Indian Constitution Quiz 6

The two forms of democracy are Parliamentary and Presidential. Parliamentary democracy is a form of government in which the party in the parliament (legislature) forms the government, its leader becoming prime minister or chancellor. The presidential system, unlike the parliamentary form of democracy, has a strong and independent chief executive with extensive powers related to both domestic, or internal, affairs and foreign policy. The president's independence from the legislature is based on election by the people to whom he or she is directly accountable and not to the legislature, as in the parliamentary system.

The manner of election of the President is provided by Article 55 of the constitution. The President of India is elected by the Members of an Electoral College consisting of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States and Union Territory.

The Panchayat Raj system was first adopted by the state of Bihar by the Bihar Panchayat Raj Act of 1947. It was a continued legacy of local self-government started by Lord Ripon in the British era. Rajasthan was the first state to introduce the panchayat system in India after independence. Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru inaugurated the three-tier Panchayati Raj System on 2nd October 1959 in Nagaur district of Rajasthan.

Originally the age of the retirement of the judges of the High Courts in India was fixed at 60 years but it was raised to 62 years in 1963 according to the 15th amendment of the Constitution of India. The retirement age for Supreme Court judges is 65 years.

Under Article 249, Members of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha enjoy special powers and responsibilities with regard to making laws on any subject in the State List; making laws to create All India Services at the national level. Lok Sabha has more powers in monetary matters as the Money Bill cannot be rejected by the Rajya Sabha; it can just delay it by a maximum of 14 days.

Article 317 of the Indian Constitution deals with the Removal and suspension of a member of a Public Service Commission. As per this article, The Chairman or any other member of UPSC shall only be removed from his/her office by order of the President of India on the basis of an inquiry and report by the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court of India, in several judgments, that have clearly established the relation between the right to housing and the right to life, as guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

Rajasthan was the first state of India to adopt the 3-tier Panchayati Raj system. Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru inaugurated three Tier Panchayati Raj Systems on 2nd October 1959 in Nagaur district of Rajasthan.

42nd Amendment, 1976 of the Indian Constitution inserted the two words — 'Socialist' and 'Secular' in the Preamble.

The Council of Ministers comprises Ministers who are members of Cabinet, Ministers of State (independent charge), Ministers of State, Ministers without Portfolio and Deputy Ministers. The Cabinet Secretary is the top-most executive official and senior-most civil servant of the Government of India.