Prime Minister and Council of Ministers
- Prime Minister: The Prime Minister is the head of government and is in charge of all government functions. Prime Minister, the President picks the leader of the majority party or coalition of parties with a majority in the Lok Sabha. If no single party receives a majority, the President picks the person who is most likely to receive a majority vote. The term of the Prime Minister is not set; as long as he is the head of the majority or coalition party, he remains in power.
- Council of Ministers: It is the official term for the group of ministers that comprises all of them, known as the Council of Ministers. It normally consists of 60 to 80 ministers of various positions. The Ministerial Council is formed up of:
- Cabinet Ministers are top-ranking members of the ruling party or parties in control of the major ministries. The Council of Ministers’ inner ring is termed as Cabinet. It is made up of roughly 25 ministers.
- Minister of State in charge of a minor ministry with an independent charge. They only attend Cabinet meetings if they have been invited directly.
- Ministers of State who are linked to Cabinet Ministers are expected to help them.
Powers of Prime Minister
- The Prime Minister can appoint ministers as long as they are members of Parliament.
- In Cabinet sessions, he chairs and makes the majority of the decisions.
- In the event of a conflict between departments, he organizes the work of various departments, and his decisions are final.
- He has overall responsibility for many ministries, and all ministers report to him.
- To the ministers, he allocates and redistributes work.
- He also has the power to dismiss ministers from their positions. The entire cabinet resigns when the Prime Minister resigns.
If the Cabinet is the most powerful institution in India, within the cabinet the Prime Minister is the most powerful. The powers of the Prime Minister have increased considerably, and parliamentary democracies are sometimes referred to as the Prime Ministerial form of government. As political parties have come to play important role in politics, Prime Minister controls Cabinet and Parliament through the party.
The personality of the Prime Minister also holds power. For example, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India exercised huge authority because held great sway over the population in general. However, the rise of coalition governments has imposed certain restrictions on the power of the Prime Minister. Accommodation of different groups and factions of his party, as well as alliance partners, also heeds the views and position of coalition partners and other parties, on whose support the survival of the government depends.
Political Executive – Definition, Functions, Characteristics, Examples
Different levels of government have functionaries who look after day-to-day decisions but do not exercise supreme power on behalf of the people. These functionaries collectively are known as the executive. The term “executive” is used as they are in charge of the execution of policies of the government.
The Executive is one of the most crucial branches of government, and a government can’t function without it. It is responsible for putting into effect all of the laws and policies enacted by Parliament or the Legislative Assemblies. It also carries out the government’s different programs and projects. Prime Minister and President, Chief Minister, Governor, IAS, IPS, and IFS, to name a few.
Table of Content
- Meaning of Executive
- Political Executive
- Political and Permanent Executive
- Prime Minister and Council of Ministers
- The President
- Parliament
- Judiciary
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