Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic in which the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the Prime Minister of India is the head of government. It is based on the federal structure of government, although the word is not used in the Constitution itself. India follows the dual polity system, i.e. federal in nature, that consists of the central authority at the centre and states at the periphery. The Constitution defines the organizational powers and limitations of both central and state governments; it is well recognised, fluid and considered supreme, i.e. the laws of the nation must conform to it. India is officially declared a secular and socialist state as per the Constitution.
The Rajya Sabha, also known as the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. As of 2023, it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using single transferable votes through open ballots, while the president can appoint 12 members for their contributions to art, literature, science, and social service. The total allowed capacity is 250 according to article 80 of the Indian Constitution. The current potential seating capacity of the Rajya Sabha is 245, after the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Act. The maximum seats of 250 members can be filled up at the discretion and requirements of the house of Rajya Sabha.
The vice president of India is the deputy to the head of state of the Republic of India, i.e. the president of India. The office of vice president is the second-highest constitutional office after the president and ranks second in the order of precedence and first in the line of succession to the presidency. The vice president is also the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
India has a parliamentary system as defined by its constitution, with power distributed between the union government and the states. India's democracy is the largest democracy in the world.
A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district (constituency) to the legislature of State government in the Indian system of government. From each constituency, the people elect one representative who then becomes a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). Each state has between seven and nine MLAs for every Member of Parliament (MP) that it has in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of India's bicameral parliament. There are also members in three unicameral legislatures in Union Territories: the Delhi Legislative Assembly, Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly and the Puducherry Legislative Assembly. Only a Member of the Legislative Assembly can work as a minister for more than 6 months. If a non-Member of the Legislative Assembly becomes a Chief Minister or a minister, he must become an MLA within 6 months to continue in the job. Only a Member of the Legislative Assembly can become the Speaker of the Legislature.
In India, a number of political positions and university posts are held for specific groups of the population, including Scheduled Castes(SC) and Scheduled Tribes(ST), and women in some cases.
Mapanna Mallikarjun Kharge is an Indian lawyer and politician serving as the President of the Indian National Congress since 2022, and Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha since 2021. He has been a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from Karnataka since 2020.
Elections in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu are conducted every five years to elect members to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly and members of parliament to the Lok Sabha. There are 234 assembly constituencies and 39 Lok Sabha constituencies. The state has conducted 16 assembly elections and 18 Lok Sabha elections since independence.
The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, also known as the Jammu and Kashmir Vidhan Sabha, is the legislature of Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Elections in the state of Bihar, India are conducted in accordance with the Constitution of India. The Assembly of Bihar creates laws regarding the conduct of local body elections unilaterally while any changes by the state legislature to the conduct of state level elections need to be approved by the Parliament of India.
Elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir are conducted in accordance with the Constitution of India to elect the representatives of various bodies at national, state and district levels including the 114 seat unicameral Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly and the Parliament of India. The first elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir took place between 28 November and 19 December 2020 in the form of by-elections to District Development Councils and municipal and panchayat level bodies. A fresh delimitation process for assembly constituencies began in February–March 2020.
One Nation, One Election is a proposal under consideration by the Government of India to synchronise all elections in the country either on a single day or within a specific time frame. One of its most notable proposals is to simultaneously conduct elections to the Lok Sabha & state legislative assemblies of all 28 states & 8 union territories 3 of them being Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, & Puduchery.
Rajya Sabha elections were held in 2002, to elect members of the Rajya Sabha, Indian Parliament's upper chamber. The elections were held to elect respectively 56 members from 17 states and four seats from Karnataka, four members from Jammu and Kashmir, and 11 members from two states for the Council of States, the Rajya Sabha.
Hasnain Masoodi is an Indian politician from the Jammu & Kashmir National Conference Party who serves as a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly. He served as a Member of the 17th Lok Sabha from Anantnag Lok Sabha constituency and was a former judge of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir. He is representing Pampore constituency in Jammu and Kashmir.
Elections in the Indian union territory of Puducherry are conducted every five years to elect members to the Puducherry Legislative Assembly and members of parliament to the Lok Sabha. There are 30 assembly constituencies and 1 Lok Sabha constituency. The union territory has conducted 14 assembly elections and 15 Lok Sabha elections since independence.
The 2022 Indian presidential election was the 16th presidential election in India held on 18 July 2022 to elect the president of India. The incumbent president Ram Nath Kovind did not run for reelection. The election had a turnout of 99.12%.
The election for the 14th vice president of India was held on 6 August 2022. The announcement was made by the Election Commission of India. Article 67 of the Constitution of India provides that the vice president of India shall remain in office for a period of five years. The winner of this election is Jagdeep Dhankhar who succeeded Venkaiah Naidu as vice president on 11 August 2022. On 16 July 2022, Jagdeep Dhankhar the then serving Governor of West Bengal was nominated as a vice-presidential candidate by the BJP. On 17 July 2022, Margaret Alva was announced as the vice-presidential candidate by the United Progressive Alliance and some non-UPA Parties. Hence, Jagdeep Dhankhar won the election by 528 votes defeating the United Opposition candidate Margaret Alva.He secured the highest electoral votes in more than 30 years
