
11.6 Let Us Sum Up
11.7 References
11.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

11.0 OBJECTIVES

This units introduces you the issue of gender in Indian society. After going through
it you will be able to:
Differentiate between sex and gender;
Explain the position of men, women and transgenders in Indian society;
Identify the issues relating to gender question; and
Analyse the nature of gender-based movements in India

11.1 INTRODUCTION

People in a society can be identified on the basis of language, religion, caste,
sex, gender, tribe, etc. As this unit is about gender, is essential to know what
gender is and how it is different from a related concept, sex. Generally, many
people consider that sex and gender are the same. This is not true. There is a
difference between the sex and the gender. Sex denotes biological identity of a
person; gender signifies the role of social, economic, political and other factors
in determining the position of sex in society. It means the levels of social status,
economic conditions and power positions of men, women or transgenders are
determined by the social, economic and political conditions in which they are
placed. As men, women and transgenders grow in different circumstances, they
do not enjoy similar status in society. There exists social hierarchy, economic
and political inequalities in their positions. In our society, men are placed in
higher position in relation to women, men and transgenders. This is reflected in
relation to their position to inherit property, choice of carrier opportunities, in
matters of marriage or clothing or social behaviour. Men enjoy more freedom
than the women or transgenders. Their unequal positions in society show their
different positions in relation to gender. The society in which men enjoy superior power than the women are known as patriarchal societies, and in the societies
where women theoretically enjoy power in certain aspects of society are
matriarchal societies. These are also reflected in the value system in a society.
Patriarchal values do not treat women with equality. Kate Millet in her book
Sexual Politics(1970) explains how power or patriarchy shapes gender relations.
Kate Millet was influenced by feminist philosopher, Simonede Beauvoir’s book,
The Second Sex(1949). In India, with exception of three tribes in Meghalaya —
Khasis, Garos and Jaintias; Nairs in Kerala and some tribes in Andaman and
Nicobar Islands, patriarchy exists. Among these tribes matrilineal system exists.
However, as Tiplut Nongbri, a sociologist, underlines with reference to the Khasis,
matrilineal system does not treat women equally in some respects.

11.2 GENDER AND ISSUES

Since the 1980s, the scope of women’s movements at the local levels — villages
and towns and at higher levels and range of issues raised by them have widened.
However, these movements have not occurred with similar effectiveness
everywhere. On the basis of what you have read above, we can say that genderrelated issues are not the problems only of women, men or transgender. They
concern all. Their solution also lies in collaborative efforts of all. However,
the genders’ position is determined by unequal location of men, women and
transgender in social, political and economic relations, it is women who are
apparently placed in the most vulnerable position. Several problems continue topose
a challenge to their emancipation or empowerment. Many practices abettinggenderbased discrimination have been legally banned, and do not get approvalfrom
every section of the society. Despite this, however, they continue to exist.
They exist in families, public places and in workplaces. Some examples of gender based discrimination are as follows: rape, domestic violence, discrimination of
daughters, dowry, bride burning, sex determination tests; in the public places,
cases ofharassment; in society, child marriage, discrimination by some traditional
caste panchayats such as khaps, and in the work. Besides, women are
discriminated in getting wages for the work which is equal to the men’s work.

11.3 GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT

Gender-based inequality is largely rooted in social and economic disparities,
lack of representation of women and transgender in decision making institutions.
It can be argued that if women become economically independent, get educated,
and get political representation, their equality can be achieved. Although economic
independence help in reduction of gender-based discrimination, it is not a
sufficient condition. Such conditions can be supplemented by change in the
patriarchal values. It means that men, women and transgenders are entitled for
equal treatment as human beings. Gender-based discrimination is, thus, embedded
in the level of human development. Human development means development of
human beings in terms of economic independence or having viable means of
livelihood, getting proper education and keeping good health and getting respect
as a human being. Even as job, education and health are important factors to
remove gender-based inequality. They are inadequate without being accompanied
by provisions for self-respect and dignity. That is possible by change in patriarchal
values that support gender-based discrimination. Amartya Sen in Development
as Freedom (2000) argues that development in terms of developing capabilities in human being — health and education, result in providing freedom to human
beings.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the answers give at the end of the unit.
1) What is difference between sex and gender?
2) What are the main issues of gender discrimination?

3) What is the relationship between gender and development?

11.4 GENDER AND MOVEMENTS

11.4.1 Historical Background

The trajectory of women’s movement in India can be traced to pre-Independence
period. These movements addressed almost all kinds of issues concerning women.
Some of these remain focus of contemporary women’s movement in India. Some
social reformers played leading role in combatting some practices which
undermined women’s rights and dignity. Contemporary movements in India to
end gender-based discrimination can be traced to the pre-Independence period.
In the early decades of the nineteenth century, Ram Mohan Roy and Bidyalankar
fought against the practice of Sati. In 1817, Pandit Mrityunjay Bidyalankar
declared that sati had no “Shastric” sanction. Similarly, in the 1850s Pandit
Ishwarchandra Bidyasagar argued that the Shastras were not opposed to the remarriage of a widow.One year later Governor William Bentinck prohibited Sati
in his province, viz. Bengal. It took 11 years for this prohibition to get extended to other parts of India as the Sati Prohibition Act of 1929. Against the prohibition
of widow remarriage, a Widow Remarriage Association was established inin
Madras in 1871. In 1878, Virasalingam started the Rajamundri Social Reform
Association, focusing mainly on widow re-marriage. Jyotirao Phule founded Satya
Sodhak Samaj to end social evils associated with castes, which negatively affected
women also. Swami Dayanand started Arya Samaj movement to initiate reforms
within Hindus. He interpreted to Shastra to argue that men and women were
equals. He opposed polygamy and child marriage. He supported compulsory
education for boys and girls both and suggested that equal stress on tradition and
modernity through the compulsory learning of Sanskrit and English. He raised
the age of marriage for girls and boys to 16 and 25, respectively.Due to the
influence of the social reformers the British government made laws which banned
custom of sati and child marriage, permitted women to remarry, etc. Women
leaders supported by the Congress demanded equal voting right and representation
for women in legislative bodies. All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) was set
up in the 1920s to spread education among women.

11.4.2 The Post-Independence Period

Gender-based discrimination and inequality became a focus of studies in social
sciences during the 1975-85, which was known as the International Women’s
decade. Gender studies became priority agenda of research of the Indian Council
of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR) and the University Grant Commission
(UGC). In several universities centres for women’s studies were established.
Some scholars argue that the women’s movement in India is influenced by
women’s movement in west. But some scholars disagree with this view and argue
(Seemanthini Niranjana) that feminist movement is rooted in culture and national
history of India (Shah 2004).

Patriarchal values impact the attitude of the state institutions and society towards
gender-based inequality and discrimination. A large number of persons in society
are not averse to the gender-based discrimination. They support practices and
customs which endorse gender-based discrimination, which include Sati, ban of
entry of women in certain religious institutions, etc. These values are shared by
some persons who run public institutions. These institutions symbolise the state.
Thus, we can see a section of society and the state share common patriarchal
values. However, along with the presence of patriarchal and misogynist elements
in the society and the state, there are several organizations, activists, scholars,
intellectuals and leaders who attempt to end gender-based discrimination and
inequality. They strive to end male dominance and seek equality for all genders
— men, women and transgenders. Indeed, opposition to gender-based
discrimination and search for gender equality has assumed the form of women’s
and LGBTQ movement. These movements address gender-based issues, have
leaderships, organizations, and patterns of mobilization.

On the basis of ideological orientations, Gail Omvedt categorises women’s
movements into two types: women’s equality movements and women’s liberation
movements. The former have a specific goal, i.e., to abolish patriarchal inequality.
They do not directly target the existing family, social and economic structure.
The movement for women’s liberation directly challenges feudal hierarchy and
sexual division of labour. Women’s movements adopt different ways such as
demonstrations, dharnas, mass petitions, social media, etc. to underline their

demands and pressurise the government to accept them. These ways also help to
generate consciousness and sensitise people about gender discrimination and
gender inequality. The most recent case of gender-based infringement of human
right included the Nirbhaya case that took place in Delhi in December 2012.
One student nick-named as Nirbhaya died because she was gangraped and tortured
by six men while she was travelling in a bus. One of the culprits was the driver of
the bus. This is an example ofhow patriarchal and misogynist values can endanger
the life and honour of women. The incident provoked massive public protest in
Delhi and other cities. The court sentenced four culprits to be hanged till death:
one of the culprits committed suicide and one was sent to juvenile home. The
government also set up Justice Verma Committee to suggest as to how genderbased discrimination can be ended. The Justice Verma Committee made
recommendations for ending gender-based discrimination.

Gender discrimination and inequalities are intertwined with caste hierarchy and
economic inequality. While women and transgenders from all castes, religions,
tribes or economic strata face gender-based discrimination, those from low castes
and economically poor classes face multiple forms of discrimination. A Dalit or
tribal woman agricultural labourer is more vulnerable to gender, caste and classbased discrimination. However, organisations such s Self-employed Women’s
Association (SEWA), Working Women’s Forum and Annapuran Mahila Mandal
empower women by carrying out economic activities. Leadership in women’s
movements generally belong to educated upper castes and middle classes.

11.5 LGBTQ OR TRANSGENDER PERSONS

Gender-based movements are part of new social ovements. The new social
movements refer to those social movements or collective action which are different
from the movements which occurred prior to the 1980s in the following ways.
They are movements of those social groups or social classes which were not
visibly involved in collective mobilization; they address new kinds of issues and
they claim to be politically apolitical or they are not affiliated to any political
party. Among such groups are included transgender groups. They are also known
as LGBTQ (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgender and Queers). According to
theTransgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016, a transgender person
is”one who is—(a) neither wholly female or male; (b) a combination of female
and male; or (c) neither female nor male. Such a person’s gender does not match
the gender assigned at birth, and includes trans-men and trans-women, persons
with intersex variations and gender-queers”. Transgenders faced discrimination
due to the status of their gender. They face social stigma, discrimination in getting
employment in public or private institutions, and within their families. The
LGBTQ groups in India have been mobilising themselves to influence the law
makers to make laws to end their multiple discrimination and provide them dignity
and self-respect. Right to self-Identification is among their main demands.

In response to their movement, Truchi Siva placed a Private Members Bill in
Rajya Sabha on December 12, 2014. In Rajya Sabha, the Bill was passed
unanimously on 24 April, 2015. On 6 september 2018 the Supreme Court legalised
homesexuality in India. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights Bill),
2019 was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 5, 2019. The Bill prohibits
discrimination against transgender persons including denial of service or unfair
treatment in relation to education, employment, healthcare, access to, or enjoyment
of goods, facilities, opportunities available to the public, right to movement,
right to reside, rent, own or otherwise occupy property, opportunity to hold public
or private office, and access to a government or private establishment in whose
care or custody a transgender person is. It also sought to provide right to selfidentification to transgenders. It will be left to a transgender person whether she/
he wants to be identified a man, women or transgender. The Bill also suggested
that the government should introduce some welfare measures for the transgender
persons.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What is the significance of the International Women’s decade?
2) What is difference between women’s equality movements and women’s
liberation movements?
3) What has been the impact of gender-based movements?

11.6 LET US SUM UP

Gender is one of the markers of identity of an individual. It is different from sex.
Sex indicates biological status of a person. Gender shows how the status of a
man, woman or transgender is shaped by the social, economic and political
circumstances. There are three kinds of gender: men, women and transgender or
LGBTQ (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, Transgenders and Queers). In most of India,
patriarchy defines the relationship between men and women. Men enjoy more
rights than women and are generally considered superior to women. Women
face multiple types of discrimination and inequalities in society. However, among
some tribes of India such as Khasis, Garos and Jaintias, and among Nairs in
Kerala and some tribes in Andaman and Nicobar, matrilineal system defines the
position of men and women in society. In such system, women have more rights
than the men in a patriarchal system. Gender-based inequalities and discrimination
occur because of the domination of patriarchal values and lack of economic
independence to women or transgenders. Provisions that ensure participation of
women and transgenders in the decision-making bodies can help in eliminating
gender-based discrimination and inequalities. Since the 1980s, growth of
consciousness about such discrimination has resulted in women’s and
transgenders’ movements. Consequently, laws against practice of sati, dowry,
domestic violence, etc, and laws protecting the rights to transgender have been
passed.

