The prime minister of India is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, though the president of India is the constitutional, nominal, and ceremonial head of state. The prime minister is often the leader of the party or the coalition with a majority in the lower house of the Parliament of India, the Lok Sabha, which is the main legislative body in the Republic of India. The prime minister and their cabinet are at all times responsible to the Lok Sabha.
The president of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces.
The Bharatiya Janata Party is one of two major political parties in India, along with the Indian National Congress. It has been the ruling political party of the Republic of India since 2014 under its prime minister, Narendra Modi. The BJP is a right-wing party, and its policy has historically reflected Hindu nationalist positions. It has close ideological and organisational links to the much older Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). As of 17 February 2022, it is the country's largest political party in terms of representation in the national parliament and state legislatures.
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Empire in Asia and Africa. From the late 19th century, and especially after 1920, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, the Congress became the principal leader of the Indian independence movement. The Congress led India to independence from the United Kingdom, and significantly influenced other anti-colonial nationalist movements in the British Empire. Due to its enduring history, the Congress is often called the "grand old party".
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. As of 2021 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 services. The potential seating capacity of the Rajya Sabha is 250, according to article 80 of the Indian Constitution. Members sit for staggered terms lasting six years, with about a third of the 233 designates up for election every two years, in even-numbered years. The Rajya Sabha meets in continuous sessions, and unlike the Lok Sabha, being the lower house of the Parliament, the Rajya Sabha is not subjected to dissolution. However, the Rajya Sabha, like the Lok Sabha, can be prorogued by the president.
The governor-general of India was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1947, the representative of the Indian head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William. The officer had direct control only over Fort William but supervised other East India Company officials in India. Complete authority over all of India was granted in 1833, and the official came to be known as the "governor-general of India".
The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Sansad Bhavan, New Delhi.
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. It is the longest written national constitution in the world.
The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The president in his role as head of the legislature has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve the Lok Sabha. The president can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the prime minister and his Union Council of Ministers.
The Government of India, or simply the Centre, is the chief administrative authority of the Republic of India. The National Constitution names the government as the federal executive, legislative, and judicial authority. However, the term is usually used to refer to the executive branch. The president acts as the head of state and is the highest figure of nominal executive authority, but it is the prime minister who is the head of the government. The seat of the government is located in New Delhi, the capital of India.
The vice president of India is the deputy to the head of state of the Republic of India, 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 a member of the Parliament of India as the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
The Union Council of Ministers is the highest executive body of the Government of India. The council is responsible for exercising chief administrative authority over the state and advising the president of India. It is chaired by the prime minister and includes the heads of each of the executive government ministries. Currently, the council is headed by prime minister Narendra Modi and consists of 31 members, including the prime minister. The council is subject to the Parliament of India.
The State Legislative Assembly, or Vidhan Sabha, or also Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in the states and union territories of India. In the 28 states and 3 union territories with a unicameral state legislature, it is the sole legislative body and in 6 states it is the lower house of their bicameral state legislatures with the upper house being State Legislative Council. 5 union territories are governed directly by the Union Government of India and have no legislative body.
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 a Speaker of the Legislature.
The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the 'Provincial Assembly'. Following India's independence from the British Government in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament as the 'Provisional Parliament of India'.
BRICS is the acronym coined to associate five major emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The BRICS members are known for their significant influence on world affairs. Since 2009, the governments of the BRICS states have met annually at formal summits. China hosted the most recent 14th BRICS summit on 24 June 2022 virtually.
A Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha is the representative of the Indian people in the Lok Sabha; the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of parliament of Lok Sabha are chosen by direct elections on the basis of the adult suffrage. Parliament of India is bicameral with two houses; Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The maximum permitted strength of members of parliament in the Lok Sabha is 550. This includes maximum 530 members to represent the constituencies and states and up to 20 members to represent the union territories. Between 1952 and 2020, two seats were reserved for members of the Anglo-Indian community. The current elected strength of the Lok Sabha is 543. The party—or coalition of parties—having a majority in the Lok Sabha chooses the Prime Minister of India.