33. 'India has a federal system with a difference.” Do you agree with this statement?
Justify your answer with suitable arguments.
5x1=5
Answers
Answer:
15
NEWS NATIONAL
The Hindu Explains: India’s federalism, China’s currency war and ISL-I-League fightExplained: India's asymmetric federalism
K. Venkataramanan
11 AUGUST 2019 01:00 IST
UPDATED: 12 AUGUST 2019 14:53 IST
How has Jammu and Kashmir been altered? Are there other States with special status?
The story so far: The Union government has withdrawn the special status conferred on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) under Article 370 of the Constitution. It has also divided the State into two regions and declared them as Union Territories. Thus, the government has made a significant alteration in the unique form of federalism that it has been practising in respect of the sensitive border State, which has seen war, terrorism and conflict since Independence. Instead, it has put in place an alternative form of federalism in which the two new units will be administered by the Centre.
15

NEWS
NATIONAL
The Hindu Explains: India’s federalism, China’s currency war and ISL-I-League fight
Explained: India's asymmetric federalism

K. Venkataramanan11 AUGUST 2019 01:00 IST
UPDATED: 12 AUGUST 2019 14:53 IST
How has Jammu and Kashmir been altered? Are there other States with special status?
The story so far: The Union government has withdrawn the special status conferred on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) under Article 370 of the Constitution. It has also divided the State into two regions and declared them as Union Territories. Thus, the government has made a significant alteration in the unique form of federalism that it has been practising in respect of the sensitive border State, which has seen war, terrorism and conflict since Independence. Instead, it has put in place an alternative form of federalism in which the two new units will be administered by the Centre.
How is this debate concerned with federalism?
Nations are described as ‘federal’ or ‘unitary’, depending on the way in which governance is organised. In a unitary set-up, the Centre has plenary powers of administration and legislation, with its constituent units having little autonomy. In a federal arrangement, the constituent units are identified on the basis of region or ethnicity, and conferred varying forms of autonomy or some level of administrative and legislative powers. As the current political status of J&K — as two Union Territories — is a form of demotion from the sort of autonomy it enjoyed, it becomes an issue concerning federalism.
Why is India called ‘quasi-federal’?
The Supreme Court has commented on the nature of the Indian Union in several judgments. It has noted that the essence of a ‘federation’ is the existence of the Union of the States, and the distribution of powers between them. In S.R. Bommai vs. Union of India, it notes the commonly invoked model of federalism is the United States, by which it is clear that it is a federation of States. These States were independent and sovereign in their territories, and decided to form a federation. Their territories cannot be altered by the federal government. In India, on the other hand, Parliament has the power to admit new States, create new States, alter their boundaries and their names, and unite or divide the States. In the latest exercise, the unprecedented act of converting a State into a Union Territory has also been performed. The concurrence of States is not needed for the formation and unmaking of States and Union Territories. Further, the court noted the existence of several provisions of the Constitution that allow the Centre to override the powers of the States. In legislation, there is a Concurrent List, unlike in the U.S., which outlines the powers of the federal government, and leaves any matter not mentioned in it as the legislative field for the States. In India, the residuary powers of legislation, that is the power to make law in a field not specified in the Constitution, is vested in Parliament, whereas in the U.S., residuary powers are with the States. Further, in fiscal matters, the power of the States to raise their own resources is limited, and there is a good deal of dependency on the Centre for financial assistance.