11.7 REFERENCES
Basu, Amrita(1992). Two Faces ofProtest: Contrasting Modes ofWomen Activism
in India. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Kumar, Radha (1993). The History ofDoing. New elhi.
Liddle, Joanna and Joshi, Rama (eds.) (1986). Daughters of Independence:
Gender, Case and Class in India, New Delhi.
Sanghari, Kumkum and Vaid, Sudesh (eds.) (1989). Recasting Women: Essays
in Colonial History, Kali for women. New Delhi.
Sen, Amartya (1999). Development as Freedom. ord University Press.
Shah, Ghanshyam (2004). Social Movements in India: A Review ofLiterature.
New Delhi: Sage Publications.

11.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1

1) The difference between sex and gender is as follows. Sex is a biological
category on the basis which a person can be identified as man, woman or
transgender. The position of such person in power relations, social hierarchy
or economic opportunities denote the gender. ender is determined by the
social, economic, political, etc. of a person.
2) The principal examples of gender-based discrimination include rape,
domestic violence, discrimination in workplaces and in the families, dowry,
bride-burning, sex determination tests, humiliation, child marriage,
customary practices such as sati, etc.
3) Gender and development are interrelated. Since the gender is determined
by social, political and economic circumstances, development of capabilities
of a person can help in improving conditions which are related to the gender.
If a woman or transgender gets proper education, nutrition and health care
this can contribute to her empowerment.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) Significance of the International Women’s Decade (1975-85) lies in the fact
during this period gender-based discrimination became a focus of research.
The ICSSR and the UGC gave priority to gender-related research.
2) The goal of women’s equality movements is to end patriarchal inequalities.
The goal of women’s liberation movements is wider i.e. to directly challenge
feudal hierarchy and sexual division of labour.
3) The gender-based movements have generated consciousness about genderbased discrimination and need to end it. Due to their impact, several rules
seeking to end gender-based discrimination and inequalities have been passed
by the government. However, gender discrimination continues to exist in
different forms.

UNIT 12 WORKERS AND PEASANTS^

Structure
12.0 Objectives
12.1 Introduction
12.2 Workers Movements
12.2.1 Workers’ Movements in the colonial period
12.2.2 The Issues and the Types of Collective Actions
12.2.2 Workers’ Movements in the Post-colonial Period
12.3 Peasant Movements
12.3.1 Small and Poor Peasants’ Movements
12.3.2 Rich Peasants’ and Farmers’ Movements
12.4 Impact of Liberalisation on the Workers’ and Peasant Movements
12.5 Let Us Sum Up
12.6 References
12.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Excercises

12.0 OBJECTIVES

Workers and peasants in India have been involved in the collective actions in
order to fight for their demands. Their collective actions like those of other social
group can be included in the social and political movements. After going through
this unit, you will be able to
Explain the nature of the movements of the workers and peasants;
Understand their demands, problems and leaderships;
Define patterns of mobilisation in the collective actions;
Analyse the influence of these movements on the state; and
Analyse the impact of the liberalisation on the workers and peasants.

12.1 INTRODUCTION
Workers and the peasants together form the largest groups of the Indian society.
While the workers largely belong to the exploited section, the peasants consist
of both the poor and the rich sections. These groups have been involved in the
collective actions or the social and political movements to get their demand
fulfilled. The nature of the issues raised by them or their leadership depends on
the place they occupy in the economy or society. It also depends on the fact
whether the workers are engaged in the organised, unorganised, agrarian or the
industrial sectors or whether a peasant is a poor peasant or the rich peasant
operating in the mechanised capitalist economy or in the backward —feudal
economy. In this unit, we shall discuss important features of the workers and
peasants movements in India.

12.2 WORKERS’ MOVEMENTS

The workers movement in India can be divided in two phases — the preIndependence period and the post-Independence period.
12.2.1 Workers’ Movements in the Colonial Period

The modern working class made its appearance in India in the second half of the
19* century with the growth of modern industries, railways, post and telegraph
network, plantation and mining. But the labour movement started in an organised
way only after the Second World War. The organised wokers’ unions are known
as the trade unions. The All India Trade Union Congress (A I T U C) was formed
in 1920. Its objective was to coordinate activities of all organisations in all the
provinces of India to further the interests of the Indian labour in economic, social
and political matters. In the second half of the 1920s there was a consolidation of
left ideological forces in the country. In 1928 the left wing including the
communists succeeded in acquiring dominant position inside the A I T U C. The
moderates started a new organisation known as All India Trade Union Federation
(AITUF). The 1930s was not a favourable period for the growth of trade union
movement of India. The communists were implicated in the Meerut conspiracy
case and the Bombay Textiles strike of 1929 had failed. A lull marked the activities
on the trade union front. The serious economic depression of this period added
to the woes of the workers further. It led to large-scale retrenchment. The main
focus of the trade union movements during this period was maintaining wages
and preventing retrenchment.

The Second World War divided the trade union leaders. The communists argued
that with the Nazi attack on the Soviet Union in 1941 the character of the war
had changed from imperialist war to people’s war. The communists were following
the line of the Russian Communist Party and thought that in the changed
circumstances it was the duty of the workers to support British war efforts. But
the nationalist leaders wanted to strengthen the national movement to overthrow
the British rule from India. The ideological rift led to another split in the trade
union movement. The mounting cost of living made the workers to realise
need of an organised effort to secure relief. In spite of the government resorting
to Defence of India Rules, which prohibited strikes and lockouts, there was a
perceptible increase in number of both unions and organised workers

12.2.2 The Issues and the Types of Collective Actions

The main issues which caused the workers strikes included: wages, bonus,
personnel, leave and hours of work, violence and indiscipline, industrial and
labour policies, etc. The workers take recourse to various types of collective
actions for getting their problems redressed. These are — strikes, satyagrah,
hunger strikes, bandhs and hartals, gharaos, demonstrations, mass casual leaves,
work to rule, cutting of supply of electricity, etc. The most common form of
workers’ collective action is the strike. There are examples of the railway, jute,
plantation, mine and textiles workers strikes in the pre-Independence period.
The centres of the strikes were Nagpur, Ahamedabad, Bombay, Madras, Howrah
and Calcutta. In 1920 Gandhi intervened in the strike of the textile workers of
Ahmedabad and provided leadership to the workers.

12.2.3 Workers’ Movements in the Post-Colonial Period

i) The National Level

The high hopes of workers were shattered after independence. There was
hardly any improvement on the fronts of better wages and other service
conditions. Three central trade union organisations were borne. The Indian
National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) started by the Congress party was
born in 1947.The Praja Socialist Party started the Hind Mazdoor Sabha
(HMS) in 1948.The workers had to struggle hard even to retain what they
had achieved earlier. A series of strikes stirred the country. There were highest
number of strikes in 1947, i.e., 1811 strikes which involved 1840 thousand
workers. The number of strikes and man-days lost had surpassed all the
previous records. This declined in the 1950s, but number of strikes and lock
-outs increased again in the 1960s-1970s. Some radicalists had formed the
United Trade Union Congress (UTUC) in 1949. After 1964 when there was
a division in the Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India
(Marxist) was borne, this led to a split in Communist controlled AITUC as
well. And in 1970 Centre for Indian Trade Union (C ITU) was borne. They
are affiliated to the CPI and CPI (M)

According to the provisional figures released by the Chief Labour
Commissioner in 1994 Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh(BMS) which is an affiliate
of BJP acquired a total membership of 31.17 lakh workers securing it the
top position. The INTUC a Congress affiliated body with a total membership
of 27.06 lakh is on the second position. The third position is enjoyed by
CITU affiliated to CPSM with a total membership of 17.98 lakh. The fourth
position is enjoyed by HMS

ii) The Provincial Levels

Another remarkable development of the 1960s was the birth of trade unions
of the regional parties like the DMK and AIDMK in Madras. The Shiv Sena
was born in Bombay in 1967. It soon set up its labour wing called Bharatiya
Kamgar Sena. It was generally believed that the Shiv Sena had the backing
of the industrial houses in the Bombay -Pune belt to counter the strong
influence of the Communists and Socialists in labour unions. It succeeded
in achieving this objective and its trade union established its supremacy in
the Bombay region by the mid -1970s.The predominance of the Sena -led
union was successfully challenged by Datta Samant, an eminent INTUC
leader. When emergency was imposed in 1975 he refused to tone down his
militancy. He was arrested and sent to jail. Then he was a Congress MLA.
After coming out ofjail when the emergency was lifted in 1977 he became
even more popular. By the end of the 1970s he became the most powerful
trade union leader in the Bombay -Pune belt. In the yearl978 he left both
congress and the INTUC to set up an independent union named the
Maharastra Girni Kamgar Union (MGKU). He remained one of the most
influential trade union leader in Bombay till he was murdered.

(iii) The Trade Unions without Political Affiliations

The 1960s also witnessed the emergence of independent or “apolitical”
unions. They were independent in the sense that they were not affiliated to any political party or federation. These kinds of “apolitical” trade unions
emerged out of the dissatisfaction of the workers with the existing trade
unions which were affiliated to the political parties. The leadership of these
unions has largely come from the educated middle classes. Engineering
Mazdoor Sabha led by R J Mehta was one of the earliest unions of these
type-covering workers in engineering, chemicals, printing and allied
industries. Datta Samant started a number of unions like Association of
Engineering workers, Mumbai General Kamgar Union, Maharashtra Girni
Kamgar Union. Shankar Guha Neyogi and A.K.Roy also came into limelight
as leaders of independent unions. Neyogi concentrated on mobilising contract
workers in the iron —ore mines of Dalli Rajhara near Bhilai in Madhya
Pradesh. While AITUC and INTUC were concerned with the problems of
permanent and better paid workers of the Bhilai Steel Plant, Neyogi
concentrated on casual workers employed in small and medium-scale
industries in the region. Neyogi was murdered in 1990. Another example of
this type is A.K.Roy who organised coal mine workers in the Dhanbad –
Jhariya belt of Bihar. Roy’s support base was also among contract and casual
labour in the coalmines. Roy also received support from a large number of
local tribal mine workers because the trade unions operating in these areas
did not satisfy them. Another important example of this type was the Self-
Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) formed by Ela Bhat. She founded
SEWA because she felt that unions in the organised sectors were not sensitive
to the problems encountered by female workers.

One of the most important examples of the movement launched by the union
which was not affiliated to the political parties was the textile workers’ strike
of 1982 in Mumbai. Dissatisfied with the Rastriya Mill Mazdoor
(RMMS), affiliated to the INTUC the workers of the textile industry in
Mumbai, rallied behind the MGKU-led by Datta Samant.

The workers of the textile workers of Mumbai went on indefinite strike on
January 18, 1982. The demands of the workers included higher wages,
making the badli (temporary) workers permanent, allowances for leave and
travel and payment for house rent. The workers of other sectors than
textile also rallied behind Datta Samant. The Industrialists adopted
intransigent attitude towards the strike.

The strike had its repercussion on the rural areas to which the workers
belonged. The textile workers also were the poor peasants or small farmers
having links both in the cities as well the villages. Datta Samat was able to
link the rural issues like the wages of agricultural labourer with those of the
textile workers. The strike, however, did not succeed in getting the original
demands of the workers accepted. But it helped Datta Samant to emerge as
the most influential trade union leader in Bombay.

iv) Limitations of the Trade Union Movement in India
The Trade Union Movement in India is faced with many limitations. Only a
small fraction of the working class is organised. Even in the organised sector
a sizable chunk of workers do not participate in Trade Union Movement
Indian economy is largely agriculture based. Small peasants and agricultural
labour encounter the problems of seasonal unemployment and low income.
They are forced to go to cities in search ofemployment. Most of these workers

are illiterate and ignorant and under the grip of superstitions and they have
a migratory character. A large section of the workers do not show much
interest in trade union movement because city life for them is a temporary
condition. So they do not realise the importance of unity among workers.
Another major weakness of trade union is poor finance. This is a fact that
working class in India is a very small part of the population but the main
problem is the multiplicity of trade unions. The subscription rate of
membership by Indian workers is small in comparision to their numbers.
This makes the trade unions dependent on external finance and influence.
Another weakness of the trade union movement has been the dominance of
the leadership from outside. The main reason for this has been lack of
education among the workers. Mostly leadership is provided by professional
politicians. It is being increasingly felt that the working class movement
should be led by persons from the ranks of the workers who are aware of the
problems and difficulties encountered by the working class.
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check Your answers with the model answers given at the end of the
1) Identify the main issue of the workers’ movement in India.

2) What were the reasons for the rise of “apolitical” trade Unions?

3) Mention the limitations of the trade union movement in India.

