[UPSC] President Of India, Election, Powers, Functions, Top MCQs

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This article is about the President of India. This article is very important from the examination point of view.

Also Check: Fundamental Duties and DPSPs

Also Check: History of cooperative movement

President

All the important details regarding the president of India are enshrined in Part V of the Indian constitution, from articles 52 to 78. He is the nominal head of the country and also its first citizen.

Election of president

The election of the president of India is held by proportional representation by means of single transferable vote and voting through a secret Ballot.

The electoral college for the presidential election in India consists of :

  1. Elected members of both LS+RS
  2. Elected members of State legislature
  3. Elected member of UT(Delhi+Puducherry)

In case of the presidential election,

Vote of MLA=(Total Pop. Of state)/(No. of elected members x 1000)
Vote of MP= Total value of votes of MLA/Total no. of elected members of Lok Sabha and Rajhya Sabha.

(Value of Vote of each MLA varies from State to state)

Remember that All disputes with elections of president resolved by Supreme Court.

Qualification for Indian president

In order for a person to be eligible to be the president of India, he/she should be:

  1. aged above 35 years.
  2. qualified to be the member of Lok Sabha.

The oath to the presidentof India is administered by Chief Justice of India.

Term of office

The term of office of Indian president is 5yrs. However, he/she can resign any time before the completion of his term by addressing his resignation to Vice President.

The president is eligible for reappointment any number of times.

Impeachment of Indian President

The president of India can be Impeached for violation of constitution.

  1. The impeachment process can Initiated by either House
  2. The impeachment resolution must be Signed by 1/4th members & 14 days notice must be given to president.
  3. This impeachment Resolution must be passed by Special majority by both houses.
  4. In impeachment, both Elected+Nominated Members of LS+RS participate.
  5. No member from state Legislature n UTs participates in the impeachment process of president.

Powers of Indian president

The powers of Indian president can be classified into following types:

Executive Powers

The executive powers of Union of India are vested in the President.

The president :

  1. makes rules for transaction of business of union govt.
  2. appoints- PM, Council of Ministers, Attorney General, CAG, Governors, etc
  3. has the powers to declare any area as scheduled area.

Legislative powers

The president :

  1. Summons/prorogues/dissolves LS;
  2. AppoInts speakers and dept. speakers when office falls vacant.
  3. Nominates 12 personalities to RS.
  4. Decides disqualification of members with Election commission.
  5. has the power to issue Ordinances.

Financial powers

The president can:

Veto Powers

When a bill is presented before the president, he can give or with-hold his assent to it, or can return the bill.

The President of India enjoys 3 Veto power:

Absolute Veto: To Withhold his Assent to Bill then Bill ends; it is available for Private Members bill and when Cabinet Resigns.
Suspensive Veto: When he Returns bill for reconsideration; No suspensive Veto available for Money Bill
Pocket Veto: Simply keeping Bill pending for indefinite time(NO ACTION); Pocket veto is not available for Constitutional amendment Bills. ( The pocket veto enjoyed by the Indian President is Wider than the pocket veto of American President.

Remember that Indian president does not have Qualified Veto. Qualified Veto is that veto which can be overridden by legislature by passing the bill once againwith higher majority.

President’s Veto over state bills:

When a state bill is presented before the Governor of the state, he has 4 options at his disposal as enshrined in article 200 of the Indian constitution:

  1. The governor can grant his assent to the bill.
  2. The governor can withhold his assent to the bill.
  3. The governor can return the bill.
  4. The governor can reserve the bill for the consideration of the president.

Article 201 of the Indian constitution lays down that If a Bill is reserved by the Governor for President’s consideration, The president has 3 options: Give Assent, withhold assent or Direct Governor to return Bill to the houses of the state legislature for their reconsideration.

Remember that the President is not bound to give Assent to the state Bill, even if it is repassed by the state legislature.

Ordinance making power

The President has the power to promulgate ordinances during recess of parliament.

