Syllabus: GS 2- Parliament and State legislatures\u2014structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\nContext:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>Analysing\u00a0the need to change the parliamentary system in the backdrop of disgraceful political situations in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nBackground:<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n- The horse-trading of MLAs has led to switch of allegiances for power.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Pluralist democracy is India\u2019s greatest strength but its current manner of operation is the source of our major weaknesses.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Issues of parliamentary system:<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- Unqualified legislators:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The system has created them who sought election only in order to wield executive power.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Dependence on legislative majority:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>They are obliged to focus more on politics than on policy or performance.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Distorted voting preference of an electorate:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>They know which individuals it wants to vote but not necessarily which parties.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Shifting alliances:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The system led to changing sides by selfish individual interests and not guided by vehicles of coherent sets of ideas.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Focus to remain in power:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>It has forced governments to concentrate less on governing and obliged them to cater to the lowest common denominator of their coalitions.<\/span><\/li>\n
- The parliamentary system devised in Britain:<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- Which is a small island nation with electorates of less than a lakh voters per constituency and is based on traditions which simply do not exist in India.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Absence of a real party system:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>In India a party is all-too-often a label of convenience which a politician adopts and changes easily.<\/span><\/li>\n
- The voter chooses not between parties but between individuals usually on the basis of their caste, their public image or other personal qualities.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Reason for entering Parliament is to attain governmental office creates specific problems:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Limits executive posts to those who are electable than to those who are able<\/strong><\/span>:<\/span><\/li>\n
- The PM cannot appoint a cabinet of his choice and he has to cater to the wishes of the political leaders of several parties.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Talent pool has not been widened:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>Though he can bring some members in through the Rajya Sabhabut\u00a0our upper house too has been largely the preserve of full-time politicians.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- It puts a premium on defections and horse-trading<\/strong><\/span>:<\/span><\/li>\n
- The anti-defection Act of 1985 has failed to cure the problem.<\/span><\/li>\n
- The bargaining has shifted to getting enough MLAs to resign to topple a government and promising them offices when they win the subsequent by-elections.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Legislation suffers:<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- Most laws are drafted by the executive, in practice by the bureaucracy, and parliamentary input into their formulation and passage is minimal.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Many bills are passed after barely a few minutes of debate.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- MPs blindly vote as their party demands:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The ruling party inevitably issues a whip to its members in order to ensure smooth passage of a bill and since defiance of a whip itself attracts disqualification.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Accountability of the government to the people through their elected representatives is weakened.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Parliament or Assembly serves as a theatre for the demonstration of their power to disrupt:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
- In India\u2019s Parliament, many opposition members feel that the best way to show the strength of their feelings is to disrupt law-making rather than debate the law.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What our present system has not done<\/strong>?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n- To ensure effective performance<\/strong><\/span>: India\u2019s many challenges require political arrangements that permit decisive action whereas ours increasingly promotes drift and indecision.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Government stability:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>By holding the executive hostage to the agendas of a few legislators.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The case for a presidential system has never been clearer.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nCase for Presidential system:<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Stability of tenure:<\/strong><\/span>A directly elected chief executive in New Delhi and in each state instead of being vulnerable to the shifting coalition support politics.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Cabinet of talent:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The executive would have stability of tenure free and be able to devote his or her energies to governance and not just to government.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Will represent majority of Indians and not of MPs:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>The Indian voter will be able to vote directly for the individual he or she wants to be ruled.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
- Judging performance:\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>At the end of a fixed period of time, the public would be able to judge the individual rather than on political skill at keeping a government in office.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Issue to Presidential system: Risk of dictatorship:<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0It conjures up the image of an imperious president who is immune to parliamentary defeat and impervious to public opinion.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n