12.3 PEASANT MOVEMENTS

Peasants are those agrarian classes which are related to agriculture as the tenants
or owners of land, and participate in the farming activities. They are a
differentiated group. In the backward and feudal agriculture they cultivate land
as the tenants of the landlords. In the more advanced agriculture, where the tenants
have become the landowners following the implementation of the land reforms,
they are the owners of the land. The peasants whose resources in the land are not
enough to meet their basic needs, and who also work as labourers for others
apart from working on their fields are poor and small peasants. The peasants
who do not work for wages, but have enough resources relating to agriculture
are rich and middle peasants or the farmers. They either mainly depend on the
family labour to work on the land or they may combine it with the hired labour
from outside the family. In this section you will be studying the movements of
the small and poor peasants as well those of the rich peasants or the farmers.

12.3.1 Small and Poor Peasant Movements

There were several peasant movements both in the pre-Independence and postIndependence periods. Some examples of the former are — Oudh movement (UP)
in 1920, Kheda and Bardoli (Guajarat) and Champaran (Bihar) movements and
Moplah rebellions. The main examples of the of the post-Independence period
are — Telangana ( Andhra pradesh), and Tibhaga and Naxalite (West Bengal)
movements.

The peasants during the pre-Independence period were living in the miserable
social and economic conditions. They were exploited by a group of classes, e.g
landlords and their agents, moneylenders and the officials of the colonial state.
The landlords increased the rents on the peasants continuously, took forced gifts
and extracted begar from them. The inability of the peasants to pay these
multiplied due to the frequent famines and draught which affected them adversely.
They were heavily indebted to the moneylenders in order to pay the rent and
meet the needs of their subsistence. When the peasants could not pay the rent,
services or the begar, they were evicted form their land. They were also physically
tortured. Commercialisation of crops, and introduction of new land rules further
worsened their conditions.

The peasants reacted to by revolting against the landlords, moneylenders and
agents of the colonial state. Leadership in the peasant movements was provided
either by the rural intelligentsia or urban intelligentsia. Baba Ram Chand , the
leader of the Oudh peasant movement belonged to the former.
The peasants had been mobilised by some organisation. In case there was no
organisation, some kind of informal networking of the peasants and their leaders
had worked as orgnisation. This was true especially for the localised revolts. The
informal networking or the organisational structure worked in mobilisation,
communication of the messages and in planning strategies and programmes.
From the beginning of the twentieth century different political parties mobilised
the peasants in the revolts. The Congress started mobilising the peasants from
the 1920s with the purpose to broaden its support base. This enabled peasant
movements which were localised and running parallel to the national movement
to merge with the latter. The Bardoli Sataygrah of 1928, no- rent campaign were examples of such merger. But the Congress did not encourage the conflict between
the landlords and the peasants to get sharpened. The Congress had been more
interested in forging an alliance between the landlords, peasants and other classes.

After the Civil Disobedience Movement radical nationalists and many leaders of
peasant movement started sharing the impression that the Congress was
sympathetic towards the capitalists and Zamindars.The need to evolve
independent class organisations and leadership to safeguard the interest of the
peasants was being felt by them. This was under these circumstances that the
first all India peasant organisation the All India Kisan Sabha was formed in 1936
in Lucknow under the presidentship of Swami Sahjanand Saraswati, the founder
of Bihar Pradesh Kisan Sabha. N.G.Ranga the pioneer of Kisan movement in
Andhra became its first General Secretary. The birth of an all India organization
with a programme of common demands and expressing the aspirations of the
peasants all over the country was an event of great historical significance. Very
soon the branches of the All India Kisan Sabha were established in many districts.

The formation of Congress Ministries in a majority of the provinces in early
1937 marked the beginning of a new phase in the growth of peasant movements.
The Congress had promised radical improvement in e conditions of the peasants
on the eve of elections. There was definite increase in civil liberties, which
provided better opportunities for the mobilization of peasantry. Different Congress
Ministries introduced agrarian legislations for debt relief, restoration of lands
lost during depression, for security of tenure etc. But these measures did not
affect the conditions of the peasants of lower strata. The dissatisfactionof peasants
found expression in a number of protest meetings, conferences and
demonstrations. They criticised number of ant measures taken by the
government like arrest of peasant leaders and banning peasant meetings. The
outbreak of the World War II brought the resignation of the Congress Ministries
and launching of severe repression against Kisan Sabha leaders. In the year 1939
the national convention of the All India Kisan Sabha was presided over by Acharya
Narendra Dev. In his Presidential address he emphasised the need of separation
of Kisan Sabha from Congress. According to him a separate Kisan Sabha was necessary in order to put pressure on the Congress.

The end of the war, followed by the negotiation for the transfer of power and the
anticipation of freedom marked a new stage in the history of peasant movements.
Approaching freedom had filled the peasant movements with new spirit to assert
their rights. The analysis of some of these movements gives us sufficient insight
into the nature, social basis, achievements and limitations of the peasant
movements in India.
The Tebhaga Movement of Bengal was one of such movements. The provincial
Kisan Sabha of Bengal launched this Movement in 1946. Gradually the influence
of the left in general and the communists in particular increased in the Kisan
Sabha.In 1947 the leadership of the All India Kisan Sabha went into the hands of
the communists. The communists led the provincial Kisan Sabha of Bengal also.
This Movement soon took the form of a clash between the bargardars (sharecroppers) and the jotedars, the employers. The share-croppers began to assert
that they would no longer pay a half share of their crop to their jotedars but only
one- third. They also insisted that before division the crop would be stored in
their khamars (godowns) and not in that of the jotedars. Poor peasants, middle
peasants and also some sons ofjotedars led the movement. The middle peasants

provided the bulk of the leaders and they supported the movement up to the end.
They hoped that it would culminate in total attack on landlordism. When the
government resorted to severe repression in 1947 the movement came to an end.
Another such movement was the Telangna Movement. It was launched in 1946
in the princely state of Hyderabad ruled by the Nizam. This movement developed
in the context of the post- war economic crisis. This movement started as a protest
against collection of excessive revenue using force by jagirdars. In the beginning
the leadership was in the hands of the rich peasants and the movement was directed
against the big absentee landlords allied to the Nizamsahi. But very soon the
initiative passed into the hands of poor peasants and agricultural labour that
started occupying lands of landlords, and wastelands and started distributing it
among them. By 1947 this movement organized a Guerilla Army mobilizing
poor peasantry and agricultural labour many of which were tribal and
untouchables. This army snatched large quantity of arms from the zamindars
and subdued the local government officials. They established their control over
an area of 15,000 square miles with a population of 40,000. The administrations
in these areas were run by peasant soviets. The army of independent India
succeeded in crushing the Telangna Movement in 1951
In 1967 there started a peasant protest at a place called Naxalbari in the Darjeeling
District of West Bengal. After two decades of independence and Congress rule
there was disenchantment among people on a large scale, which found expressionin
the defeat of the Congress election in eight states. But the communists had
done well in both Kerala and West Bengal. The per capita income was on decline
and unemployment was on the rise a group of young communists. Due to
theoretical disputes within CPI and CPIM’s policy of participation in 1
election. They joined the Naxalite movement and emphasised the need of armed
struggle with peasantry as the leading element. The peasant organisation of the
CPIM in Darjeeling district was in the hands of such communist leaders. The
land reform policy of the government had not succeeded in taking lands from
zamindars and big farmers and distributing among poor peasants and landless
labour in any significant way. There existed discontent among peasants. In such
situation the leaders of peasant organization gave a call for establishing
government of peasant committees, organizing armed struggle to end the
ownership of the jotedars on land and distribute it among poor peasants and
landless labour. They drew inspiration from the Telangna Movement. The
Naxalbari movement reached its zenith by the third week of May 1967. There
was violence on a large scale. Naxalbari got enormous publicity largely becauseit
was fighting a state government wherein C.P.I.M. was a major coalition partnerand
also because China believed that the Naxalites were following the correctline.
It lasted for fifty-two days only. In July 1967 police and battalions of paramilitary
forces sent by Ajoy Mukherjee then the Chief Minister of the state, combed the
whole area and the rebellion was suppressed. Naxalbari was a minor event in
terms of its durations, intensity of resistance, area controlled or number of
casualties suffered or inflicted on the other side. Naxalbari movement had its
reverberations in several parts of the country. After this the revolutionaries who
became active in U.P., Bihar, Punjab, Kashmir, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh came
to be known as Naxalites. It emerged as a more powerful force in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. The emergence of Naxalism led to the formation of C.P.I.

(Marxist Leninist) the third Communist party. This party believed that the goal
of socialism could be achieved through armed struggle, justified use of violence
for capturing lands of Zamindars and distributing them among poor peasants.
The Naxalite Movement became a reference point for those poor peasants and
landless labour that got nothing from the government except promises and whose
condition showed no signs of improvement and were suffering oppressions at
the hands of rural dominant sections. They found a ray of hope in this militant
philosophy. This philosophy continues to inspire that segment of rural population
who has lived at the receiving end. At many places they are fighting for security
of employment, minimum wages, rights over a share of produce and against
sexual abuse of their women. There are instances of violence when they exercise
their right to vote.

The second phase of land reforms known as the Land Ceiling Act started from
1961 onwards with the stated objective of distributing land among the landless.
After the Naxalbari Movement of 1967 and the Land Grab Movements launched
in different states of 1970 the need to impose rigorous land ceiling was realized.
As early as in 1969 the Home Minister had warned that if steps were not taken to
lessen agrarian tension both by the state and central government things would go
beyond control. Land Reforms was essential part e twenty Point Programme
of Mrs Indira Gandhi during Emergency period. But in spite of all this by 1977
only 4.04 million acres were declared surplus, out of this 2.10 million were taken
over by the government and merely 1.29 million acres were actually distributed
The much acclaimed Green Revolution did not make much of difference in their
condition. The percentage of households below poverty line in the rural areas
has gone up from 38.11% in 1960-61 to 48% in 1977-78. Agricultural labour
continues to be their main income and most of the dies suggest that there has
been a marked decline in both real wages and the days of work. Naxalite outfits
are active in Andhra pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh Jharkhand and Chatisgarh.
Many times they indulge in mindless militancy but they continue to inspire the
underdogs of rural society because mostly they take up the problems faced by
these sections. They take up the problems of the agricultural labourers, poor
peasants, contract labourers whether dalits, tribals. They struggle for wages, land,
and against oppression of different types. Their movementsents are weak and divided.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check Your answers with the model answers given at the end of the unit.

1) In which way were the peasants exploited during the colonial period?

2) What is the Telengana Movement?

3) Comment on the Naxalite movement?

12.3.2 Rich Peasants’ and Farmers’ Movements

The last quarter of the twentieth century has seen the movements of a very
important social group in the rural areas known as rich peasants, farmers, kulaksor
the capitalist farmers in several regions of India. They rallied behind the farmers’
organisations in their respective regions. These organisations are – two Bharatiya
Kisan Unions (the BKUs) of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, Shetkari Sangathan of
Maharastra, Khadyut Samaj of Gujarat, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha of
Kamartaka and Vivasayigal of Tamil Nadu. The most prominent leaders of these
unions were Bhupendra Singh Mann in Punjab, Mahendra Singh Tikait in
Sharad Joshi in Maharastra and Nandunjappa Swami in Karnatak. These farmersare
the most influential and resourceful sections of rural society in their respective
regions. They largely belong to the intermediate castes. They have benefited
most from the state policies especially the land reforms and the green revolution.
They cultivate land with the family labour supported by the hired-labour. They
control the maximum resources in the rural society — land, water resources,
animals, modern technology like tractors, etc.
The movements of rich farmers unlike the movements of poor peasants are not
directed against any rural exploiters. In fact, a large group of them belong to the
latter. These are directed against the state and unequal terms of trade.
Their main demands have been — remunerative prices, susidised inputs, writing
off loans, lowering of electricity bills, substantial reduction in water canal charges,
representation of the farmers in the Agricultural Price Commission. With the
exception of the Maharastra, these movement did not raise the problems of the
small producers. Rather, Tikait has demanded scrapping of land ceiling laws and
of the Minimum wages Act.

