Fedralism in India

Introduction
Federalism is primarily a theory about institutionalized political cooperation and collective co-existence. In other words, federalism is a grand design of ‘living together’ in the matrix arrangement of, what Daniel Elazar conceptually terms as ‘self rule plus shared rule’. Its hallmark is, to cite Rasheeduddin Khan, ‘unity of polity and plurality of society’. As a theory of nation-building, federalism seeks to define state-society relationships in such a manner as to allow autonomy of identity of social groups to flourish in the constitutionally secured and mandated institutional and political space. The federal constitution recognizes the special cultural rights of the people, especially the minorities. Federalism tries to facilitate the sociopolitical cooperation between two sets of identities through various structural mechanisms of ‘shared rule’.

History:

India was essentially a unitary state under the British rule. The British for the first time in the Government of India Act, 1935 introduced a federal system in India. But the provisions of a federal state were never fully implemented. The Governor-General was the supreme head of state in India.

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India is a country with diverse ethnic, religious, linguistic and cultural identities. A federal state recognizes and supports the autonomy of each unit and helps them preserve their distinctiveness. The Constituent Assembly thus decided to make India a federal State. But, the founding fathers of the constitution favoured a strong center.

Essential characteristics of a federal state:

1) A written constitution which is the supreme law of the land so as to clearly mention the power of the centre as well as the state and make sure they function accordingly.

2) The existence of Dual government ...

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Essential characteristics of a federal state:

1) A written constitution which is the supreme law of the land so as to clearly mention the power of the centre as well as the state and make sure they function accordingly.

2) The existence of Dual government is necessary in a Federation namely the central or union government and the regional governments.

3) Clear cut Division of powers between the centre and the states so that each of them understands their jurisdiction and there is no conflict over it.

4) The presence of an impartial and independent Judiciary which is the guardian and protector of the Constitution and helps maintain the balance of powers between the centers and the states.

Nature of Indian Federalism

Now let us see whether India fulfills the three essential pre-requisites of a federal state mentioned above.

The Indian Constitution is the supreme law of the land and both the governments derive their powers from it and function under its supremacy.
The Indian Constitution provides for a dual government. We have the central government at the Union level and the State governments in the respective states.
There is also a division of powers between the centre and he states under the Union, State and the concurrent lists under the VII Schedule of the Constitution.
The Indian Constitution also provides for an independent Judiciary which has the power of the final interpretation of the Constitution.

Thus, the Indian Constitution fulfills all the four essential qualifications of a classical federation. However, right from its inception the federal nature of the Indian state has always been questioned. K.C. Wheare says, “The Indian Constitution established a system of government which is almost quasi-federal ….a unitary state with subsidiary federal features.” Let us see the aspects of the constitution which are unitary.

Unitary characteristics of the Constitution

Single Constitution: The Indian states do not have the right to make or unmake their own constitution. Also initiative in constitutional amendments lies solely with the Union Parliament and only in certain cases is the one-half ratification by state assemblies required. Thus, the states have no role in amending most of the Constitution.
All India citizenship: Unlike in federations like U.S.A., Switzerland, India has a single all India citizenship, common for both the states and the union.
Imbalanced division of powers: The subjects enumerated in the Union list (99) are far greater that that in the State list (61). Also, with regard to the concurrent list the laws made by the union prevail in case of conflict with the laws of the states. The Residuary powers also belong to the Union.
Single unified Judiciary: India has a single judicial system with the Supreme Court at its apex. The SC has the Power to supervise and control the functioning of the entire judicial system. Also the judges of both the SC and the High Court are appointed by the President and dismissed through an impeachment process by the Parliament.
Denial of territorial integrity: The union Parliament in India is authorized to change the name, territory or boundary of any state, irrespective of the wishes of the state, by a simple majority.
Unequal representation in Rajya Sabha: The federal basis of equality of all states has also not been met. The bigger States of UP has been given a representation of 34 seats in the Rajya Sabha while the smaller states of Goa, Manipur, Sikkim have a representation of just one member.
Emergency provisions: the emergency provisions are the most striking anti-federal feature of the constitution. During the times of national emergency, the constitution becomes a unitary constitution. If state emergency or president’s rule is proclaimed in any state, the State legislative assemblies may be dissolved or kept suspended. In case of Financial Emergency, the centre can give directions to any State like, reductions of salary, reservation of money bills passed.
Financial Insecurity of the states: Financially the states have been allocated inadequate resources.
Centralized bureaucracy: India has a common All India Service like the I.A.S, I.P.S. The officers are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Union Public Service Commission and the states have no say in the matter. Also in the appointment of various other important posts like the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, the Election Commission’s members the states have no say at all.
Governor of the State: The Governor is appointed by the President of India. He fulfills the dual role of being the formal executive head of the state as well as being the center’s agent in the states.