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C ommo nwe a l t h memb e r c o u n t r i e s 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, holding jurisdiction over disputes between federal and state governments. Government and politics Last elections: 7 April–12 May 2014 Next elections: 2019 Head of state: President Pranab Mukherjee (2012–) Head of government: Prime Minister Dr Narendra Modi Ruling party: Bharatiya Janata Party Women MPs: 11% (previous Lok Sabha) 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 the 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 to place since 1984, when a preelection alliance managed to secure a clear majority in parliament. In an early election, the first to use electronic voting machines, held over four days in April/May 2004, the coalition – the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) – led by the Indian National Congress (INC) emerged, with 214 seats, ahead of the ruling NDA (187 seats). The INC won 146 seats and the BJP 137. However, INC leader Sonia Gandhi decided not to accept the prime ministership and Dr Manmohan Singh, a former Minister of Finance who had overseen the economic reform programme in the early 1990s, was chosen by the INC to form the new government. The Communist Party of India (Marxist), with 43 seats, joined the INC to provide the majority necessary to take the new agenda forward. The July 2007 presidential election was won by Pratibha Patil of the INC, who was the nominee of the 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), or CPI(M), would not support the government’s proposed nuclear deal with the USA, the government narrowly survived a vote of confidence (275 to 256 votes, with 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 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 the BJP’s Purno Agitok Sangma in the electoral college vote to choose a successor to Pratibha Patil. The general election held on a number of days during the period 7 April–12 May 2014 was won decisively by the BJP-led NDA. The BJP secured 282 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats (with 31.0 per cent of the votes cast); the INC 44 seats (19.3 per cent), All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam 37 and All India Trinamool Congress 34. On 26 May 2014 BJP leader Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat State for 2001–14, was sworn in as Prime Minister. 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 Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2014/15 174 Governance institutions Bureau of Indian Standards: www.bis.org.in Central Electricity Regulatory Commission: www.cercind.gov.in Central Vigilance Commission: cvc.nic.in Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry: commerce.nic.in Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry: dipp.nic.in Election Commission of India: eci.nic.in Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority: www.irda.gov.in Lok Sabha (House of the People): loksabha.nic.in Ministry of Finance: finmin.nic.in Ministry of Law and Justice: lawmin.nic.in National Assessment and Accreditation Council: www.naac.gov.in National Stock Exchange of India: www.nseindia.com Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority: pfrda.org.in Planning Commission: planningcommission.nic.in Prime Minister’s Office: www.pmindia.nic.in Rajya Sabha (Council of States): rajyasabha.nic.in Reserve Bank of India: www.rbi.org.in Securities and Exchange Board of India: www.sebi.gov.in Supreme Court of India: supremecourtofindia.nic.in Telecom Regulatory Authority: www.trai.gov.in


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