Answer:

Article 356 of the Indian Constitution empowers the Centre to take over the State Government on
certain grounds. Popularly known as the President’s rule it authorizes the President to assume both
legislative and executive powers of the state.
Grounds for imposition:
 Art. 355: It shall be the duty of the Union to protect every State against external aggression and
internal disturbance and to ensure that the government of every State is carried on in accordance
with the provisions of this Constitution.
 Art. 365: When State fails to comply with or give effect to any direction from the Centre.
It was hoped to be a dead-letter and was supposed to be used as a measure of last resort because:
 It is an extraordinary device in the hands of the Centre.
 It alters and infringes upon the federal feature of the Indian Constitution.
 It goes against the people’s mandate by removing the democratically elected State Government.
It has become controversial due to the following reasons:
 Frequent use: Since 1950, the President’s Rule has been imposed on over 100 occasions.
 Imposition on arbitrary grounds for political or personal reasons.
 Imposition when there are different parties at the Centre and State level.
 The expression ‘breakdown of constitutional machinery’ is not defined in the Constitution.
 Misuse of Art. 365 as ‘directions from the Centre’ are vague and unexplained.
 Biased and distorted reports sent by the Governor to the Centre, which results in imposition of
President’s rule.
 A law made by the Parliament during State Emergency continues to be operative even after it.

The Sarkaria Commission has recommended rare use of this article i.e. only after all the other
alternatives are exhausted. In S.R.Bommai vs. Union of India (1994), the SC held that the President’s
proclamation imposing President’s rule is subject to judicial review and is liable to be struck down if it is
based on irrelevant and malafide sources/intentions. The courts can reinstate the State Government in
such a case. This was recently upheld in the Nabam Rebia and etc. vs. Deputy Speaker and Ors. 2016.
Even after the SC ruling, many State governments were dismissed without the compulsory floor test.
Therefore, it is imperative to follow the SC directives in letter and spirit to promote the ideal of
cooperative federalism.

Copyright © by Vision IAS

All rights are reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission
of Vision IAS

19 www.visionias.in ©Vision IAS