Class 10 Political Science · Chapter 2 NotesFederalism

Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country. Usually, a federation has two levels of government: one for the entire country, responsible for subjects of common national interest, and others at the level of provinces or states that look after day-to-day administration. Both levels enjoy their power independent of each other. In a unitary system, either there is only one level of government or the sub-units are subordinate to the central government. The central government can pass orders to provincial or local governments. In a federal system, the central government cannot order the state government to do something. State government has powers of its own for which it is not answerable to the central government. Both levels are separately answerable to the people.

• Federalismpower divided between a central authority and constituent units.
• Unitary systemone level of government or sub-units subordinate to the central government.

An ideal federal system has two crucial aspects: mutual trust and agreement to live together. The key features of federalism are: (1) There are two or more levels of government. (2) Different tiers govern the same citizens, but each tier has its own jurisdiction in specific matters of legislation, taxation, and administration. (3) The jurisdictions of the respective levels are specified in the constitution, so the existence and authority of each tier is constitutionally guaranteed. (4) The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed by one level of government; such changes require the consent of both levels. (5) Courts have the power to interpret the constitution and the powers of different levels of government. The highest court acts as an umpire if disputes arise. (6) Sources of revenue for each level are clearly specified to ensure financial autonomy. The federal system has dual objectives: to safeguard and promote unity of the country while accommodating regional diversity.

• Two or more levels of government.
• Same citizens, different jurisdictions.
• Constitutionally guaranteed authority.
• Rigid constitution amendment process.
• Independent judiciary as umpire.
• Financial autonomy through specified revenue sources.

Federations have been formed through two main routes. The first route involves independent states coming together on their own to form a bigger unit, pooling sovereignty and retaining identity to increase security. This type of 'coming together' federation includes the USA, Switzerland, and Australia. In this category, all constituent states usually have equal power and are strong vis-à-vis the federal government. The second route is where a large country decides to divide its power between the constituent states and the national government. India, Spain, and Belgium are examples of this 'holding together' federation. In this second category, the central government tends to be more powerful vis-à-vis the states. Very often, different constituent units have unequal powers, and some units are granted special powers.

• Coming together federationsUSA, Switzerland, Australia.
• Holding together federationsIndia, Spain, Belgium.

The Indian Constitution declared India as a Union of States. Although it did not use the word 'federation', the Indian Union is based on the principles of federalism. The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system: the Union Government (Central Government) and the State governments. Later, a third tier was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities. The Constitution clearly provided a three-fold distribution of legislative powers between the Union and State Governments through three lists. The Union List includes subjects of national importance such as defence, foreign affairs, banking, communications, and currency. The State List contains subjects of state and local importance such as police, trade, commerce, agriculture, and irrigation. The Concurrent List includes subjects of common interest such as education, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption, and succession. If laws made by both levels conflict, the Union law prevails. Subjects not in any list, like computer software, are residuary subjects, and the Union Government has the power to legislate on them.

• Union Listdefence, foreign affairs, banking, communications, currency.
• State Listpolice, trade, commerce, agriculture, irrigation.
• Concurrent Listeducation, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption, succession.
• Residuary subjectsUnion Government legislates.

All States in the Indian Union do not have identical powers. Some States enjoy a special status. States such as Assam, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, and Mizoram enjoy special powers under Article 371 due to their peculiar social and historical circumstances. These special powers relate to the protection of land rights of indigenous peoples, their culture, and preferential employment in government services. Indians who are not permanent residents of these States cannot buy land or houses there. There are also Union Territories like Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, and Delhi, which are too small to become independent States but could not be merged with existing States. These territories do not have the powers of a State, and the Central Government has special powers in running them. The power-sharing arrangement between the Union and State Governments is basic to the Constitution and cannot be changed unilaterally by Parliament. Any change requires a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament and ratification by at least half of the total States. The judiciary plays an important role in overseeing the implementation of constitutional provisions and resolving disputes about division of powers.

• Special provisions under Article 371 for certain States.
• Union TerritoriesChandigarh, Lakshadweep, Delhi.
• Amendment requires special majority and state ratification.
• Judiciary acts as umpire in disputes.

Constitutional provisions alone are not sufficient for the success of federalism. The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to the nature of democratic politics. Linguistic states were the first major test. In 1947, boundaries of several old States were changed to create new States, ensuring that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State. Some States were created to recognise differences based on culture, ethnicity, or geography, such as Nagaland, Uttarakhand, and Jharkhand. The formation of linguistic States made the country more united and administration easier. The second test was the language policy. The Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language. Hindi was identified as the official language, but there are 21 other languages recognised as Scheduled Languages. A candidate for Central Government examinations may opt to take the examination in any of these languages. States have their own official languages. The use of English for official purposes was to stop in 1965, but many non-Hindi speaking States demanded its continuation. The Central Government agreed to continue English along with Hindi. This flexibility helped India avoid the kind of situation Sri Lanka finds itself in.

• Linguistic statescreated on the basis of language.
• Language policyHindi as official language, 21 other Scheduled Languages.
• English continues along with Hindi for official purposes.

Restructuring Centre-State relations is another way federalism has been strengthened in practice. For a long time, the same party ruled both at the Centre and in most States. State Governments did not exercise their rights as autonomous federal units. When different parties ruled at the State level, the Central Government often tried to undermine the power of the States and misused the Constitution to dismiss State Governments controlled by rival parties. This undermined the spirit of federalism. All this changed significantly after 1990. This period saw the rise of regional political parties in many States. It was also the beginning of the era of coalition governments at the Centre. Since no single party got a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, major national parties had to enter into alliances with regional parties to form the government. This led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of State Governments. A major judgement of the Supreme Court made it difficult for the Central Government to dismiss State Governments in an arbitrary manner. Thus, federal power sharing is more effective today than in the early years after the Constitution came into force.

• Coalition governmentan alliance of at least two political parties.
• Rise of regional parties after 1990.
• Supreme Court judgement curbed arbitrary dismissal of State Governments.

A vast country like India cannot be run only through two tiers of government. States are as large as independent countries of Europe. There is a need for power sharing within the States. When power is taken away from Central and State governments and given to local government, it is called decentralisation. The basic idea is that many problems and issues are best settled at the local level. People have better knowledge of local problems and can participate directly in decision making. The need for decentralisation was recognised in the Constitution, and a major step was taken in 1992. The Constitution was amended to make the third tier of democracy more powerful and effective. It is now mandatory to hold regular elections to local government bodies. Seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes. At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women. An independent State Election Commission conducts panchayat and municipal elections. State governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies. Rural local government is known as panchayati raj. Each village or group of villages has a gram panchayat, consisting of ward members (panch) and a president (sarpanch). The gram sabha, consisting of all voters in the village, supervises the gram panchayat. A few gram panchayats form a panchayat samiti or block or mandal. All panchayat samitis in a district constitute the zilla parishad. Urban areas have municipalities and municipal corporations, headed by a municipal chairperson or mayor. This new system of local government is the largest experiment in democracy conducted anywhere in the world, with about 36 lakh elected representatives. However, there are difficulties: gram sabhas are not held regularly, and most state governments have not transferred significant powers or adequate resources to local governments. We are still a long way from realising the ideal of self-government.

• Decentralisationpower taken from Central and State governments and given to local government.
• 1992 Constitutional amendment made third tier mandatory.
• Gram panchayat, panchayat samiti, zilla parishad for rural areas.
• Municipalities and municipal corporations for urban areas.
• Reservation for SC, ST, OBC, and women.