Follwoing points must be remembered regarding the ordinance making power of the president:

  1. Ordinances can be promulgated only when both(LS+RS) are not in session or either of house is not in session.
  2. Ordinances can be issued only when the president is SATISFIED to take action (44th constitutional Amendment lays down that president’s satisfaction is subject to Judicial Review, to check the malafide intentions of the president.
  3. When parliament reassembles, both houses must approve the ordinance for it to become an Act.
  4. The ordinance Expires after 6 weeks of the reassembly of the parliament, if it is not approved. Max. Life of an ordinance can be 6 Months 6 Weeks.
  5. The president can issue ordinances only on advice of council of ministers.
  6. Ordinance can not be issued to Amend Constitution.
  7. Ordinance making power of president is Coextensive with parliament’s legislative power but not parallel to it.

Pardoning Power of President (Article 72)

It is an executive Power; Independent of Judiciary. The president can use his pardoning power to:

  1. Pardon: Completely absolves conviction.
  2. Commutation: Substitution of a harsher punishment by lighter punishment.
  3. Remission: Reducing Period without changing character of punishment.
  4. Respite: Lesser sentence than original due to special facts- pregnancy, disability,etc
    Reprieve: Stay on execution for temporary period.

Important Facts about President Of India

  1. DR RAJENDRA PRASAD was the first president of India.
  2. DR RAJENDRA PRASAD became president of India twice.
  3. SANJEEVAN REDDY was elected as president unopposed in 1977.
  4. ZAKIR HUSSAIN is the only president to die in office in 1969.
  5. K.R. Narayanan was the first Dalit president of India.

MCQs On President Of India

In the forthcoming section, you will get some important MCQs on the president of India. These MCQs are very important for the exams conducted by UPSC, SSC and other state level commissions and boards.

Who is considered as the first citizen of India?

  1. Prime Minister
  2. president
  3. Chief justice of Inida
  4. Vice president of India

president

Who among the following presidents of India was also the secretary general of non-aligned movement for some time?

  1. Dr S. Radhakrishnan
  2. V.V.Giri
  3. Giani Zail Singh
  4. Dr. S.D.Sharma

Giani Zail Singh

Who among the following do not take part in election of the president?

  1. elected members of Rajhya Sabha
  2. elected members of Lok Sabha
  3. members of legislative assembly
  4. members of legislative council

members of legislative council

Which of the following presidents held office for two consecutive terms?

  1. Dr. Rajendra Prasad
  2. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan
  3. Dr. Zakir Hussain
  4. Giani Zail Singh

Dr. Rajendra Prasad

Which among the following veto powers is not enjoyed by the president of India?

  1. qualified veto
  2. absolute veto
  3. suspensive veto
  4. pocket veto

qualified veto

If the election of a person as a president is declared null and void by the competent body in this regard, the acts done by him are:

  1. invalidated
  2. not invalidated
  3. depends upon the decision given by the competent body
  4. depends upon the decision taken by the parliament

not invalidated

The oath of office to the president is adminstered by :

  1. the chief justice of India
  2. the vice president of India
  3. the prime minister of India
  4. the Home minister of India

The chief justice of India

Which of the following is true?

  1. the president holds office for a period of 5 years or upto the age of 75 years, which ever is minimum.
  2. a person can be elected to the office of the president only twice in India.
  1. only 1
  2. only 2
  3. both
  4. none

none

Which article lays down the procedure for impeachment of the president?

  1. Article 59
  2. Article 60
  3. Article 61
  4. Article 62

Article 61

The disputes regarding the election of the president are decided by?

  1. The supreme court
  2. election commission of India
  3. the parliament
  4. parliament and supreme court

The supreme court

How many presidents have been impeached so far?

  1. 0
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. 3

0, No president has been impeached in India so far.

Which one is true?

  1. if the office of the president falls vacant, the election to fill the vacancy should be held within 12 months.
  2. in case of vacancy of the president’s post, Vice president acts as the president untill a new president is elected.
  1. both of them
  2. none of them
  3. only 1
  4. only 2

only 2 (4th Option)

Which among the following is true about the election of a president?