The most common mode of mobilisation in the farmers’ or the rich peasants’
movements include rallies, satyagrah, road blocaked, gaon bandi (banning the
entry of outsiders into the villages) and attack on the public property. Some
times these result in violence. Their “apolitical” nature, which means their not
being attached to the political parties has been the most effective method of
mobilisation, especially in the in the initial phase of the movements.
While the farmers’ movements in India shared several common characteristics,
e.g., they raised the market-oriented demands, their “apolitical” nature, their
direction against the state, patterns of mobilisation, the BKU movement of UP
was distinct in terms of leadership and involvement of the traditional institution.
Mahendra Singh Tikait, the chief of the Uttar Pradesh BKU was also the hereditary
head of the traditional caste organisation known as the Sarva Khap of the farming
Jats. His social position enabled him to become the leader of the BKU at a time
when the farmers of the UP did not have a leader of that stature in the wake of the
death of Charan Singh in 1987. Tikait was able to involve the traditional
leaderships or Khaps -chiefs of several farming castes under the banner of the
BKU. Besides, the BKU also took up the social issues like dowry in the initial
phase of its movement.
The Bharatiya Kissan Union of Mahendra Singh Tikait speaks a language that
invokes elements of Charan Singh’s discourse on agriculture. Charan Singh used
to argue that there was an urban bias in Indian planning and held it accountable
for diversion ofresources from agriculture. It, however, does not go to the extent
of treating industrial and urban India agains the rural India unlike the Shetkari
Sangathan of Sharad Joshi. The rich peasant organisations do not admit any
contradiction between the interests ofrich peasants and the poor agrarian classes.
They argue that unremunerative prices affect both the rich and the poor peasants.
While the Shetkari Sangthan maintains a façade of India and Bharat divide to
hide the class divide in agriculture, the BKU conceals it under the cover ofexisting
Bhaichara (brotherhood) and peasant- proprietorship in the western U.P.

The movement of rich peasant has become an important fact of the present day
Indian reality. No political party can afford to displease them. The government’s
decision to enhance electricity rates for farmers, raising fertilizer prices are met
with stiff resistance. Many times they resort to stoppage of the supply of
commodities like onion sugar or milk to get their demands conceded. One thing
has become obvious that there has been a tremendous increase in the power of
this class. They not only exploit the labour power and control majority of land
they also control levers of power like gram panchayat, zila parishad co-operatives
and educational institutions and banks to get maximum benefit from these
institution. They also to maintain its dominant position in the rural area.

The rich farmers are diversifying their sources of income. Some of their income
comes from outside the agrarian sector like employment in cities, rent trade,
money lending or transport. They also invest in small industries like sugar and
rice mills as well as in food processing.

12.4 IMPACT OF LIBERALISATION ON THE
WORKERS’ AND PEASANT MOVEMENTS

The economic reforms in the country that came to be known as liberalisation can
be said to be mainly the 1990 development. The era of reforms started with the
government of P.V. Narsimha Rao. Since then successive governments have
continued with liberalisation agenda. The government of Atal Behari Vajpayee
also committed to this agenda. Among the main planks of this New Economic
policy were closure of sick and loss making public enterprises, disinvestments
from and privatisation of the public sector enterprises. There had been a marked
decline in the growth rate of total employment in the organised sector in the
1990’s as compared to 1980’s. In fact this period is known as a period ofjobless
growth. Labour laws relating to job security were changed. Many workers had
been pushed out of jobs under the voluntary retirement scheme. A practice of
using contract and casual labour in place of regular employees became
widespread. There were strikes by Trade Unions to protect the interests of workers
in State Electricity Boards, ITDC hotels, banks, etc. A National Renewal Fund
was created as early as in 1992 to provide a social safety net to the labour force
rendered jobless.

In 1994 the government of India signed the Uruguway round of the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) at Maracas [Morocco] and became a
member of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This step of the government
could be seen as part of the New Economic policy. As per conditions of the
GATT, developing countries including India wee under obligation to introduce
subsidies -discipline. They were being asked to keep subsidies to the farmers up
to 10% of their value of output. But cutting down on subsidies was a difficult
proposition because no government wanted to displease the rich farmers. They
continued to get things like irrigation waters and electricity either free or at
throwaway prices. Another G.ATT related problem faced by the farmers was
introduction of patenting in agriculture. The farmer was not automatically
permitted to use farm-saved-seeds of protected varieties to sow the next crop.
He had either to pay compensation for the use of seeds saved by him or obtain
the approval of the breeder. As most of the Plant Breeders are the Multi National
Corporations (MNCs), their primary intention is maximisation of profit. This
leaves the farmers no option but to buy the seeds again. Farmers in Kamatka
attacked the farm of Cargill Seeds to register their anger. There were protests
against Terminator-Seeds of cotton in Maharashtra and Gujrat. The response of
the rich farmers‘ movements to new developments like the New Economic Policy,
India joining WTO has not been undifferentiated. While Sharad Joshi in the
western part of the country had supported the new developments. Mahendra
Singh Tikait in the north and Nanjundaswamy in the south were critical of it.

Check Your Progress Exercise 3
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check Your answers with the model answers given at the end of the
unit.
1) Identify the main farmers’ organisations along with their main leaders and
the regions of their operation.
2) What are the main demands of the rich peasant movements?

3) What has been the impact of the New Economic Policy on the workers?

12.5 LET US SUM UP

In this unit you have studied about the collective action or the social and political
movements of the workers and the peasants in India. These groups have been
agitating from the colonial period for the redressal of their grievances. They
formed their organisations and responded to the call of their leadership. The
problems of the workers included mainly wages, bonus, personnel, leave and
hours of work, violence and indiscipline, industrial d labour policies, etc. The
peasants are not a homogeneous category. The poor and small peasants are related
to their vulnerable social and economic conditions. The farmers which are also
known as the rich peasants, kulaks or the capitalist farmers are mobilised around
the issues related to the developed and commercial farming. The period from the
1980s onwards has seen the rise of workers and peasants’ organisations and the
movements which are not affiliated to any political party. The farmers and peasants
movements affect the political processes in India to a significant extent.

12.6 REFERENCES

Bardhan, Pranab (ed.) (1998). Political Economy ofDevelopment in India. New
Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Berch Berberough (ed) (1992). Class, State and Development in India. New
Delhi: Sage Publications.
Omvedt, Gail (1993). Reinventing Revolution: New Social Movements and the
Socialist Tradition in India. Armonk: M.E. Shapre.
Ghah, Ghanshyam (1990). Social Movements in India: A Review ofLiterature,
Delhi: Sage Publications.
Hasan, Zoya (ed.) (2000). Politics and State in India. New Delhi: Sage
Publications.
Singh, Jagpal Singh (1992). Capitalism and Dependence: Agrarian Politics in
Western Uttar Pradesh (1951-1991). Chapter V, New Delhi: Manohar.

12.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXCERCISES

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) The main issues in the workers’ movements included – wages, bonus,
personnel, leave and hours of work, violence and indiscipline, industrial
and labour policies, etc.
2) The “apolitical” trade union emerged because the workers were dissatisfied
with the existing trade unions which were affiliated to the political parties.

3) The trade unions have the following limitations: the organised woking class
is small section of the working population in India; poor finance; dominance
of the outside leadership; factionalism, etc.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) They were exploited by a group of classes, e.g., landlords and their agents
moneylenders and the officials of the colonial state. The landlords increased
the rents on the peasants continuously, took gifts forcibly and extracted begar
from them. They were heavily indebted to the moneylenders in order to pay
the rent and meet the needs of their subsistence. When the peasants could
not pay the rent, services or the begar, they were evicted form their land.
They were also physically
2) Telangna Movement was launched in 1946 in the princely state of Hyderabad
ruled by the Nizam. This movement started as a protest against collection of
excessive revenue using force by jagirdars. In the beginning the leadership
was in the hands of the rich peasants and the movement was directed against
the big absentee landlords allied to the Nizamshahi. But very soon the
initiative passed into the hands of poor peasants and agricultural labour that
started occupying lands of landlords, and wastelands and started distributing
it among them. By 1947 this movement organized a Guerilla Army
mobilizing poor peasantry and agricultural labour many of which were tribal
and untouchables. This army snatched large quantity of arms from the
zamindars and subdued the local government officials. They established
their control over an area of 15,000 square miles with a population of 40,000.
The administration in these areas was run by peasant soviets. The army of
independent India succeeded in crushing the Telangna Movement in 1951.
3) The Naxalite movement originated in the Nazxalbari area of North Bengal.
It was directed against the landlords and the state agencies. The movement
was based on the principles of violence. It had spread into other states like
Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar.

Check Your Progress Excercise 3

1) These are – two Bharatiya Kisan Unions (the BKUs) in Punjab and Uttar
Pradesh, led by Bhupender Singh Mann and Mahendra Singh Tikait
respectively; Shetkari Sangathan in Maharastra led by Sharad Joshi,
Karnataka Rjya Raitha Sangha in Karnartaka led Prof. Nanjundappa Swami;
Khadyut Samaj in Gujarat, and Vivsayigal Sangam in Tamil Nadu.
2) Their main demands have been — remunerative prices, susidised inputs,
writing off loans, lowering of electricity bills, substantial reduction in water
canal charges, representation of the farmers in the Agricultural Price
Commission. With the exception of the Maharastra, these movements did
not raise the problems of the small producers. Rather, Tikait has demanded
scrapping of land ceiling laws and of the Minimum wages Act.
3) The impact of the New Economic Policy on the workers is reflected in the
following way: deterioration in their material conditions, privatisation,
retrenchment and the Voluntary Retirement me, etc.

Block-5 Religion and Politics Block-5

BLOCK 5 INTRODUCTION
In block 4 you have read units which deal with identities such as caste, gender
and tribe, and social classes such as farmers and workers. These are non-religious
identities. This block is about the religious identities. It is about religion and
politics. The block has two units. Unit 13 is about secularism. It discusses the
nature of relationship between religion and the state, of religion with community,
individual, and with democratic values such as liberty and equality, and with
ethics. Unit 14 explains how communalism has been defined and how it is related
to individual rights and the state.

UNIT 13 SECULARISM^
Structure
13.0 Objectives
13.1 Introduction
13.2 What Is Secularism?
13.3 Secularism in Indian Constitution
13.4 “Anti-Secularism”
13.5 Secularism and Religious Groups
13.6 Let Us Sum Up
13.7 References
13.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercise
13.0 OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this unit are to acquaint you with some crucial issues about
secularism in India. After reading this unit, you will be able:
To explain the meaning of secularism and secularization;
To explain the issues related to secularism;
To streamline main arguments in debate on secularism in India;
And after comparing this unit with unit 14, to underline differences between
secularism and communalism.

13.1 INTRODUCTION
Secularism is one of the most crucial issues in the current political scenario in
world. Yuval Noah Harari, the author of 21 Lessons for the 21st Century includes
secularism among 21 most urgent issues of the 21 t century. In India too
secularism has also been at the core of academic, popular and political discourse.
Some questions are often raised about secularism: about its relationship with
religion, state and other institutions, faith, religious communities, place of
individual, democratic values such as freedom and equality about religion, and
ethical values.

