Constitutional Bodies

Constitutional Bodies

1.Election Commission

• Article 324 deals with the Election Commission. It provides that the power of superintendence, direction and control of elections to parliament, state legislatures, the office of President of India and the office of vice-President of India shall be vested in the election commission.
• It is a permanent and an independent body.
• It is common to both the Central government and the state governments.
• It consists of the chief election commissioner and other election commissioners, as the President may decide from time to time.
• President appoints both the chief election commissioner and other election commissioners.
• The conditions of service and tenure of office of the election commissioners and the regional commissioners shall be determined by the President.
• The chief election commissioner and the two other election commissioners have equal powers and receive equal salary, allowances and other perquisites, which are similar to those of a judge of the Supreme Court.
• They hold office for a term of six years or until they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.

 POWERS AND FUNCTIONS

• It determines the territorial areas of the electoral constituencies throughout the country on the basis of the Delimitation Commission Act of Parliament.
• It prepares the electoral roll and registers all eligible voters.
• It grants recognition to the political parties and hence provides them with election symbols.
• It advises both the President and Governor on matters relating to the disqualifications of the members of Parliament and member of state legislature respectively.
• It supervises the machinery of elections throughout the country to ensure free and fair elections.

2. Union Public Service Commission

• Articles 315 to 323 in Part XIV of the Constitution deals with Union Public Service Commission.
• It deals with the composition, appointment and removal of members along with the independence, powers and functions of the UPSC.
• The UPSC consists of a chairman and other members appointed by the President of India.
• The President on his discretion decides the number of members in the Commission.
• The chairman and members of the Commission hold office for a term of six years or until they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• The Constitution visualises the UPSC to be the ‘watch-dog of merit system’ in India.
• UPSC is only a central recruiting agency.
• The role of UPSC is not only limited, but also recommendations made by it are only of advisory nature and hence, not binding on the government.
• The same structure exist in the state as well, consisting of same organisational set up and same kind of functions confined to that particular state. Although the chairman and members of a SPSC are appointed by the Governor, they can be removed only by the President (and not by the Governor). The President can remove them on the same grounds and in the same manner as he can remove a chairman or a member of the UPSC.
• The President can remove the chairman or any other member of UPSC from the office under the following circumstances:
  • If he is adjudged an insolvent (that is, has gone bankrupt);
  • If he engages, during his term of office, in any paid employment outside the duties of his office; or
  • If he is, in the opinion of the President, unfit to continue in office by reason of infirmity of mind or body.

FUNCTIONS

• UPSC conducts the examination for appointments to the all-India services, Central services and public services of the centrally administered territories.
• It assists the states in recruiting candidates requiring special qualifications.(if asked for)
• It is consulted on the following matters:
  • All matters relating to methods of recruitment to civil services and for civil posts.
  • The principles to be followed in making appointments to civil services and posts and in making promotions and transfers from one service to another.
  • The suitability of candidates for appointments to civil services and posts; for promotions and transfers from one service to another; and appointments by transfer or deputation. The concerned departments make recommendations for promotions and request the UPSC to ratify them.
  • Any claim for reimbursement of legal expenses incurred by a civil servant in defending legal proceedings instituted against him in respect of acts done in the execution of his official duties.
  • Any claim for the award of a pension in respect of injuries sustained by a person while serving under the Government of India and any question as to the amount of any such award.

Joint State Public Service Commission (JSPSC)

• The Constitution makes a provision for the establishment of a Joint State Public Service Commission for two or more states.
• While the UPSC and the SPSC are created directly by the Constitution, a JSPSC can be created by an act of Parliament on the request of the state legislatures concerned. Thus, a JSPSC is a statutory and not a constitutional body.
• The chairman and members of a JSPSC are appointed by the President.
• They hold office for a term of six years or until they attain the age of 62 years, whichever is earlier.
• They can be suspended or removed by the President. They can also resign from their offices at any time by submitting their resignation letters to the President.
• A JSPSC presents its annual performance report to each of the concerned state Governors. Each Governor places the report before the state legislature.

3. National Commission For SCs

• It’s a constitutional body as it is directly established by Article 338 of the Constitution.
• On the other hand, the other national commissions like the National Commission for Women (1992) etc are statutory bodies in the sense that they are established by acts of the Parliament.
• The separate National Commission for SCs came into existence in 2004.
• Originally, Article 338 of the Constitution provided for the appointment of a Special Officer for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
• But 89th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2003 bifurcated the combined National Commission for SCs and STs into two separate bodies, namely, National Commission for Scheduled Castes (under Article 338)and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (under Article 338-A).
• It consists of a chairperson, a vice-chairperson and three other members who are appointed by the President.
• The commission presents an annual report to the President.

