Parliamentary System
- Introduced both at the Centre and in the states.
- The parliamentary system at the Centre - Articles 74 and 75.
- The parliamentary system at the State - Articles 163 and 164.
- Modern democratic governments - parliamentary and presidential
- The parliamentary system of government - the executive is responsible to the legislature for its policies and acts.
- The parliamentary government = cabinet government, responsible government, Westminster model of government, prime ministerial government (Britain, Japan, Canada, India).
- The presidential system of government- the executive is not responsible to the legislature for its policies and acts.
- The presidential government - non-responsible, non-parliamentary, fixed executive system of government (USA, Brazil, Russia, Sri Lanka).
- Ivor Jennings called the parliamentary system as ‘cabinet system’ (the real executive).
Features-
1. Nominal and Real Executives
- The President is the nominal executive (de jure executive or titular executive) and the head of the State.
- The Prime Minister is the real executive (de facto executive) and head of the government.
- Article 74 - council of ministers headed by the Prime Minister to aid and advise the President. The advice is binding on the President .
2. Majority Party Rule
- The leader of that party is appointed as the Prime Minister by the President
- Other ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the prime minister.
- Coalition of parties may be invited by the President to form the government when no single party gets the majority.
3. Collective Responsibility
- The ministers are collectively responsible to the Parliament in general and to the Lok Sabha in particular (Article 75).
- They act as a team.
- The Lok Sabha can remove the ministry from office through no confidence motion.
4. Political Homogeneity
- Members of the council of ministers belong to the same political party
5. Double Membership
- The ministers are members of both the legislature and the executive.
- Also, a person can be a minister without being a member of the Parliament for a period of six consecutive months.
6. Leadership of the Prime Minister
- The leader of council of ministers
- Leader of the Parliament
- Leader of the party in power
7. Dissolution of the Lower House
- The lower house (Lok Sabha) can be dissolved (before the expiry of its term) by the President on recommendation of the Prime Minister.
8. Secrecy
- The ministers cannot divulge information about their proceedings, policies and decisions.
- They take the oath of secrecy is administered by the President before entering their office.
The features of the American presidential system of government:
(a) The American President is both the head of the State and the head of government.
(b) The President is elected by an electoral college for a fixed tenure of four years. He cannot be removed by the Congress except by impeachment for a grave unconstitutional act.
(c) The President governs with the help of a cabinet or a smaller body called ‘Kitchen Cabinet’. It is only an advisory body and consists of non-elected departmental secretaries.
(d) The President and his secretaries are not responsible to the Congress for their acts. They won’t attend its sessions.
(e) The President cannot dissolve the House of Representatives–the lower house of the Congress.
(f) The doctrine of separation of powers is the basis of the American presidential system. The legislative, executive and judicial powers of the government are separated and vested in the three independent organs of the government.
The parliamentary system - Merits
1. Harmony Between Legislature and Executive
2. Responsible Government
3. Prevents Despotism
4. Ready Alternative Government
- In case the ruling party loses its majority, the Head of the State can invite the opposition party to form the government.
- Hence, Dr. Jennings says, ‘the leader of the opposition is the alternative prime minister’.
5. Wide Representation
The parliamentary system - Demerits
1. Unstable Government
2. No Continuity of Policies
3. Dictatorship of the Cabinet
4. Against Separation of Powers
5. Government by Amateurs
Reasons for adopting parliamentary System
Parliamentary System
Features:
1. Dual executive.
2. Majority party rule
3. Collective responsibility.
4. Political homogeneity
5. Double membership.
6. Leadership of prime minister
.
7. Dissolution of Lower House.
8. Fusion of powers.
Merits:
1. Harmony between legislature and executive.
2. Responsible government.
3. Prevents despotism.
4. Wide representation.
Demerits:
1. Unstable government.
2. No continuity of policies.
3. Against separation of powers
4. Government by amateurs.
Presidential System
Features:
1. Single executive.
2. President and legislators elected separately for a fixed term.
3. Non-responsibility
4. Political homogeneity may not exist.
5. Single membership
6. Domination of president.
7. No dissolution of Lower House.
8. Separation of powers.
Demerits:
1. Conflict between legislature and executive.
2. Non-responsible government.
3. May lead to autocracy.
4. Narrow representation.
Merits:
1. Stable government.
2. Definiteness in policies.
3. Based on separation of powers.
4. Government by experts.

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