The election of the President of India is an indirect election in which electoral college consisting of the elected members of both houses of parliament (M.P.s), the elected members of the State Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha) of all States and the elected members of the legislative assemblies (MLAs) of union territories with legislatures, i.e., National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, and Puducherry. The election process of the president is a more extensive process than of the prime minister who is also elected indirectly (not elected by people directly) by the Lok Sabha members only. Whereas President being the constitutional head with duties to protect, defend and preserve the constitution and rule of law in a constitutional democracy with constitutional supremacy, is elected in an extensive manner by the members of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state legislative assemblies in a secret ballot procedure. [1] [2] [3]
The president of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the supreme commander of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu is the 15th and current president, having taken office from 25 July 2022.
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. As of 2023, it has a maximum membership of 250, of which 238 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 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, 2019, the seats came down to 245. The maximum seats of 250 members can be filled up at the discretion and requirements of the house of Rajya Sabha.
The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The President of India, in their role as head of the legislature, has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve the Lok Sabha, but they can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the Prime Minister and their Union Council of Ministers.
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.
An indirect election or hierarchical voting is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office, but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the oldest forms of elections and is used by many countries for heads of state, cabinets, heads of government, and/or upper houses. It is also used for some supranational legislatures.
India has a parliamentary system as defined by its constitution, with power distributed between the central government and the states. India 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.
This is a brief description of the lawmaking procedure in India.
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.
Tamil Nadu has a parliamentary system as defined by its constitution, with power distributed between the state government and the districts.
The President of India is indirectly elected with Instant-runoff voting by means of an electoral college consisting of the elected members of the Parliament of India and the Legislative assemblies of the States of India and the Union territories. The number and value of votes are based on the population in 1971 rather than the current population, as a result of the 42nd Amendment, and extended by the 84th Amendment, with the intention to encourage family planning programs in the states by ensuring that states are not penalised for lowering their population growth and development.
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.
The 2017 presidential election was held in India on 17 July 2017 with the votes counted and the results announced on 20 July 2017. President Pranab Mukherjee, whose term of office was due to expire on 24 July 2017, declined to seek re-election due to health concerns and old age.
A Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha is the representative of a legislative constituency 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. The maximum permitted strength of members of parliament in the Lok Sabha is 550. This includes the 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.
A Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha is the representative of the Indian states to one of the two houses of the Parliament of India. Rajya Sabha MPs are elected by the electoral college of the elected members of the State Assembly with a system of proportional representation by a single transferable vote. Parliament of India is bicameral with two houses; Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The total number of members of Rajya Sabha are lesser than the Members of Parliament in the Lok Sabha and have more restricted power than the lower house. Unlike membership to the Lok Sabha, membership to the Rajya Sabha is permanent body and cannot be dissolved at any time. However every second year, one third of the members are retired and vacancy are filled up by fresh elections and Presidential nomination at the beginning of every third year.
Elections in India in 2022 include election to the office of the President of India, vice president of India, by-elections to the Lok Sabha, elections to the Rajya Sabha, elections to state legislative assemblies of 7 (seven) states, by-elections to state legislative assemblies and numerous other elections and by-elections to state legislative councils and local bodies.
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 replaced 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.
