President

1. Constitutional position and qualifications

Article 52 establishes the office of President. Article 53 vests the executive power of the Union in the President, exercisable directly or through subordinate officers in accordance with the Constitution. Supreme command of the defence forces also vests in the President, but its exercise is regulated by law. These provisions create a constitutional head, not a presidential system of government.

Under Article 58, a candidate must be an Indian citizen, have completed 35 years of age and be qualified for election to the Lok Sabha. The candidate must not hold an office of profit under the Union, a State or specified public authorities. Holding office as President, Vice-President, Governor or Union or State minister does not disqualify a candidate on this ground.

Article 59 prohibits the President from simultaneously belonging to Parliament or a State legislature or holding another office of profit. A legislator elected President vacates that legislative seat on entering office. Emoluments and allowances cannot be diminished during the term. Under Article 60, the Chief Justice of India, or in the Chief Justice’s absence the senior-most available Supreme Court judge, administers the oath to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and law.

2. Election, tenure and vacancies

Under Articles 54–55, the electoral college comprises elected members of both Houses of Parliament and elected members of State Legislative Assemblies, including the Assemblies of Delhi and Puducherry. Nominated MPs and MLAs, Legislative Council members and local-body representatives do not vote. The 70th Amendment included Delhi and Puducherry for this purpose.

Vote values balance representation among States and between the States collectively and Parliament. An MLA’s vote value is calculated by dividing the State’s population by its number of elected MLAs and then by 1,000, applying constitutional rounding rules. An elected MP’s vote value is obtained by dividing the total value of Assembly votes by the total number of elected MPs, with prescribed rounding.

The population reference remains the 1971 Census until publication of the relevant figures of the first census taken after 2026. Thus, 2026 alone does not automatically change vote values. Voting uses ranked preferences and a secret ballot; political parties cannot issue a binding whip for this election. A nomination requires at least 50 proposers and 50 seconders from the electoral college and a ₹15,000 security deposit.

Under Article 56, the term is five years, but the President continues until the successor enters office. Resignation is addressed to the Vice-President, who communicates it to the Lok Sabha Speaker. A regular election must finish before the term expires. A casual vacancy must be filled as soon as possible and within six months; the new President receives a full five-year term. The Vice-President acts as President during a vacancy.

3. Executive powers and ministerial advice

The President appoints the Prime Minister and, on the Prime Minister’s advice, other ministers. Constitutional appointments also include Governors, Supreme Court and High Court judges, the Comptroller and Auditor General and members of the Union Public Service Commission, subject to applicable constitutional and statutory procedures. Article 77 requires Union executive action to be expressed in the President’s name.

Article 74 requires the President to act on ministerial advice. The 42nd Amendment made this obligation explicit; the 44th Amendment allowed the President to require reconsideration once. Advice tendered after reconsideration must be followed. Article 74(2) prevents courts from inquiring into whether, and what, advice ministers tendered.

In Shamsher Singh v. State of Punjab (1974), the Supreme Court affirmed the constitutional-head character of the President and Governor. Limited situational judgment can arise when selecting a Prime Minister in a hung Lok Sabha or assessing competing claims to form a government. Such judgment must serve parliamentary confidence, not independent policymaking. Under Article 78, the President can seek information from the Prime Minister and require an individual minister’s decision to be placed before the Council.

4. Legislative, financial and emergency functions

The President summons and prorogues Parliament and dissolves the Lok Sabha, ordinarily on advice. The President addresses both Houses together after each general election and at the first session each year, and nominates 12 Rajya Sabha members with special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art and social service.

Under Article 111, the President may assent to a bill or withhold assent. A non-Money Bill may be returned once for reconsideration; after Parliament passes it again, with or without amendments, assent cannot be withheld. A Money Bill cannot be returned. A constitutional amendment bill duly passed under Article 368 must receive assent. Article 111 fixes no decision deadline, creating the possibility commonly termed a pocket veto.

Article 123 permits ordinances when both Houses are not simultaneously in session and circumstances require immediate action. An ordinance has the force of an Act but must be laid before both Houses and ceases six weeks after Parliament reassembles, unless approved earlier or otherwise terminated. Where Houses reassemble on different dates, the later date starts this period. Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar (2017) rejected routine re-promulgation as constitutionally impermissible.

Presidential recommendation is required for introducing Money Bills. The President causes the annual financial statement to be laid before Parliament and constitutes the Finance Commission under Article 280. Emergency proclamations operate under Articles 352, 356 and 360, subject to constitutional safeguards. A national emergency requires a written decision of the Union Cabinet, not merely the Prime Minister’s personal advice.

5. Clemency, accountability and removal

Article 72 authorises pardons, reprieves, respites, remissions and suspension, remission or commutation of sentences in court-martial cases, offences concerning matters within Union executive power and all death-sentence cases. A pardon removes punishment and disqualifications attached to the conviction; commutation substitutes a lighter punishment; remission reduces duration without changing the sentence’s character. Reprieve temporarily stays execution, while respite provides a lesser sentence owing to special circumstances.

Clemency is exercised on ministerial advice, not as personal presidential discretion. Kehar Singh v. Union of India (1989) recognised that the President may examine the merits of a case when considering mercy. Epuru Sudhakar v. Government of Andhra Pradesh (2006) affirmed limited judicial review of clemency for grounds such as mala fides, arbitrariness and irrelevant considerations. Under Article 143, the President may also seek the Supreme Court’s advisory opinion.

Article 61 permits impeachment for violation of the Constitution, an expression not specifically defined. Either House can initiate proceedings after at least 14 days’ notice signed by at least one-fourth of its total membership. The initiating resolution needs at least two-thirds of total membership. The other House investigates, allowing presidential representation, and removal requires the same total-membership majority there.

Nominated MPs participate in impeachment, but State legislators do not. Article 361 protects the President from court accountability for official acts and bars criminal proceedings during tenure. Civil proceedings concerning personal acts require two months’ prior notice. These protections do not place the constitutional validity of governmental action beyond judicial review.

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