13.2 WHAT IS SECULARISM?
The central issue in secularism is religion. Secularism in a society implies that
the religious supremacy of a community does not lead to discrimination and
persecution of religious minorities. Meaning of secularism depends on the extent
of relationship religion has with the attributes mentioned above, i.e, relationship
with religion, state and other institutions, faith, religious communities, place of
individual, democratic values such as freedom and equality about religion, and
ethical values. There are three meanings of secularism according to different
perspectives: one talks about relationship between the religion and the state;

two, is about the possibility or impossibility of applicability of secularism in
India; and the third is about equal respect to all religions or sarva dharma sambhav.
These perspectives have been reflected in the debate within the Constituent
Assembly, popular and academic discourse in India. As you will read in this
unit, the debate on secularism in India, in the Constituent Assembly, and academic
discourse has involved these three meanings to varying levels. The debate on
secularism in the Constituent Assembly, has revolved around all or some of these
issues.
According to Rajiv Bhargav success of secularism depends on certain factors.
These are democracy and independence of the state from pressure of classes and
ethnic groups in society which again depends on presence of state. Democracy
depends on pacification of politics, i.e. peaceful competition or competition
without violence. In fact, secularism is associated with values which are linked
with democracy and equal citizenship. Yuval Noah Harari underlines that in a
secular society, people belonging to different faiths —Hindus, Christians, Muslims
and atheists follow certain ethical codes. These ethical codes are enshrined in
the values or secular ideals such as truth, compassion, equality, freedom, courage
and responsibility. For secularists, truth is different from belief, and there is no
single source as custodian of truth. Compassion es a “deep appreciation of
suffering”, to reduce sufferings in the world in best possible way. Since sufferings
are universal, the commitment to truth and compassion result in commitment to
equality. The search for truth can be achieved with freedom to think, investigate
and experiment. Courage includes value to fight biases and oppressive regimes,
to admit ignorance and “venture into unknown”. Responsibility means to not
rely on higher power to address problems facing societies, no divine power needs
to be credited for it. The developments result from owledge of human beings
themselves and their compassion.
Secularism can also prevail in a secular state. What is secular state? In DE Smith’s
model in India as a Secular State, a secular state can be identified by its dealing
with three subjects — exclusion of state in relationship between individual and
the religion (religious liberty); relations between individual and state in which
religion is excluded (individual as citizen); and ate neutrality. In Smith’s
perspective, India had prospects of success of democracy: characteristics of
secularism are present in Hinduism. However, there have been challenges in
consolidation of secular state in India: caste and community loyalties which could
easily turn into communal rivalry and conflict. Gallenter finds Smith’s model of
Indian secularism unconvincing: countering Smith, he contends that Indian state
departs from principles of secularism by giving subsidies to religious schools
and bodies, promoting Hinduism and compromising its secular credentials. For
him, precondition for a separate state to succeed lies in presupposing a normative
conception of religion with capacity to judge and evaluate religion. In his opinion,
the compromise in India on secularism, could be visible in the Constituent
Assembly the debate on religious liberty (right to religious worship, religious
practice, whether the state should recognise only linguistic minorities or linguistic
minorities as well); on citizenship (universal civil code, religion-based political
reservation); and on state neutrality (whether the state should give instructions
in the state aided schools).
Akil Bilgrami contests the notion of secularism as merely state’s neutrality and
equidistance from different religions. Bilgrami rejects this notion and provides

alternative notion. He argues that secularism does not emerge in all historical
contexts. It emerges in some contexts. It emerges where there is a threat of
“majoriterianism”. It can also emerge in the context which are not fully modernist.
Secularism is different from secular and secularisation. Secularism is a political
doctrine. A person may remain secular simultaneously retaining his/her religious
identity.

13.3 SECULARSIM IN INDIAN CONSTITUTION

Indian constitution did not include the word secularism when it commenced on
January 26, 1951. Although secularism was not mentioned in the Constitution,
the fact that Independent India became a democracy, secularism was implied in
it as a cardinal principle, a fait accompli, not needing its mention. But it was
incorporated in the Preamble of the Constitution by 42nd Constitutional
Amendment in 1976. Later, the Supreme Court ruled in the Bhommai judgement
that secularism is a basic feature of the Constitution. Besides, provisions in Articles
25-30 protecting the rights of religious minorities in the Constitution emerged
from debate in the Constituent Assembly of India: these signify values of
secularism. The questions whether word secularism should be included in Indian
Constitution, what kind of secular state India needed to become (“a secular
in a religious country”), whether separation of state from religion was a testimony
for secularism, whether a secular state was contingent on a secular society or
whether state that respects all religions equally meant presence of secularism in
India, were discussed in the Constituent Assembly on October 17, 1949. The
opinions on these questions were divided in the Constituent Assembly. Finally,
the assembly decided to not include the word secular in the Preamble. However,
there was an agreement among all members to establish India as a secular
And most of them agreed that separation of religion and state was related to
democratisation of society.

Shefali Jha identifies three alternative arguments on secularism which were
debated in the Constituent Assembly. She terms the first argument as “no concern
theory of secularism”. The proponents of this argument argued that religion should
not be concern of the state. Religion is a private affair and there should
separation between religion as a private affair and the state (public affair). People
have liberty to practice religion as a private affair. The state should recognise an
individual as a citizen not as a person from a religion. The principal representativeof
this argument were K.T. Shah, Tajamul Husain and M. Masani. The secondline
of argument also suggested that religion and state should be separated. their
argument was just opposite to first alternative. While the first kind of
argument contended religion was a personal matter for the state to intervene, this
argument suggested that religion was a system of absolute truth. Association of
religion would not weaken the state but would demean religion. Whims of the
majorities which keep changing should not be allowed to have a say in a
democratic state. The third theory which Shefali Jha describes as “Equal Respect
Theory of Secularism” argues that since in India religion was the most important
part of people’s life, the state should respect all religions equally along with
maintaining a distance from religions. The most vocal advocate of this argument
was K.M. Munshi. He argued “we had to evolve a characteristically Indian
Secularism”. In his opinion, India can not have a state religion; nor can a rigid
line be drawn between the religion and the state. In this view, a people’s state can
not be founded on a kind of secularism that is contemptuous of religion. Since

most religions preach tolerance, if the state allows public sphere to religion it
would not lead to inter-sectarian strife. Jaya Prakash Narayan argued that it was
not religion but use of religion for social, economic and political purposes that
leads to communal violence.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What is secularism?
2) What were main points in debate on secularism in the Constituent Assembly?

13.4 “ANTI-SECULARISM”

The points in debate on secularism which were discussed in the Constituent
Assembly and in the 1950s were discussed in the ebate on the theme which
occurred later. One such debate represented a term which came to be alluded to
as “anti-secularism”. Like an argument given in the Constituent Assembly,
advocates of “anti-secularism” are not opposed to secularism per se. What they
are opposed to is the notion of secularism which suggests separation between
religion and the state. They are critical of both communal-fundamentalist
(Hindutva) and secularists. According to the advocates of”anti-secularism”, since
India is a religious society, religion and the state can not be separated. They
consider the separation of religion and the state a western notion, which is not
applicable to a religious society like India. Roots of real secularism can be traced
in Indian traditions, which have been tolerant. Secularism can be achieved by
equal respect for all religions {Sarva Dharma Sambhava). The main advocates
of anti-secularist perspective are Bhikhu T Parekh, T.N. Madan and Ashis Nandi.
Especially, Madan considers secularism as a “gift of Christianity”, and Nandi
has “an anti-secularist agenda” to critique secularism. According to Achin Vanaik,
they focus on six general themes regarding Indian society: modernity,
understanding of culture, civilisation, religion and Hinduism, past and present;
secularism and secularisation; particularism and universalism, individualism and
communitarianism; and neo-Gandhianism. While they share common point that
state should respect all religions equally and Indian tradition has been a tolerant
tradition, they have differences.
Rajiv Bhargava argues that the notion of secularism needs to be reconceptualised
or re-imagined. Instead of focusing on state-church relationship the following is
needed: (i) secularism should be focused as a response to deep religious diversity;
(ii) diversity must be understood as enmeshed in power relations; hidden potential
of religion-related domination must be understood; (iii) the two moves can help
us to view secularism as a response to institutionalised religion (inter-and intrareligious) domination: secularism is not against religion, it is opposed to
institutionalised religion-based domination; (iv) only by maintaining principle
distance a secular state can show critical respect to all religions and philosophical
world views. He explains Indian secularism in terms of the notion of principled
distance. He states “the idea of principled distance entails a flexible approach to
the issue of state’s inclusion or exclusion of religions, and to the issue of
engagement with or disengagement from religion, which at the level of law and
order depends on the context.” He classifies secularism into two kinds: political
and secular.
According to some scholars (Smith, Tambia), secularism in India is facing
There are external and internal factors responsible for this. External factors include
– breakdown of Congress, increasing centralisation of power of the state, secession
in Punjab and Kashmir and implementation of Mandal Commission Report.
Internal factors include — totalising world-view of which secularism is a part
(Madan and Nandi), and demand for equidistance which can not be met by any
state (Chatterjee). For Tambiah, crisis lies in ambiguity about Nandi and Madan
imply that secularism lacks legitimacy.

13.5 SECULARISM AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS

Secularism and secularisation are two inter-related concepts. But in the academic
and political discourse, it is the former which has received more attention. Several
articles published in Economic and Political Weekly (Vol. 58, No. 50 Dec. 14,
2013) discuss the notion of secularisation and its relationship with secularism
and several related aspects with reference to India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. It
is about the nature of relationship about democratic rights of religious groups
and individuals within them. It is also about ethics or morality.
Secularisation means absence of influence of religion on public policies and
social relations. But it does not negate religion itself. It is how religion is the
basis of favour or discrimination. It is about modernisation and modernity.
Secularisation must be “collective normative project”; whereas secularism in
Europe was not “launched as a programme of collective action” (Rajiv Bhargava).
Using notion of secularisation, Joya Chatterjee explains that following partition,
both India and Pakistan followed policy of secularisation, which was partial.
Both got busy in addressing non-religious issues of partition-affected families:
rehabilitation of the refugees. However, it was a limited secularisation which did
not permeate lower parts of state machinery. The top level bureaucrats were
encouraging secularisation. After the policy of neutrality or secular approach to
settlement of people affected by migration of people was stopped and religion
became an effective factor in this regard.

13.6 LET US SUM UP

Secularism has broadly two meanings: one, separation of religion from the state;
and two, equal respect to all religions by the state or sarva dharm sambhav.
Originally, the Preamble of Indian Constitution did not mention the word
secularism. It was inserted into the Preamble by the 42nd Constitutional
Amendment. The Constituent Assembly discussed whether secularism should
be mentioned in the Constitution. There were three broad arguments in the
Constituent Assembly: One argument suggested that since religion was a personal
affair, there was no need to discuss it; Second argument contended that there
should be separation between religion and the state; and the third argument stated
that the state should respect all religions equally or there should be sarva dharma
sambhav.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the end of the unit.
1) What are the main arguments of “anti secularists”?

2) What is the difference between secularism and secularization?

3) What is meant by the notion of principled distance?

13.7 REFERENCES
Bhargava, Rajeev (1999) (eds), Secularism and Its Critics, New Delhi: Oxford
University Press.
Bilgrami, Akil (2012). “Secularism: Its Content and Context”, Economic and
Political Weekly, No.4, Vol. 47.
Chandhoke, Neera (1999). Beyond Secularism: The Rights and Religious
Minorities. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Economic and Political Weekly (2013). on “Revisiting Secularisation” No. 50,
Vol. 48, December 14.
Harari, Yuval Noah (2018). 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. London: Jonathan
Cape.
Vanaik, Achin (2017). Hindutva Rising: Secular Claims, Communal Realities.
New Delhi: Tulika.

13.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress 1

1) Secularism denotes relationship between religion, state, institutions, social
groups and individual. There two notions of it: One, suggests a distance
between religion and the state or equal distance or request to all religions
the state; another, talks about the relationship of religion with communities
and individuals, about democratic values such as freedom and equality, and
morality.
2) In the Constituent Assembly, there were three types of arguments on
secularism: One, the state should not interfere in religious matter; two, state
and religion should be separate because religion is higher than the state/
beyond the scope of the state; and three, the state should pay equal respect
to all religions.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) The anti-secularists argue that secularism which preaches distance between
religion and state is a western concept. In a country like India where religion
is an essential aspect of life, religion and state can not be delinked. The real
secularism can be traced in Indian traditions, which is marked by tolerance.
True secularism can be achieved by following the principle of sarva dharma
sambhav (equal respect for all religions).
2) Secularism denotes distance between religion and the state or equal respect
to all religions. Secularisation denotes absence of the impact of religion on
the state policies about social groups. It is also about how moral or ethical
values shape attitudes about followers of different religions.
3) The idea of principled distance is propounded by Rajeev Bhargava. It denotes
a flexible approach to state’s engagement or disengagements with religions,
and to their inclusion or exclusion of religions by the state. The level of
engagement, exclusion or inclusion depends on context, nature, and current
state of religions.

UNIT 14 COMMUNALISM^

Structure
14.0 Objectives
14.1 Introduction
14.2 What Is Communalism?
14.3 Origin of Communalism
14.4 Communalism and the state
14.5 Communalism and Media
14.6 Let Us Sum Up
14.7 References
14.8 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

14.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this unit, you should be able to
Explain the meaning of communalism;
Trace the growth of communalism in India;
Discuss relationship between media and communalism; and
Analyse the relationship between the state and communalism.

14.1 INTRODUCTION

Identity forms an important aspect of life of an individual or group in a society.
In a diverse society, there are multiple factors that shape identities. Such factors
are culture, language, religion, customs, history, region, economy, etc. In shaping
an identity, the numbers of these factors vary. The numbers and effectiveness of
the factors depend on the context in which identities are formed. Even though
multiple factors shape an identity, sometime a single or some of them plays more
dominant role than the other factors. This is true of the role of religion also in
shaping an identity.As India is a multi-religious society, it is relevant to understand
how religion helps in shaping identities of people, in building harmonious or
conflictual relations between people following ent religions.

