Laxmikanth: Summary of Federal System | Additional Study Material for UPSC PDF Download

Introduction

Federalism is a system of government in which powers have been divided between the centre and its constituent parts such as states or provinces. It is an institutional mechanism to accommodate two sets of politics, one at the centre or national level and second at the regional or provincial level.

There are two kinds of federations:
1. Holding Together Federation

In this type, powers are shared between various constituent parts to accommodate the diversity in the whole entity. Here, powers are generally tilted towards the central authority.
Example: India, Spain, Belgium
2. Coming Together Federation

In this type, independent states come together to form a larger unit. Here, states enjoy more autonomy as compared to the holding together kind of federation.
Example: USA, Australia, Switzerland

Federalism in India

• India is a federal system but with more tilt towards a unitary system of government. It is sometimes considered a quasi-federal system as it has features of both a federal and a unitary system. Article 1 of the Indian Constitution states, ‘India, that is Bharat, shall be a union of states’. The word federation is not mentioned in the constitution. 
• Elements of federalism were introduced into modern India by the Government of India Act of 1919 which separated powers between the centre and the provincial legislatures. 
• The Constitution of India provides for a federal system of government in the country. The framers adopted the federal system due to two main reasons the large size of the country and its socio-cultural diversity. They realised that the federal system not only ensures the efficient governance of the country but also reconciles national unity with regional autonomy. 
• The Indian federal system is based on the 'Canadian model’ and not on the "American model". The "Canadian model" differs fundamentally from the American model’ in so far as it establishes a very strong centre.
  

➢ Federal Features of the Indian Union

• Governments at two levels: Centre and States
• Division of powers between the centre and states
  There are three lists given in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution which gives the subjects each level has jurisdiction in:
  (i) Union List
  (ii) State List
  (iii) Concurrent List 
• The supremacy of the constitution: The basic structure of the constitution is indestructible as laid out by the judiciary. The constitution is the supreme law in India. 
• Independent judiciary: The constitution provides for an independent and integrated judiciary. The lower and district courts are at the bottom levels, the high courts are at the state levels and at the topmost position is the Supreme Court of India. All courts are subordinate to the Supreme Court.

• The flexibility of the constitution: The constitution is a blend of flexibility and rigidity. Certain provisions of the constitution can be easily amended. In case the amendments seek to change aspects of federalism in India, the provision to bring about such amendments is not easy. 
• More power vests with the Centre: The constitution guarantees more powers with the Union List. On the Concurrent List, the parliament can make laws that can override the laws made by a state legislature on some matters. The parliament can also make laws regarding certain subjects in the State List. 
• Unequal representation of states in the Rajya Sabha: The representation of the states in the upper house is based on the state's populations. For example, Uttar Pradesh has 31 seats and Goa, 1 in the Rajya Sabha. In an ideal federal system, all the states should have equal representation. 
• The executive is a part of the legislature: In India, the executive in both the centre and the states is a part of the legislature. This goes against the principle of division of powers between the different organs of the government. 
• Lok Sabha is more powerful than the Raiva Sabha: In our system, the Lok Sabha is more powerful than the upper house and unequal powers to two houses is against the principle of federalism. 
• Emergency powers: The centre is provided with emergency powers. When an emergency is imposed, the centre has increased control over states. This undermines the autonomy of the states. 
• Integrated judiciary: The judiciary in India is integrated. There is no separate judiciary at the centre and the state levels. 
• Single citizenship: In India, only single citizenship is available to citizens. They cannot be citizens of the state as well. 
• Governor’s appointment: The governor of a state acts as the centred representative in the state. The state government does not appoint the governor, the centre does. 
• New states formation: The parliament has the power to alter the territory of a state by increasing or reducing the area of the state. It can also change the name of a state. 
• All India Services: Through the All India Services such as the IAS, IPS, IRS, etc. the centre interferes in the executive powers of the states. 
• Integrated election machinery: The Election Commission of India is responsible for conducting free and fair elections at both the centre and the state levels in India. 
• Veto over states bills: The governor of a state can reserve certain kinds of bills for the president's consideration. The president enjoys absolute veto on these bills. He can even reject the bill at the second instance that is when the bill is sent after reconsideration by the state legislature. 
• Integrated audit machinery: The president of the country appoints the CAG who audits accounts of both the centre and the states.

Issues and Challenges Faced by Indian Federalism

• It is considered one of the significant challenges to federalism in India. 
• Federalism best thrives as a democratic system when it mitigates the centralization of power-sharing between the centre and the states. 
• The voice for the demand of more states has become more prominent in recent times, especially after the formation of Telangana in 2014. Recent demands like four-fold division of Uttar Pradesh and the creation of Gorkhaland from West Bengal are instances of aggressive regionalism that pose a threat to the federal structure of India.
• The agitations for Gorkhaland, Bodoland, and Karbi Anglong have been revived. This is apart from the new demands for a separate Vidarbha State in Maharashtra, and Harit Pradesh and Poorvanchal in Uttar Pradesh. 
• For instance, West Bengal threatened India's Teesta river waters treaty with Bangladesh because of its possible potential costs for West Bengal. 

2. Division of Powers

3. Absence of Fiscal Federalism 

• The Indian Constitution, while expressly vesting the Centre with greater powers of taxation, also provides for an institutional mechanism the Finance Commission to determine the share of the States in the Central tax revenues by way of correcting this imbalance. 
• At present, about 40 percent of Central revenues (tax and non-tax) is transferred to the States, and this includes the grants they get from the Planning Commission and the Central Ministries.

4. Centralized Amendment Power 

5. The Indestructible Union with Destructible Units 

• Unlike successful federations, India Constitution doesn't have the provision for the secession of states from the Union of India. The Union has been made indestructible with a view to protecting unity and integrity in a country like India.

6. Office of the governor 

• The office of the Governor for each state in India has been a sensitive issue as it sometimes poses a threat to the federal character of Indian Union. Centre's visible arbitrariness in misusing such constitutional office has been the subject of acrimonious debates and divergent opinions in the country. 
• The imposition of President's Rule in Arunachal Pradesh in January 2016, while there was an elected government in the State, created a bizarre incidence in the constitutional history of India. The Supreme Court on July 13 termed Governor's decision unconstitutional ordered restoration of Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh.

8. Citizenship
The Indian Constitution, unlike the other federal constitutions of the world, introduces single citizenship. It is based upon the idea of one nation one citizenship'. All are citizens of lndia irrespective of whichever state he/she lives in. The States don't confer any separate status as a citizen of the State.

9. Integrated Services 
The integrated judiciary is a typical feature of Indian federation. Unlike typical federations, in India Supreme Court is the apex court and all other courts are subordinate to it. The States don't have separate independent courts dealing specially with state matters. Also, the machinery for election, accounts, and audit in India is integrated. 

10. Centralised Planning 
Although economic and social planning is found in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution, the Union Government enjoys unbridled authority over national and regional planning in India. Centralised planning, through the Planning Commission, now NITI Aayog appointed by the Centre, considerable preponderance in legislative power for the Union, the financial dependence of the states on the Centre’s mercy, the administrative inferiority of the states make the states meek and weak. 

11. Language Conflicts 
Diversity in languages in India sometimes causes a blow the federal spirit of the Constitution. There are 22 languages constitutionally approved in India. 

12. Issue of Religion