How does Federalism work in India?

Federalism is practiced in India in three major ways:

1. Based on their Linguistic Characteristics
2. Based on Language Policy
3. Based on restructuring of center-state relations

The Constitution of India originally was a two-tier system of government, the Union or Central Government and second, was State governments. Later on, the third tier was added of Panchayats and Municipal bodies. Threefold distribution of power was provided between Union and State governments.

Here are the three lists it contains:

1. Union List: It includes subjects of national importance like defense, foreign affairs, banking, communication, and the currency.
2. State List: It includes State governments trade unions, marriage, adoption, and succession.
3. Concurrent List: It refers to the list which consists of subjects of common interest to both the Union and the States.

Now let’s look at some major ways in which federalism is practised in India.

1. Linguistic States

Many old states have perished, and many new ones have sprung up in their place. The states’ boundaries, areas, and titles have all been altered. The boundaries of some existing Indian states were modified in 1947 in order to form new states. This was done to keep people living in the same state who spoke the same language together. Some states were founded not on the basis of language, but on the basis of cultural, ethnic, or geographic diversity.

Some national officials were concerned that the call for the formation of states based on language might lead to the country’s fragmentation. For a long time, the central government fought linguistic states. However, history has proven that the emergence of linguistic states really brings the country closer together. 

2. Language Policy

No single language is designated as a national language in our Constitution. Apart from Hindi, the Constitution recognizes 21 additional languages as Scheduled Languages. States, like other countries, have official languages of their own. A major amount of government activity is conducted in the concerned state’s official language. The spread of Hindi has been approached with caution by our country’s leaders. The use of English for official purposes was scheduled to expire in 1965, according to the constitution. On the other hand, many non-Hindi-speaking countries demanded that English be used instead. For official reasons, the Government of India agreed to retain English and Hindi in use due to violent activities in various parts of India.

3. Center-State Relations

The connection between the federal government and the states has been restructured, which has reinforced federalism in practice. Previously, both the federal and state governments were ruled by a single political party. As a result, state governments were unable to execute their federal constitutional rights as separate institutions. When the state’s ruling party changed, the parties in power at the federal level attempted to weaken the state’s influence.

Everything changed after 1990 when regional political parties emerged in a number of states across the country. At the same time, the era of center-right coalition governments began. Because no single party won a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, the major national parties were compelled to form an alliance with a variety of other parties, including a number of regional parties, in order to form a federal administration. As a result, a new culture of power sharing and respect for the sovereignty of state governments emerged. As a result, federal power-sharing now works better than it did when the Constitution was initially established.

Federalism refers to a system of government, in which powers have been divided between the center and its constituent parts as the states and the provinces. It refers to the institutional arrangement to accommodate two sets of politics, one at the central level and one at the regional level.

In this article, we will cover Types of Federalism, How is Federalism practiced in India? Features of Federalism, Federalism government examples, federalism MCQs, and many more.