C ommo nwe a l t h memb e r c o u n t r i e s On proclamation of a state of emergency by the President, the federal government may assume temporary executive and financial control of a state and the President may rule it in place of the governor. The President appoints an administrator to govern the union territories. The 1950 constitution set out a number of individual freedoms and abolished discrimination on the basis of caste. Judicial system Supreme court: Supreme Court of India Ministry: Law and Justice The constitution provides for an independent judiciary. The Supreme Court is in New Delhi and there are high courts in every state, while the nature of and arrangements for the lower courts differ from state to state. Generally the lower criminal courts are called courts of session and courts of magistrates. Appeals from the lower courts are heard in the high courts and the Supreme Court is the final court of appeal; and also has jurisdiction over disputes between federal and state governments. Government and politics Last elections: April/May 2009 Next elections: 2014 Head of State: President Pranab Mukherjee (2012–) Head of Government: Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh Ruling party: United Progressive Alliance coalition led by Indian National Congress After a year in which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition government faced continuing difficulty in keeping the coalition together, the final results of the early September/October 1999 elections gave the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) – a new 24-party national alliance led by the BJP – a solid majority with 298 seats, though BJP’s own total of 182 seats had hardly increased. However, Congress (I) and its allies took only 136 seats. The 1999 elections were the first since 1984 when a preelection alliance managed to secure a clear majority in parliament. In an early election, the first using electronic voting machines, held over four days in April/May 2004, the coalition – the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) – led by Indian National Congress (INC) emerged, with 217 seats, ahead of the ruling NDA (185 seats). However, INC leader, Sonia Gandhi, decided not to accept the Prime Ministership and Dr Manmohan Singh, a former Finance Minister who had overseen the economic reform programme in the early 1990s, was chosen by INC to form the new government. The Communist Party of India (Marxist), with 43 seats, joined INC to provide the necessary majority in taking the new agenda forward. The July 2007 presidential election was won by Pratibha Patil of the INC, who was the nominee of UPA and first woman to become President. She defeated the BJP’s candidate, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, in the electoral college vote to choose a successor to Dr Abdul Kalam. In July 2008, when a key UPA coalition partner, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) – CPI(M), would not support the government’s proposed nuclear deal with the USA, the government narrowly survived a vote of confidence (275:256 votes, 11 abstentions), largely due to the support of a non-coalition member, the Samajwadi Party. In the general election of April/May 2009 the Congress Party-led UPA prevailed, extending its share to 261 of the 545 seats (INC with 206), obviating the need for the complex coalition negotiations that had followed recent elections. Its main rival, the NDA, took 159 seats (BJP with 116); the Third Front coalition – now including the CPI(M) – 78. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh returned to head the government for a second term. The July 2012 presidential election was won by Pranab Mukherjee of the INC, who was the nominee of UPA. He defeated BJP’s Purno Agitok Sangma in the electoral college vote to choose a successor to Pratibha Patil. Local government Ministry: Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation; Urban Development; Rural Development India has three levels of government: national, state and local. Each state has its own legislature (usually unicameral); governor (appointed by the President of the republic for five years); and a ministerial council headed by a chief minister. The 1950 constitution established the division of power between the national and state legislatures. Local government is provided for by the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments. The national Ministry for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation; Ministry for Urban Development; and Ministry for Rural Development are all responsible for local government. Scheduling of local elections varies from state to state. There has been a trend towards devolution of union and state power to local government. National development plan The Vision 2020 report – published by the Planning Commission in December 2002 – provides the framework for development planning. The Eleventh Five-Year Plan covers the period 2007–12 and will be succeeded in 2013 by the Twelfth Plan which was in Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2013/14 174
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