14.2 WHAT IS COMMUNALISM?

Communalism is an ideology which shapes the vision of members ofa community,
formed on the basis of common religion, about themselves, other religious
communities, nationalism and the state. In their book India’s Struggle for Freedom,
Bipan Chandra and others, underline that communal ideology consists of three
elements. The first element underlines the belief that people from similar religion
community have similar secular interests such as political, economic, social and
cultural interests. The authors of the book term it as‘be first bedrock of communal

ideology”. The second element denotes that the people belonging to different
religious communities do not have common secular interests — social, economic,
cultural or political interest. The third element or phase of communalism shows
a stage in which the relations between different religious communities are seen
as mutually incompatible, hostile and antagonistic.
Communalism is linked to another concept, e.g. communal violence. Both are
different but inter-related. Communalism is a consciousness and when this
consciousness gets expressed in terms of violence between two different religious
communities it is called communal violence. Different religious communities do
not become communal own their own. Nor do their relations turn into communal
violence automatically. Religious communities are turned into communal
communities by certain sections of society, and they can convert relations between
such communities into communal riots. Such sections can be political leaders,
activists, middle classes or community leaders. They explain to the members of
their respective communities that the other community is responsible for their
problems. In certain politically suitable situation or context they are able to
mobilise their respective communities into communal violence.
There have been different approaches to the way communalism can be
First has been the approach which may be called empirical approach used by
various scholars like Ashgar Ali, where different communal riots were studied
and general conclusion have been drawn. A large number of scholars like Amrita
Basu, Paul Brass, Asutosh Varsheya etc. can be seen to have followed this
approach to test their theories
The second approach has been Materialist approach which argues for
the study and understanding the social conditions which included the role and
nature of the state, material conditions in which community formations are taking
place etc.,to understand the formation of ideology of communalism. The episodes
of communal violence are studied as a reflection of these fundamental situations.
K.T. Shah, Bipan Chandra, Achin Vnaik, C.P. Bhambhri, Aditya Mukherjee can
be seen as the practioner of this approach. Athird approach has been the essentialist
approach where the communities are already seen to be different living
Faultlines with essentially separate and defined mutual relationship . Huntington,
the American political scientist in his very celebrated book Clash ofCivilisations’
has presented an outline of such approach.

14.3 ORIGINS OF COMMUNALISM

Communalism as a belief or an ideology has been the product of the colonial
rule in India. In this sense it is product of modern times in India. Earlier also,
there were large number of instances of inter-sect or inter-cult or religious conflicts
and violence. But they were not communal in the sense it came to be understood
from the mid-nineteenth century. The communalism in India largely was product
of the colonial policies towards different communities, especially after the 1857
revolt. The challenges faced by the colonial rulers in the latter halfofthe nineteenth
century became the reasons for them to devise policies that promoted
communalism. Among these challenges included criticism of the colonial
administration by a new intelligentsia, which had emerged in India by midnineteenth century. This intelligentsia, most often, was the product of new English
education. This intelligentsia began to realize that people of India were suffering due to the colonial rule. Transcending linguistic, caste, sectarianism or cultic
identities the new intelligentsia sought to generate national consciousness against
the colonial administration. Thus, the new intelligentsia, trained in both traditional
knowledge and the new western knowledge through English Medium wanted an
Indian people to emerge as a nation. This consciousness led them to attempt to
constitute a ‘national community’ consisting of Indians of different sections of
society. This was to contest the colonial constructs of a society and polity.
The colonial authorities responded to the challenge of growing national
consciousness being generated by the efforts of the new intelligentsia through
the following strategies: debunking the notion that Indians who had multiple
diversities could be united as a nation, by creating a colonial knowledge, and by
highlighting differences among people which existed on the basis of religion,
caste, language, etc. and by introducing religion-based representation in the
legislative/political bodies. As a part of such knowledge, James Mill wrote a
book The History ofBritish India, in which he argued that history of India can be
divided on the basis of religion into three periods: ancient, medieval and modern.
Mill conteded that ancient period in India’s history symbolized India’s golden
period when she was the ruled by the Hindus; in medieval period, the Muslim
invaders destroyed the glorious ancient Indian y and established Muslim
rule; and the modern period denoted the end of the Mughal rule and establishment
of the British rule in India. Such periodization of Indian history has been used by
the communal historians and the colonial authorities to divide the society on
communal lines. As most of the intelligentsia came from the upper crust of the
Hindu society, its growth and ideas could be shown to be detrimental to the
interest of Muslims by the Muslim intelligentsia and traditional elite. SyedAhmad
Khan was one such personality. In 1987, Dufferin iceroy) and A. Colvin, LtGovernor of UP attacked Congress for being anti-imperialism. SyedAhmad Khan
joined the attack thinking that it would increase Muslims’ share in administrative
and professional positions. He believed that with the growth of Hindu intelligentsia
and middle classes, the dominance of Muslims declined. Solution to Muslims
dominance lay in enabling Muslims to get English education. For this purpose,
he founded Anglo Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College in 1875 which later
became AMU (Aligarh Muslim University). Meanwhile, a new Muslim middle
class too was emerging at that time. However, its late rrival witnessed an already
entrenched Hindu middle class since 1870s which was quite vocal and anticolonial in its approach. One of the strategies of the traditional Muslim elite and
new middle class was to demand that they should be given preferences of
representation in public institutions. The demand for reservation in jobs and
educational institutions by the Middle class soon got converged with the demand
of the Muslim elite for more political power via statutory reservations in the
legislative and other bodies. This led to the formation of the Muslim League in
1906 which was also encouraged by the British colonial government. In other
areas, for example, the British encouraged sections from among the Hindus too
with certain favours which seemed to divide the emerging national unity created
by the Indian National Congress. The demand for reservation in government
jobs and representation of legislative bodies to the Muslims resulted in similar
demands from some sections of the Hindus. And a competition between some
sections of Hindu and Muslim intelligentsia ensued for reservation in government
jobs and legislative bodies. Later, these demands views were voiced by the
Muslim League. In fact, the earlier Muslim intelligentsia and later Muslim League
represented sections of Muslim landlords and middle classes and their vision
and demands were common For some historians, Hindus had all the glory which was destroyed by the Muslim
invaders while some historians saw the British as destroyer the glory of Islam.
According to them the Islamic glory had to be restored once again. This could be
done by establishing an Islamic rule. These two versions represented two-nation
theory. The policy level intervention to divide the Indians on communal lines
included introduction of separate electorate in 1909 (Morley-Minto Reform).
According to the policy of separate electorate, in 1909 municipal elections, Hindu
and Muslims contested from separate constituencies, where candidates and the
electorate belong to the same religion. Separate electorate was political
manifestation of communal divide. From the 1920s, the demands for more
representation in the councils widened and so was popular participation. The
1920s saw the emergence of Khilafat movement which for the first time brought
many Muslim into the larger political fold. This meant that there were seeds of
separate identities based on non-religious interests but along the religious lines
planted. The Colonial government however organized the Round Table
Conference in 1930-32 in which representatives of all conceivable groups and
sectional interest were invited.
In comparison to Hindus, the rise of Muslim educated in English was limited.
Educated Hindus and Muslims competed for government jobs. It gave a
among some sections of the new elite/middle class from both communities that
because of the other community, they were not getting jobs and representation in
political institutions. The Hindus viewed that their interests were antagonistic to
Muslims’ interests and vice-versa. As you have read above, in communalism the
secular interests of different religions communities are antagonistic. Thus,
communalism in India grew between the late nineteenth century and partition
the country.
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the answers give at the end of the unit.
1) What is communalism?

2) What is the relationship between communalism and communal violence?

3) Briefly narrate the origin of communalism in India.

14.4 COMMUNALISM AND THE STATE

Communalism often leads to communal violence between different religious
communities. There are several examples of communal violence in India.
Communal violence is also result of intermingling of religion and politics. In the
post-Independent India, communalism has become part of the competitive
electoral politics. According to K.N. Pannikar(1990), politics and communalism
have become complementary, reinforcing each other in the post-Independence
period. It can devise policies which can either stop or encourage communalism.
It can also play partisan role in communal politics. he nature of state’s role on
communalism depends on the nature of pressure of social groups on it, and
composition of the personnel in the state institutions, and political context. Thus,
the state functions under the pressure of different social groups and classes. These
also include religious communities. As you have read above, the colonial rule
promoted religious divisions: the policy was based on preferential treatment and
discrimination. According to C.P. Bhambhri, the post-Independence period
inherited the legacy of religious backwardness and gious conflict. The context
of pre-Independence period —the state attitude of preference and discrimination,
mediation by the British in the 1940s between the separatists and nationalists
became the context of the post-Independence state in India. The state in India is
placed in paradoxical situation: on the one hand it has to act through rules and
regulations, new technology; on the other hand, it has to deal with the society
where symbols, rituals and inherited social regulatory mechanisms exist. Indian
state loses loyalty of the masses if it is perceived to e acting against traditional
practices — Muslim personal law (1985), Operation Blue Star (1984), Sabrimala
(2019). In a democratic society such as India, the state functions under pressure
of different social forces.It becomes a site of multiple ideologies and tendencies
— including secularists and communalists. Like the space in the society, the state
also becomes site of contests between different gies such as communalism
and secularism. In the post-Independence period, the Indian state has followed
the strategy for managing conflicts — of oppression and cooptation: it makes
compromises with communalism and casteism. And the exploiting classes have
exploited religious sentiments to legitimize exploitation in the society. Zoya Hasan
(1990) argues that the state has surrendered to the pressure of religious
fundamentalist in Muslim Women’s Bill and Ram Janma Bhumi case.

14.5 COMMUNALISM AND MEDIA

Media, in both its traditional and newer forms, helped ideologies and ideas to
spread. As has been discussed in the rise of public sphere by Jurgen Habermas in
the context of Europe, the public associations, clubs, public gatherings and later
on print media which included newspapers, novels, textbooks, etc., have all helped many ideas to spread. Benedict Anderson, for example, called nation as an
Imagined Community because it was created because of spread of imagined ideas
of nation by the print media since the 18* century onwards. While media plays a
decisive role in generating awareness among the people, on several occasions it
has contributed to the spread of communal divide in the country. In relation to
communalism in India, the media plays an influential role in creation and spread
of communalism. Its role becomes crucial in reporting, explaining and
commenting on communal riots or violence; about the reasons for occurrence of
communal violence, role of leaders of different communities and politicians.
The media includes print media — newspapers, magazines, and electronic media
(television channels), and social media (WhatsApp, face book, tweeter, email).
In the recent past, fake news, have become quite frequent to arouse communal
passion in the society. Many reports in the media are based on rumours and
unverified facts. The social media for example has a reach which very few
previous media had in the past. It is also not controlled through censorship and
other ways and therefore any news or information, which may cause violence or
animosity among different groups of people travels rapidly.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers
ii) Check your answers with the answers give at the end of the unit.
1) How does the state play a role in communalism?

2) Briefly describe the nature of relationship between communalism and media.

14.6 LET US SUM UP
Communalism is an ideology which preaches that communities are formed on
religious lines. And members of a community share common interests which are
incompatible with the interests of other religious communities. In certain political
contexts, communalism can lead to communal violence. This happens because
of the role of political or community leaders. The communal riots and large
scale violence that India has witnessed over the last two centuries has been the
reminder of the divisive politics that the colonial rule could create for its purpose.
Communal violence which the post-independent India has seen can thus be traced
to the colonial period. Sometimes communalism gets expressed in the form of communal voilence. This can happen when some sections of leaders or political
activists convert relations between religious communities into conflict. In past
few years social media have also become source of communal divide

14.7 REFERENCES

Batbyal, Rakesh (2005), Communalism in Bengal: From Famine to Noakhali,
1943-47. New Delhi: Sage Publications.
Bhambhri, C.P. (1990), “State and Communalism in India”. Social Scientist,
Vol.18, Nos. 8-9, Aug.-Sept., 1990, pp. 22-26.
Chandra, Bipan; Mukherjee, Mridula; Mukherjee, Adiya; Mahajan, Suchitra;
Panikkar, K.N. (1988), India’s Struggle for Independence. New Delhi: Penguin.
Hasan, Zoya (1990),”Changing Orientation of the State and the Emergence of
Majoritiarianism in the 1980’s”, Pannikar, K.N. (1990).’Introduction’ The Socialist
Scientist. August-Sept.1990.

