About Prime Minister of India

The Prime Minister of India is the head of the executive branch of the Government

of India. His position is distinct from that of the President of India, who is the head

of the State. As India follows a parliamentary system of government modelled after

the Westminster system, most of the executive powers are exercised by the Prime

Minister. He acts as an advisor to the President and is the leader of the Council of

Ministers. The President appoints the Prime Minister of India and on his advice,

appoints the Council of Ministers. The Prime Minister can be a member of either

the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha.

Roles and Responsibilities of Prime Minister

The roles and responsibilities of the Prime Minister are as follows:

Link between President and Council of Ministers:

The Prime Minister is the leader of the Council of Ministers and serves as the

channel of communication between the President and the Council of Ministers. It is

his duty to communicate to the President all the decisions taken by the Council of
Ministers and to provide information regarding administration of the Union or

proposals for the legislature as called for by the President.

Selection Process of Prime Minister

The Constitution states that the President of India should appoint the leader of the

party or alliance which is in majority in the Lok Sabha as the Prime Minister of

India. In case no party or alliance enjoys majority, the President appoints the leader

of the largest party or alliance as the Prime Minister. But he has to win the

confidence vote in the Lower House of the Parliament as early as possible. A

member of either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha can be appointed as the Prime

Minister. If he is not a member of either House of the Parliament then he has to be

elected to either House within six months of his appointment. As the Prime

Minister, he is the Leader of the House of which he is a member.

Term and Retirement Age of Prime Minister

Unlike the President, the Prime Minister does not have a fixed tenure. The full

term of the Prime Minister is five years, which coincides with the normal life of

the Lok Sabha. However, the term can end sooner if he loses the vote of

confidence in the Lower House. So, it can be said that he remains in power as long
as he enjoys the confidence of the Lok Sabha. The Prime Minister can also resign

by writing to the President.

There are no term limits on the office of the Prime Minister. There is also no

official retirement age.

Eligibility Criteria to become Prime Minister of India

To be eligible for the position of the Prime Minister of India, a person should:

 Be a citizen of India.

 Be a member of either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha.

 Complete 25 years of age if he is a member of the Lok Sabha or 30 years if

he is a member of the Rajya Sabha.

A person cannot be the Prime Minister of India if he holds any office of profit

under the Government of India, the government of any state, or any local or other

authority subject to the control of any of the said governments.

Appointment of the Prime Minister

Ministers shall also be appointed by the President but on the advice of the Minister.

According to Clause (1A) of Article75 the total number of Ministers including the

Prime Minister shall not exceed 15% of the total number of members of the House

of People[i].

The Constitution does not clearly say whether the Prime Minister should be a

member of the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha. Article 75(5) says that a Minister

who is not a member of either House of the Parliament for 6 months shall cease to

be a Minister on expiration of such term. An outsider may be appointed a Minister

but he must become a Member of Parliament within the period of 6 months[ii].

Categories of Ministers

The Council of Ministers includes 3 categories of Ministers. They are

 The Ministers of Cabinet Rank – Such Ministers are the Heads of their

Departments. However, all the Cabinet Ministers are not the members of

the Cabinet. When they are invited by the Prime Minister to attend

meetings regarding their Departments, they do so.

 The Ministers of State – They are of Cabinet status and hold their

Departments independently.
  The Deputy Ministers – Such Ministers don’t have any separate charge of

a Department. They assist the Ministers with whom their administrative

duties are attached.

Qualifications

The following are the qualifications of the Parliament:

 He should a citizen of India

 He must be the member of either Houses of the Parliament.

 If he is the member of the Lok Sabha he should have completed 25years

of age. If he is the member of Rajya Sabha he should have completed

30years of age.

Disqualifications

 If he holds any office of profit under the Central or State Government

other than an office which does not disqualify its holder as declared by

the Parliament.

 If a competent Court has declared him as a person with unsound mind.

 If he is an undischarged insolvent
  If he is not a citizen of India or has acquired the citizenship of any foreign

State.

Collective Responsibility

The Council of Ministers stand collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha [iii]. This

means that the Council of Ministers work as a team. They are collectively

responsible for every action they make. Once a decision has been made, all the

Ministers are together responsible for it. If a Minister does not agree with a

decision he has to resign.

The Prime Minister maintains discipline in the Cabinet. If a Minister disagrees

with the Prime Minister or the Cabinet has to resign.

Individual Responsibility

The Ministers also have individual responsibility regarding the working of their

Department in the Parliament. The Minister is answerable for every act of his

Department. If a Minister has taken a decision by himself, the Cabinet doesn’t

support him. In such a case he has to resign because he is solely responsible.

The functions of the Prime Minister are:

 To communicate to the President the decisions of the Council of Ministers

regarding the administration of affairs of the Union and proposals for

legislation.

 To provide information regarding the administration of the Union and

proposals for legislation when asked by the President

 To submit for the consideration of the Council of Ministers any matter on

which a decision has been taken by a Minister but not considered by the

Council, if the President requires.

The Prime Minister performs other important functions like:

Formation of the Ministry

The Ministry is formed by the Prime Minister. He is appointed by the President

and then he selects his Ministers. A list of Ministers is provided to the President by

him and accordingly the President appoints such Ministers. If the Prime Minister

resigns, it means resignation of the whole ministry. He can remove the members of

the Council of Ministers anytime by demanding their resignation or by getting

them dismissed by the President.

The Prime Minister distributes portfolios. He assigns various Departments to the

Ministers. It is his responsibility to decide the size of the Cabinet and the

Departments to be assigned.

