Question

what is the basic nature on Indian federal system

Answer 1

Governments have been classified into Unitary and Federal based on distribution of power between national and regional governments. In a federal set up there is a two tier of Government with well assigned powers and functions. In this system the central government and the governments of the region act within a well defined sphere, co-ordinate and at the same time act independently.

The federal polity, in other words, provides a constitutional device for bringing unity in diversity and for the achievement of common national goals. Hence, India was made a Federal system of government

Features of Indian constitution that makes it federal are listed in the following points:

Written Constitution: The most important feature of a federation is that it should have a written constitution, so that both the Union Government as well as the State can refer to that whenever conflict arises. The Constitution of India is a written and most elaborate  Constitution of the world. Supremacy of Constitution: The constitution is the supreme because both the union and the states are given powers by the Constitution as to be independent in their spheres of governance. Both make laws conforming to the provisions of constitution otherwise they can be declared invalid by the supreme court through its power of judicial review. Rigid Constitution: The procedure of amending the Constitution in a federal system is normally rigid. Indian Constitution provides that provisions regarding the federal attributes can be amended by a special majority,i.e. such an amendment has to be passed by majority of total members of each house of the Parliament as well as, by two-thirds majority of the members present and voting there. Also, in addition to this process, such amendments must be approved by at least 50% of the states. After this procedure the amendment is signed by the President. Division of Powers : In our Constitution, there is a clear division of powers so that none violates its limits and tries to encroach upon the functions of the other and functions within own sphere of responsibilties. There are three lists enumerated in the Seventh Schedule of constitution, –  the Union list, the State list and the Concurrent List. The Union List consists of 100 subjects of national importance such as Defence, Railways, Post and Telegraph, etc. The State List consists of 61 subjects of local interest such as Public Health, Police etc. The Concurrent List has 52 subjects important to both the Union and the State. such as Electricity, Trade Union, Economic and Social Planning, etc. Supremacy and Independence of the Judiciary: A very important feature of a federation is an independent judiciary to interpret the Constitution and to maintain its sanctity . The Supreme Court of India has the original jurisdiction to settle disputes between the Union and the States. It can declare a law as unconstitutional, if it contravenes any provision of the Constitution

Answer 2

“The power-sharing” classifications in our nation is essentially comprised of the quasi-federal nature of federation. The Indian constitution conferred a “three-fold distribution” of parliamentary powers among the union government and the state government which is recognized as ‘Three List System’.

Union List

State List

Concurrent List

(i)    Union list- 'Union list’ comprises 97 subjects of public interest.

(ii)    State list- State list comprises 66 subjects of local interest’.

(iii)   Concurrent List - Concurrent List comprises 47 subjects which are essential for both the union and state government.