14.8 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES

Check Your Progress 1

1) Communalism is an ideology which share the visions of members a
community formed on the basis of religion about themselves, other
communities and nationalism. It has three ents: first, members of a
religious community share common interests; two, people from two different
religious communities do not share common interests; and three, relations
between different religious communities are incompatible and hostile.
2) Communalism and communal violence are different but inter-related. The
former is an ideology which preaches that people from a religious community
share common social, economic, political and er kinds of interests which are
incompatible with the interests of other communities. Communal violence is
violent expression of the differences between different religious
communities.
3) It emerged during the second half of the nineteenth century, the colonial
period. It was product of the divide and rule policy of the British. The policy
was reaction to critique of colonial policies by the newly emergent
intelligentsia. The colonial state responded to the critique of colonial rule
by encouraging the intelligentsia and middle classes to make demands for
reservation in jobs and representation in political institution on religious
lines. They introduced separate electorates through Morley-Minto reforms
in 1909. Consequently, it resulted in genesis of communalism in India.
Check Your Progress 2
1) The state can play an effective role in communalism in two ways: One, by
devising policies which can either encourage or impede communalism; two,
by taking action against people or agencies involved in spread of
communalism or communal violence. The role of state depends on political ideologies of those who control the state and on its capacity to manage
pressures of different communities.
2) Media and communalism are related. Media not only plays role in either
creating and spread or combatting it. During the second decade of the twenty
first century, social media has become more decisive in shaping
communalism in India. Quite often, media spread fake news and unverified
information which contribute to communalism.

Block-6 Parties and Party System in India Block-6

BLOCK 6 INTRODUCTION
Political parties are the most effective medium through which people participate
in legislative and executive processes in India. As India is a vast country, it is not
possible for people to participate in these processes directly. This is largely done
through political parties, though some people not affiliated to political parties,
known as Independents, also represent people. There are several parties in India.
Based on some features parties can be placed in party systems. This block has
only one unit, i.e. unit 15 Parties and Party Systems. It discusses how parties are
categorized in India, and what kind of party system exists in India

UNIT 15 PARTIES AND PARTY SYSTEM^

Structure
15.0 Objectives
15.1 Introduction
15.2 Classification of Political Parties
15.3 Party System in Indian States
15.3.1 The Era of Congress Dominance
15.3.2 The Breakdown of the Congress System: 1967-1989
15.4 Towards Fragmentation of State Party Systems: 1989 onwards
15.5 Let Us Sum Up
15.6 References
15.7 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercise

15.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit, you will be able to:
Define the Party System and Regional and State Parties;
Explain the dominant party system in different eras;
Differentiate the era of Congress dominance to the breakdown of the Congress
System.

15.1 INTRODUCTION

Party system in a democracy normally refers to the pattern of interaction and
competition between political parties. In India, the pattern of interaction and
competition among political parties has given way to the multi-party system.
This kind of characterisation of the party system is, however, more accurate as
of now than that existed a few decades ago. What existed then was the
hegemony of the Congress Party and this was well characterised by Kothari and
Jones as a ‘dominant party system. Such system was a multiparty system, in
which free competition among political parties occurred but it was the Indian
National Congress which enjoyed a dominant position both in terms of the number
of seats it held in the parliament and the state legislative assemblies, and in
of its immense organisational strength. Kothari coined the term the ‘Congress
System’ and Jones called it a ‘Congress Dominated System’. Enormous changes
have taken place in the party system in recent years. These changes started taking
place from 1967 onwards but these have become much more pronounced since
the late eighties and early 1990s. The party system has moved away from a one
party dominated system to a multi-party system. It is also referred to as a
federalised party system or a coalitional party system. Since 2014 the Bharatiya
Janata Party has emerged as the single most dominant party in India. We shall, in
this unit, concern ourselves mainly with the party systems that had emerged and
developed at the state level in the Indian union. But before doing so, we look at regional and state parties in brief since they have grown enormously in recent
years and play a crucial role in shaping the party system in many of the Indian
states.
15.2 CLASSIFICATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES
In India, political parties are classified in two ways: one, by the academics; another
by the Election Commission of India. The former classifies parties based on
factors such as their regional support base, policies, ideologies. The Election
Commission of India classifies them according to percentage ofvalid votes polled
by them in Vidhan Sabha or Lok Sabha elections in a specific number of states.
It classifies political parties into three categories —national, state and registered
parties. Its definition of state parties is the most elaborate. In this definition a
party to be called a state party must have been engaged in political activity for at
least five years and must have won either four per cent of the seats in a general
election or three per cent in a state election. In addition, it must have had the
support of six per cent of the votes cast. The parties which are called state parties
by the Election Commission of India are generally referred to as regional parties
in academic and populardiscussions.Oliver Heath and Yogendra Yadav consider
those parties as regional parties whose social bases re restricted to one or two
states. This definition takes into consideration only the social base of a party and
its area of operation. A national party is recognised as a national party if it is
recognised as a state party in four or more states. A registered party is a party that
is neither recognised as a state or a national party but is registered with the Election
Commission. Such parties are also termed as unrecognised parties. The definition
provided by the Election Commission of a regional rty is not very satisfactory.
Since the definition takes into consideration the past performance of a political
party, it is not accepted as a proper definition by the academicians. They consider
those parties as regional parties whose bases and activities are restricted to a
particular state and rooted in both regional aspirations and grievances. The support
base of a regional party is limited to a particular state because it identifies itself
with the region’s culture, language, religion, etc. It also presents the regional
perspective vis-à-vis the centre and other states. Thèse parties use ‘region’ and
‘language’ effectively for electoral benefits. A political party, to be recognised as
a regional party must satisfy three specific criteria. First, a regional party restricts
its area of action to a single region which, in the prevailing Indian situation
means a state. Secondly, the parties of this kind typically articulate and seek to
defend a region based-ethnic or religio-cultural identity. And thirdly, by their
very nature, regional parties are primarily concerned with the local or state level
grievances.

15.3 PARTY SYSTEM IN INDIAN STATES

State party systems in India have developed in close connection and interaction
with the national party system. Closeness of relationships between the state party
system and the national party system has been termed as the combination of the
state party systems by some observers in the recent years. This is natural
considering that India consists of different states. The changes in the national
party system have affected the state party systems, and in turn transformation in
the nature of party competition at the state level had affected the national party
system substantially. The second development, however, is more pronounced in
recent years because of the spectacular growth of the regional and state parties
in Indian politics.

15.3.1 The Era of Congress Dominance

The party system in India before 1967 has been a system of Congress dominance.
It has been also referred to as the “Congress Dominated System” or the “Congress
System”. Till the fourth general elections which were held in 1967 state party
system in India, like that of the national party system, was dominated by the
overwhelming presence of the Congress Party. The Congress Party dominated in
almost all the states. But the domination of congress was not uniform in all states.
The Congress, for example, had to face the toughest competition in the former
princely states that acceded to the Indian Union after 1947 whereas in other
states it almost had an impeccable hegemony. It ruled almost all the states except
Jammu and Kashmir where the National Conference had a domineering presence.
Kerala was also an exception because in the second general elections in 1957,
the CPI emerged victorious and formed a government along with its allies for
two years till it was dissolved arbitrarily in 1959. A quick reference to some data
will help illustrate this point. The Congress was such a dominant force that it
secured comfortable majorities in almost all the elections to the Lok Sabha
the State Assemblies in 1952, 1957, 1962. Though it never secured more than 48
per cent of the votes in the Lok Sabha elections (the highest being 47.78 in
1957), it always secured comfortable majority in terms of seats (364 seats in
1952, 371 seats in 1957 and 361 in 1962). In the State assemblies, except for a
few, it secured comfortable majorities almost in all the assembly elections. It
secured 42.2 per cent of votes and 68.4 per cent of seats in 1952, 44.97 per cent
of votes and 64.9 per cent of seats in 1957 and 43.65 per cent votes and 61.3
cent of seats in 1962. Electoral data thus indicate that the performance of the
Congress in the Assembly elections was slightly poorer than in the Lok Sabha
elections. This was because of the nature of resistance offered by the opposition
which included the state and regional formations. Opposition to the Congress in
the assembly elections was much more severe than in the Lok Sabha elections.
Let us briefly refer to this position of dominance across some of the bigger Indian
states while referring to its performance in the assembly elections. In Uttar
assembly elections between 1952 and 1962, the party secured between 47.9 and
36.3 per cent votes. It captured between 390 to 249 seats, out of a total 430 seats.
In Bihar, in the same period the party secured between 41.4 per cent to 42.1 per
cent votes but between 72.2 per cent and 58.1 percent seats. Similarly, in West
Bengal, the Congress secured between 38.9 and 47.3 per cent of votes and between
63 per cent to 62.3 per cent seats. In Andhra Pradesh, after the state was formed it
secured between 41.7 per cent to 47.3 per cent votes in 1955-57 and 1962 and
187 to 177 seats (out of a total 300). In Tamil Nadu the party enjoyed a dominant
position in the assembly elections of 1957 and 1962. It secured between 45.3 per
cent and 46.1 percent votes and captured between 67.4 percent to 73.6 per cent
seats. In Maharashtra the party secured 48.7 per cent to 51.2 per cent of votes in
1952 and 1962. Thus it is clear that the Congress Party enjoyed a dominant
position in the electoral politics of the states in the Indian Union, even though it
was hardly able to secure the majority of the votes. In fact, it won a majority of
seats in the assemblies of all the states on the basis of plurality of votes against a
fragmented opposition.

15.3.2 The Breakdown of Congress System: 1967-1989

The dominance of the Congress in the states started crumbling from the mid of
1960s; the fourth general elections of 1967 marked the intensification of this
change. The party system that emerged in the states after that and continued till
1989 may be referred to as a bipolarised one in which a weak Congress Party
was confronted with a united opposition in most of the states. The following
pattern of bipolarisation was seen in the states for the general elections in the
period from 1967-1989. In Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and
Delhi, the competition was between the Congress and the BJS/BJP. In Kerala,
Tripura and West Bengal the competition has been between the Congress and
Left. In Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Goa, a
Congress-regional parties led alliance emerged, though the BJP also gained
substantially. In the North-Eastern states the contest was mainly between the
Congress and a variety of regional parties or their alliances. In Tamil Nadu,
competition has been mainly between the DMK and the AIADMK. Finally, in
seven major states-Odisha, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Gujarat
and Karnataka-the Congress retained dominance. One can, however, add that
even in these states opposition grew stronger as we hall notice later. So far as
the assembly elections are concerned, the following pattern of bipolarisation
emerged after 1967. One may note that the votes of the Congress party declined
much more drastically in the assembly elections than in the parliamentary ones.
In Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi, the non-Congress
votes consolidated in favour of the BJS/BJP (Bharatiya Jana Sangha/Bhartiya
Janta Party). The latter emerged as the second most important party. In Punjab,
Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Goa, a ional party bipolarisation
came into existence. Similarly in the North-East, a Congress-regional parties
bipolarisation came into existence, though in this case the Regional parties were
very unstable.
Let us have a look at how these changes occurred. We shall refer mainly to the
party systems that we witness in the state assembly elections. It has been noted
earlier that the Congress had never secured more an 50 percent of the votes
either in the parliamentary or assembly elections except in some states but has
always secured huge majorities in terms of seats. This is indicative of the fact
that though significant opposition to the Congress existed at the state level, due
to fragmentation in their ranks and because of the rule associated with the “first
past the post system,” the Congress always emerged ictorious in terms of seats.
The 1967 election in fact put an end, at least for a temporary period, to this
disunity in the opposition. The post-1967 period saw the emergence of antiCongress alliances in state after state and this altered the nature of the contests
particularly for the assemblies. These developments resulted in the defeat of the
Congress in as many as eight out of sixteen states of the Indian Union. There was
also a marked decline in the vote share of the Congress party in the parliamentary
elections from 44.72 in 1962 to 40.7 per cent in 1967. In the legislativeAssemblies,
the decline was from 43.65 per cent to 39.96 per cent. As a consequence, the
percentage of seats came down from 61.3 per cent to 48.5 per cent. The states
entered into a bipolarised system, the principal contenders being the Congress
and almost a united opposition in many of the prominent Indian states. This
system continued almost till the end of the 1980s, though on occasions (for
example, in 1971 and 1972) the Congress was able to restore its predominant
position at the central and to a lesser extent at the State level. We also note that in
the early 1970s the Congress was able to make a comeback after 1972 for a brief
period. This position was soon lost by the party in the late 1970s. Let us have a
brief look at the nature and pattern of party competition in some states in India
India since the 1970s. This will help illustrate the point better. In Northern India,
in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress, from the assembly elections of 1974 onwards
was never able to secure 40 per cent of the votes; not even in the elections of
1985 that were held after the parliamentary elections of 1984 in which the
Congress recorded a landslide victory. One or the other parties like BJS/BJP,
Janata Party/later the various factions of the Janata Party, Lok Dal etc., challenged
the hegemony of the Congress. In 1974, the BJS increased its share of votes to
17.1 per cent and secured 61 seats in the Assembly. In the 1977 elections, the
Congress was routed by the Janata Party. Through the Congress Party returned
to power in 1980, it managed only 37.7 per cent of the votes. In 1985 the Congress
could hardly manage 39.3 per cent of votes, though it secured the majority of the
seats. The Lok Dal could wrest 21.3 per cent of votes and 84 seats. In the West,
in Maharashtra, strong challenge to Congress hegemony came in 1978 and
from the mid of the 1980s. In the 1978 assembly elections the Congress led by
Indira Gandhi was routed. In the 1985 assembly election it secured a majority,
with around 24 per cent votes. Gujarat also moved closer to a bipolarised system
one from the late 1960s. In the 1970s, the Indira Congress was challenged by the
INCO [Indian National Congress (Organisation)] and the Janata Party in the
election of 1985. In both the elections that were held in the 1970s, the NCO had
secured more than 23 per cent of the votes though its seats tally was not
impressive in 1972. The Janata Party secured little less than 20 per cent votes in
1985 with only 14 seats in the 182 member assembly. In central India, in Madhya
Pradesh, the largest of the Indian states, the Congress was challenged by the
BJS/BJP in 1972, 1980 andl985. It was challenged by the Janata Party in 1977.
The BJS secured 28.7 per cent votes in 1980, the BJP secured 30.3 per cent and
in 1985 it could secure 32.4 per cent votes. In the 1977 State assembly by elections
the Janata Party had secured 47.3 per cent ofvotes and had formed the government
with 230 members. In Bihar, between 1972 and 1985, the Congress never secured
more than 35 percent votes except in 1985. There was a considerable challenge
to it from the BJS/BJP, NCO, JNP, Independents, Lok Dal etc. In the south, in
Tamil Nadu, the party competition since 1967 narrowed down to a two party
competition, first between the Congress and the DMK and then between the
DMK and AIADMK. In Andhra Pradesh, the Congress’ popular votes share had
started declining from the 1978 elections and entered into a bipolar competition
from 1983 onwards. In West Bengal, the Congress lost its hegemonic position
from 1967 onwards and saw bipolarisation from the elections of 1971. Thus in
the country as a whole barring a few marginal states, that remained effectively
under the control of the Congress, a bipolar system of party completion emerged.
To a large extent the breakdown of the Congress system was the main factor
behind these developments.