Chairman of the Cabinet Committee

The Prime Minister acts as the Chairman of the Cabinet Committee. He presides

over the meetings of the Cabinet and fixes the agenda of such meetings. The

Ministers are individually responsible to him for the working of their Departments.

Chief Co-ordinator of Policies

The Prime Minister acts as the Chief Co-ordinator of the policies of several

departments. When there is a conflict between the departments, he solves it. He

keeps an eye on the working of each department.

Advisor of the President

The Prime Minister advises the President on various matters. He advises the

President regarding the appointment of the Council of Ministers and the dissolution

of the Lok Sabha. He communicates the President regarding the decisions and

working of the Council of Ministers. Till the time, the Prime Minister enjoys the
confidence of majority members of the Parliament; it is difficult for the President

to dismiss him.

Leader of the Nation

The Prime Minister can be considered as the Leader of the Nation. He acts as the

chief spokesman of the Governmental policies in the Parliament. He announces all

the important policies in the Parliament.

Article 74 : council of ministers to aid and advise president

(1) There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister at the head to aid

and advise the President who shall, in the exercise of his functions, act in

accordance with such advice:

Provided that the President may require the Council of Ministers to reconsider such

advice, either generally or otherwise, and the President shall act in accordance with

the advice tendered after such reconsideration.

(2) The question whether any, and if so what, advice was tendered by Ministers to

the President shall not be inquired into in any court.

(1) The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President and the other Ministers

shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.

(1A) The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of

Ministers shall not exceed fifteen per cent. of the total number of members of the

House of the People.

(1B) A member of either House of Parliament belonging to any political party who

is disqualified for being a member of that House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth

Schedule shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a Minister under clause (1)

for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the

date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or where he

contests any election to either House of Parliament before the expiry of such

period, till the date on which he is declared elected, whichever is earlier.

(2) The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President.

(3) The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the

People.

(4) Before a Minister enters upon his office, the President shall administer to him

the oaths of office and of secrecy according to the forms set out for the purpose in
the Third Schedule.

(5) A Minister who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of

either House of Parliament shall at the expiration of that period cease to be a

Minister.

(6) The salaries and allowances of Ministers shall be such as Parliament may from

time to time by law determine and, until Parliament so determines, shall be as

specified in the Second Schedule.

The Attorney-General for India

ARTICLE 76 : ATTORNEY-GENERAL FOR INDIA.

(1) The President shall appoint a person who is qualified to be appointed a Judge of

the Supreme Court to be Attorney- General for India.

(2) It shall be the duty of the Attorney-General to give advice to the Government of

India upon such legal matters, and to perform such other duties of a legal character,

as may from time to time be referred or assigned to him by the President, and to

discharge the functions conferred on him by or under this Constitution or any other

law for the time being in force.

(3) In the performance of his duties the Attorney-General shall have right of

audience in all courts in the territory of India.

shall receive such remuneration as the President may determine.

Conduct of Government Business

77. Conduct of business of the Government of India.—(1) All executive action of

the Government of India shall be expressed to be taken in the name of the

President.

(2) Orders and other instruments made and executed in the name of the President

shall be authenticated in such manner as may be specified in rules to be made by

the President, and the validity of an order or instrument which is so authenticated

shall not be called in question on the ground that it is not an order or instrument

made or executed by the President.

(3) The President shall make rules for the more convenient transaction of the

business of the Government of India, and for the allocation among Ministers of the

said business.

ARTICLE 78 : DUTIES OF PRIME MINISTER AS RESPECTS THE

FURNISHING OF INFORMATION TO THE PRESIDENT, ETC.

—It shall be the duty of the Prime Minister—

(a) to communicate to the President all decisions of the Council of Ministers

legislation;

(b) to 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.

Info Bits Related with COM, PM and AG

1. The prime minister is responsible for aiding and advising the president in

distribution of work of the Government to various ministries and offices and

in terms of the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules,

1961. The co-ordinating work is generally allocated to the Cabinet

Secretariat.

2. By Article 75 of the constitution of India, remuneration of the prime minister

as well as other ministers are to be decided by the Parliament. In 2010, the

prime minister’s office reported that he did not receive a formal salary, but

was only entitled to monthly allowances.

3. The Attorney General, like an Advocate General of a State is not supposed to

be a political appointee, in spirit, but this is not the case in practice. Every
 time a party comes to power in the general elections, all the law officers

resign and law officers loyal to the new party are appointed.

4. The Attorney General has the right of audience in all Courts in India as well

as the right to participate in the proceedings of the Parliament, though not to

vote.

5. Unlike the Attorney General of the United States, the Attorney General of

India does not have any executive authority, and is not a political appointee,

those functions are performed by the Law Minister of India.

6. The Attorney General is assisted by a Solicitor General and four Additional

Solicitors General. (Non-constitutional posts.)

7. The Cabinet is a smaller body than Council of Ministers which consists of a

few important senior ministers who are in charge of separate departments.

The Cabinet is described as “a wheel within a wheel”. It is the nucleus of the

Council of Ministers.

8. Cabinet exercises all powers on behalf of the Council of Ministers. The policy

decisions are taken in the Cabinet.

9. There are three categories of ministers (COM), in descending order of rank:

 Union Cabinet Minister: senior minister in-charge of a ministry. A

cabinet minister may also hold additional charges of other Ministries,

where no other Cabinet minister is appointed.

cabinet minister for that portfolio.

 Minister of State : junior minister to overseeing cabinet minister, usually

tasked with a specific responsibility in that ministry. For instance, an

Minister of State in the Finance Ministry may only handle taxation.