Central and State Government

Overview

The topic of Central and State Government forms the backbone of Indian polity questions in MAHA TET Paper II Social Studies. It covers the structure, composition and functions of the three organs of government—Legislature, Executive and Judiciary—at both Union and State levels. Understanding how Parliament and State Legislatures make laws, how the President, Prime Minister, Governor and Chief Minister exercise executive powers, and how the Supreme Court and High Courts deliver justice is essential.

This topic carries consistent weightage in TET examinations. Questions typically test factual knowledge about constitutional provisions, membership numbers, tenures, appointment procedures and the relationship between different organs. Students must know the differences between Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, understand the federal structure with its division of powers, and grasp how the judiciary acts as guardian of the Constitution.

Key Concepts

• **Separation of Powers**: The Constitution distributes governmental power among Legislature (law-making), Executive (law-implementation) and Judiciary (law-interpretation) to prevent concentration of authority.

• **Parliamentary System**: India follows a parliamentary democracy where the Executive is drawn from and accountable to the Legislature; the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers must enjoy majority support in Lok Sabha.

• **Bicameral Legislature**: Parliament has two Houses—Lok Sabha (lower, directly elected) and Rajya Sabha (upper, indirectly elected); similarly, some states have bicameral legislatures with Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad.

• **Federal Structure with Unitary Bias**: Power is divided between Centre and States through Union List, State List and Concurrent List, but the Centre has overriding powers in emergencies.

• **Collective Responsibility**: The Council of Ministers at Centre and State levels is collectively responsible to the lower house—if the government loses majority, it must resign.

• **Judicial Independence**: Judges are appointed through a collegium system and can be removed only through impeachment, ensuring the judiciary remains free from executive pressure.

• **Constitutional Head vs Real Executive**: President and Governor are nominal heads; real executive power rests with Prime Minister and Chief Minister respectively.

Key Facts

| Institution | Key Details | |-------------|-------------| | **Lok Sabha** | Maximum 552 members (530 States + 20 UTs + 2 Anglo-Indians, though nomination discontinued from 2020); term 5 years; presided by Speaker | | **Rajya Sabha** | Maximum 250 members (238 elected + 12 nominated); permanent body, 1/3 retire every 2 years; each member serves 6 years; presided by Vice-President | | **President** | Elected by electoral college (MPs + MLAs); term 5 years; can be re-elected; must be 35+ years, Indian citizen | | **Vice-President** | Elected by MPs of both Houses; term 5 years; ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha | | **Prime Minister** | Appointed by President; leader of majority party/coalition in Lok Sabha; heads Council of Ministers | | **Governor** | Appointed by President; nominal head of State; term 5 years (holds office at pleasure of President) | | **Chief Minister** | Appointed by Governor; leader of majority party in Vidhan Sabha; heads State Council of Ministers | | **Supreme Court** | Chief Justice + 33 judges (current sanctioned strength 34); original, appellate and advisory jurisdiction | | **High Court** | One for each State (or group of States); Chief Justice + other judges; writ jurisdiction under Article 226 |