  1. It is held in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote.
  2. the nominated members of the parliament take part in the process of presidential elections.
  3. minimum age for a person to become president is 35 years.
  1. only 1 and 3
  2. only 3
  3. only 2 and 3
  4. all of them

only 1 and 3

The president can resign from his office by addressing the resignation letter to?

  1. Prime Minister
  2. chief justice of india
  3. vice president
  4. home minister

vice president

Which of the following is true about the powers of the president?

  1. he can ask the vice president to appoint an inter state council.
  2. he can declare any area as the scheduled area.
  3. he appoints the prime minister and the other ministers and they hold office during his pleasure.
  1. only 2 and 3
  2. only 1 and 3
  3. only 3
  4. all of them

only 2 and 3

The legislative powers of the President include?

  1. he can summon or prorogue the parliament.
  2. he can dissolve the Rajhya sabha
  3. he decides the matters of disqualification of members in consultation with the Prime Minister.
  1. only 1
  2. only 2 and 3
  3. only 1 and 3
  4. all of them

only 1

Which of the following is true about the powers of a president with reference to a money bill?

  1. money bills can be introduced in the state assembly only with his prior recommendation.
  2. he cannot return a money bill for reconsideration of the parliament.
  1. both
  2. none
  3. only 1
  4. only 2

only 2

Which article empowers the president to grant pardons?

  1. Article 72
  2. Article 71
  3. article 73
  4. article 70

Article 72

The president holds office for a term of _____ years from the date ___________?

  1. 5, he assumes charge of his office
  2. 5, of notification of such election
  3. 6, he assumes charge of his office
  4. 6, of notification of such election.

5, he assumes charge of his office

Which one is true for the suspensive veto of the president, with reference to a bill reserved by a governor, for his consideration?

  1. it can be overriden by the state legislature by repassing the bill with ordinary majority
  2. it can be overriden by the state legislature by repassing the bill with special majority
  3. it can not be overriden by the state legislature at all
  4. none of them

it can not be overriden by the state legislature at all

The president of India has a suspensive veto, which can be overriden by the repassage of the bill by the parliament with?

  1. same ordinary majority
  2. higher majority
  3. ordinary majority in lower house and special majority in upper house
  4. ordinary majority in upper house and special majority in lower house

same ordinary majority

If a bill returned by the president is passed again by the parliament and then presented before him once again, then which one is true ?

  1. the president can return the bill once again.
  2. the president can withhold his assent to the bill.
  3. the president must give his assent to the bill.
  4. the president can use qualified veto in this special matter

the president must give his assent to the bill.

Which of the following is true about the impeachment process of the president?

  1. it can be initiated in Lok Sabha only.
  2. the nominated members of the either house of the parliament can take part in this process.
  3. the nominated members of legislative assemblies and legislative councils of the states and UTs do not participate in this process.
  1. only 2 and 3
  2. only 2
  3. only 1 and 2
  4. All of them

only 2 and 3

Which article of the constitution empowers the president to promulgate ordinances?

  1. article 123
  2. article 111
  3. article 61
  4. article 72

article 123

With reference to the ordinance making power of the president, which one is true?

  1. he can promulgate ordinances only when at least one among the two houses is not in session.
  2. this power is beyond judicial review.
  3. he can issue ordinances on all the subjects, whether, parliament can make laws on them or not.
  1. only 1
  2. only 2 and 3
  3. only 1 and 3
  4. all of them

only 1

When the bills are sent to the president, he can

  1. give his assent to the bills.
  2. withold his assent to the bills.
  3. return all the bills.

which one among the above is correct.

  1. only 1 and 2
  2. only 2 and 3
  3. only 1 and 3
  4. all of them

only 1 and 2

These were some important MCQs on president of India. We are sure that you will find these MCQs very useful and hope that you will share them with your friends.

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