Functions and Power

• The Commission is vested with the power to regulate its own procedure.
• The Commission, while investigating any matter or inquiring into any complaint, has all the powers of a civil court trying a suit and in particular in respect of the following matters:
  • summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person from any part of India and examining him on oath;
  • requiring the discovery and production of any document;
  • receiving evidence on affidavits;
  • requisitioning any public record from any court or office issuing summons for the examination of witnesses and documents; and
  • Any other matter which the President may determine.
• The Central government and the state governments are required to consult the Commission on all major policy matters affecting the SCs.

4. National Commission for STs

• The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (STs) is also a constitutional body in the sense that it is directly established by Article 338-A of the Constitution.
• The Commission was established under Article 338 of the Constitution with the objective of monitoring all the safeguards provided for the SCs and STs under the Constitution or other laws.
• It consists of a chairperson, a vice-chairperson and three other members.
• They are appointed by the President by warrant.
• Their conditions of service and tenure of office are also determined by the President.
• The Commission presents an annual report to the President.

Functions of the Commission

• To investigate and monitor all matters relating to the constitutional and other legal safeguards for the STs and to evaluate their working;
• To inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the STs;
• To participate and advise on the planning process of socio-economic development of the STs and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union or a state;
• To present to the President, reports upon the working of those safeguards;
• To make recommendations for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the STs.

5. Finance Commission

• The Constitution has made an effort to allocate every possible source of revenue either to the Union or the States and for the purpose of allocation of certain sources of revenue, between them the Constitution provides for the establishment of a Finance Commission under Article 280.
• According to the Constitution, the President of India is authorized to set up a Finance Commission every five years to make recommendation regarding distribution of financial resources between the Union and the States.
• Finance Commission is to be constituted by the President every 5 years. The Chairman must be a person having ‘experience in public affairs’. Other four members must be appointed from amongst the following:-
  • A High Court Judge or one qualified to be appointed as High Court Judge;
  • A person having knowledge of the finances and accounts of the Government;
  • A person having work experience in financial matters and administration;
  • A person having special knowledge of economics.

Functions

 The Finance Commission recommends to the President as to:-

• The distribution between the Union and the States of the net proceeds of taxes to be divided between them and the allocation between the States of respective shares of such proceeds;
• The principles which should govern the Grants-in-aid of the revenue of the States out of the Consolidated Fund of India;
• The measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of a State to supplement the resources of the Panchayats and Municipalities in the State;
• Any other matter referred to the Commission by the President in the interest of sound finance.

6. Attorney-General of India

• The Attorney-General of India is the first Law Officer of the Government of India.
• The Attorney-General is appointed by the President and he holds office during the pleasure of the President.
• In order to be appointed as the Attorney General of India, a person must have qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court.
• Functions and Responsibilities
• To give advice on such legal matters and to perform such other duties of a legal character as may, from time to time, be referred or assigned to him by the President; and
• To discharge the functions conferred on him by the Constitution or any other law for the time being in force [Art. 76]
• In the performance of his official duties, the Attorney-General shall have a right of audience in all Courts in the territory of India.
• He represents the Union & the States before the courts but is also allowed to take up private practice provided the other party is not the state. Because of this he is not paid salary but a retainer to be determined by the President. The Attorney-General gets a retainer equivalent to the salary of a Judge of the Supreme Court.
• It is a political appointment, and therefore, whenever there is a change in the party in power, the Attorney-General resigns from his post to enable the new government to appoint a nominee of its choice.
• The Attorney-General is assisted by two Solicitors-General and four Additional Solicitors-General.

7. Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities

• Originally, the Constitution of India did not make any provision with respect to the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities.
• Later, the States Reorganisation Commission (1953-55) made a recommendation in this regard.
• Accordingly, the Seventh Constitutional Amendment Act of 1956 inserted a new Article 350-B in Part XVII of the Constitution.
• It must be noted here that the Constitution does not specify the qualifications, tenure, salaries and allowances, service conditions and procedure for removal of the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities.

Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities

• Under the provisions of Article 350-B of the Constitution, the office of the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities was created in 1957.
• He is designated as the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities.
• He maintains liaison with the State Governments and Union Territories through nodal officers appointed by them.
• At the Central level, the Commissioner falls under the Ministry of Minority Affairs. Hence, he submits the annual reports or other reports to the President through the Union Minority Affairs Minister.

8. National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC)

• Parliament in august 2018 has passed the Constitution (123rd Amendment) Act, which grants Constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes.
• The act provides for the grant of constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) on par with the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes.
• It states that the President may specify the socially and educationally backward classes in the various states and union territories. He may do this in consultation with the Governor of the concerned state.
• The National Commission for Backward Classes is not yet empowered to look into the grievances of persons of Other Backward Classes. This responsibility continues to be vested with the National Commission for Scheduled Castes.
• The central and state governments will be required to consult with the NCBC on all major policy matters affecting the socially and educationally backward classes.
• The NCBC will be required to present annual reports to the President on working of the safeguards for backward classes.