Check Your Progress Exercise 1
Note: i) Use the space below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with the model answers given at the end of this
unit.
1) Define the different categories of political parties classified by the Election
Commission.
2) Briefly analyse the era of Congress dominance.

15.4 TOWARDS FRAGMENTATION OF STATE
PARTY SYSTEMS: 1989 ONWARDS
The party systems at both levels — national and states moved towards a
fragmentation from the late 1980s or more particularly from the 1990s. What are
the features of these fragmentary systems? At the national level there has been
an end of the one party dominance and the movement towards a multi-party
system. As you have read earlier, this trend started in 1967 at the state level.
However, the systems that exist in the states are different from the national level.
Many states have moved towards a two party system and probably this is the
most prominent feature of party competition at the state level.
At the national level, since the 1990s, the competition has narrowed down to two
different alliances, one led by the BJP and the other by the Congress. At the state
level, the competing parties differ from state to state but in most of the states it is
a two party system. In many states it is a multi-party system where the important
contenders are the Congress, the BJP and state or regional parties. In some of the
states, the competition is primarily between state or regional parties, though
national parties also occupy a significant space in those states. Now, let us turn
to the reasons behind the emergence of this kind of systems in the states. There
are multiple causes but the most important of them are the decline of the Congress
in the states, the spectacular growth of the BJP particularly in the Hindi heartland
and some other states and thirdly, the growth to prominence of regional and state
parties. As mentioned earlier these trends had started much before the 1990s. Let
us have a brief look at all these developments which preceded trends of the
1990s in brief and then turn to the salient features of the party systems that have emerged in the states since 1989. Although the Congress Party had started
declining since the late 1960s in the states, this decline became much more
prominent in the late 1980s. We have seen earlier that the Congress that had
enjoyed dominance at the state level for more than two decades gradually started
declining after the death of Nehru. The decline of Congress became more
spectacular after Indira Gandhi assumed the leadership of the party. There are
numerous explanations for this. Zoya Hasan, for example, has argued that the
Congress declined because of its inability to maintain the political bases of its
coalition. It istrue that the party’s ability to mobilise voters at the lower level
during the elections — whether at the state assembly or at the parliamentary
elections declined significantly in the late 1980s and the 1990s. Thus, the Congress
became a much reduced force at the state level since the late 1980s. The share of
votes and seats, the Congress captured in the Lok Sabha and more particularly in
the Assembly elections in the states sharply declined in the last decade of the
twentieth century. Its performance in the Assembly elections in some of the
prominent states will help illustrate the point. In the state of Uttar Pradesh, the
biggest of the Indian states, the Congress remained a much reduced force with
its vote share declining from 15.08 per cent in 1993 to 8.96 per cent in 2002. In
Andhra Pradesh, the largest of the South Indian states, the Congress returned to
power in 1989 but it lost in the 1994 elections and remained in opposition till
2004. In Bihar, the votes of the percentage of the Congress slumped from 24.78
per cent in 1990 to 11.06 per cent in 2000 and the seats from 71 to 23 in the same
period. Similarly, in Maharashtra it lost its hegemony in the 1990s completely.
In 1990, it secured 38.17 per cent votes and 141 seats but this dropped to 27.20
percent votes and 75 seats in 1999. In Tamil Nadu, the Congress had lost its
dominant position much earlier to the two regional forces, the DMK and the
ADMK. Similarly in West Bengal, its decline was much more rapid in the
1990s due to the split and the subsequent formation of the Trinamool Congress.
In the 2001 elections, it could manage only 7.98 per cent vote and 26 seats against
39.45 per cent votes and 82 seats in 1996. The expansion of the BJP in recent
times has been much more dramatic than the decline of the Congress. The
expansion has mainly been due to the decline of the Congress, the aggressive
mobilisation strategy based around the ideology of Hindutva which it adopted
from the late 1980s and its strategy of alliance formation. At the national level
the Lok Sabha, it increased its seats from a 2 in 1984 to 182 seats in the 1998
elections that catapulted it to the position of a ruling party. In 1999 it secured the
same number of seats, though, along with its allies, it was able to consolidate its
position as a ruling party. However, this onward march of the BJP was halted in
the 2004 general elections. It established dominance in 2014 and 2019 Lok
election. In the assembly elections the performance of the BJP in the 1990s was
equally spectacular. It increased its share of votes and seats in some of the
prominent Indian states. In Bihar it increased its share of seats from 39 and votes
from 11.61 in 1990 to 14.64 per cent of votes and 67 seats in 2000. In Uttar
Pradesh, in the 1990s its vote share and seat share remained almost the same
(over 170 seats and 33 per cent votes) though it declined in the 2002 elections. In
Gujarat, it increased its vote share from 26.69 percent in 1990 to 44.81 per cent
in 1998 and further to 49.85 per cent in 2002. This increase was also evident in
many of the other Indian states. In some other states, it was able to form
governments either alone like in Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh in 1990
or in alliance with others like in Maharashtra with the Shiv Sena in 1995. The
third interrelated development that has taken place in the recent times is the
expansion of regional and state parties largely at the cost of the Congress in the states. As a result, they have increased their presence in the national legislature
since the 1996 elections and due to this they have come to play a very crucial
role in the making and unmaking of governments at the central level. Election
data indicate that these parties have secured an increasing presence in the Lok
Sabha. In 1991, the regional parties (including some state parties) occupied 56
seats whereas in 1996 they came to occupy 137 seats, 161 seats in 1998, and 188
seats in 1999. The increase in their strength in the state assemblies in recent
years is much more remarkable. In 2002, in as many as twelve states of the
Indian Union, regional parties (including state parties) occupied a prominent
position in the state legislatures. Not only have these parties increased their
presence in the state legislatures, but also formed governments at the state level
in some of states in the 1990s. The Shiv Sena (SS) for the first time came to
power in Maharashtra along with its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in
1995. The Assam Gano Parishad (AGP) similarly returned to power for the second
time in Assam in 1996. The National Conference (NC) came to power in 1996
with a large majority in Jammu and Kashmir. The Dravidian parties, the DMK
and the AIADMK alternated power among themselves in Tamil Nadu in the
1990s. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) returned to power in 1995 and remained
in office till 2004. The Akali Dal (AD) also formed a government in the state of
Punjab in 1997 along with its ally, the BJP. Thus e parties were increasingly
successful at the national and state level in the 1990s. It is due to these interrelated
developments that the party systems in the states had undergone significant
transformation in recent years more particularly from 1989 onwards. From a
system that was Congress —dominated (like that of the national party system) it
has become fragmented (with features of bipolarity). In this fragmented system,
the competition is primarily between two parties whether national or regional
but —there are others who occupy a significant ion in the party politics of
the states. The competition at the state level in recent years and the party systems
that has emerged as a result may be classified into four main categories. To the
first category belong states like Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan
and Gujarat. These states are essentially two party states in terms of vote and
seat share. Included in this category are West Bengal, Kerala, Tripura, Maharastra
and Punjab which are essentially bipolar states. In these states either two alliances
or one-party opposed by an alliance of two or ler parties dominate party
politics. 8 In the second category belongs to those states In the second category
belongs to those states like Karnataka, Bihar and Orissa where there are three or
more poles though it appears that in future it will drift towards a bipolar system
either due to alliances or due to splits in existing parties. Thirdly, there are states
like Uttar Pradesh where a four-cornered exists between the BJP,
Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Indian National Congress.
The fourth category belongs to those states in which a bipolar or two-party system
exists but there is also an increasing growth of a third party. The third party may
not be strong enough to capture large number of seats but has a significant vote
share.

Check Your Progress Exercise 2
Note: i) Use the space below for your answer.
ii) Check your answer with the model answer given at the end of this
unit.
1) Examine the developments towards the multiparty system in India.

15.5 LET US SUM UP
In this unit, we have principally analysed the party systems that emerged and
developed at the state level in the India since independence with a focus on the
transformations which has taken place recently. We confined our discussion to
the broad features of the state party systems. We have also dealt with regional
and state parties in brief since they have grown a great deal in recent years, and
are playing a crucial role in shaping the party system in most of the Indian states.
We have noticed that the supremacy of the Congress party that existed for a few
decades after independence at the centre and the states has come to an end. The
party system changed from one party dominant system to multi —party system
at the national level, a system that is noticeable by the presence of a dwindled
Congress party, a significant but inadequate expansion of the Bharatiya
Party (BJP) and an enormous increase in the strength of regional and state parties
in national politics. The changes started taking place since 1967 onwards but
have become much more pronounced since the last two decades. Parallel to these
changes at the national level, significant changes have taken place in recent years
at the state level. From a system that was dominated by the Congress it has
transformed into a fragmented (essentially with features of bipolarity). In this
fragmented system the competition is primarily between two parties
national or regional. There are indications that this fragmented system will stay
and the possibility is that more and more states will move towards a bipolar part
system.
15.6 REFERENCES
Hasan, Zoya (ed) (2006). Parties and Party Politics. New Delhi:
University Press.
Weiner, Myron (1972). Party Politics in India: The Development of a MultiParty System. London: Oxford University Press.
15.7 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1) According to Election Commission, political parties are classified in three
categories: National, State and Registered Parties. National party is a party
that recognised as a state party in four or more states. State party is a party
that must have been engaged in political activity for at least five years and
must have won either four percent of the seats in a general election or three
percent in a state election. A registered party is a party that is neither
recognised as state or a national party but is registered with the Election
Commission.

2) The Congress dominance era can be seen in Indian Politics till the fourth
India general elections which were held in 1967. The Congress party dominated
in almost all the states before 1967 except Jammu and Kashmir where the
National Conference had a strong presence and in Kerala where CPI emerged
as victorious party.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1) The party system both at national and state level moved towards a
fragmentation from the late 1980s or more particularly from the 1990s. At
the national level it was the movement towards a multi-party system and at
the state level, it was a two party system. The important cause of multiparty system was the decline of the Congress in the states and prominence
growth of regional and state parties. Decline of congress party system also
gave spectacular growth of the BJP particularly n the Hindi heartland.

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