India is a Federation having governments at two levels i.e. State level and Union or Central level. The three branches of government - executive, legislature and judiciary exist and function at both the levels.
India has a parliamentary form of democracy both at the State as well at the Union level. In this system, the executive powers of the State are vested in the Governor by the Constitution. The head of the State is Governor but he or she acts as a nominal head. The real executive powers are exercised by the Council of Ministers headed by a Chief Minister.
Governor
The Governor of a State is appointed by the President of India for a term of 5 years. The Governor holds his or her office during pleasure of the President which means that the Governor may be removed by the President even before the expiry of his or her term.
Relationship between Governor and Council of Ministers
- The State executive consists of the Governor, the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers. The Governor exercises all his or her powers on the advice of the Council of Ministers.
- The Chief Minister is appointed by him or her provided he or she is the leader of the majority party in the legislative Assembly.
- The Chief Minister communicates to the Governor all the decisions of the Council of Ministers.
- The real powers are exercised by the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister. However, the Governor is not just a constitutional or nominal head. He or She can exercise his or her powers effectively under certain circumstances, especially when there is political instability in the State. Hence, the discretionary powers make the Governor to act as a real Executive in particular circumstances.
Chief Minister and Council of Ministers
The Council of Ministers with the Chief Minister as its head functions as the real Executive. The Chief Minister and other members of the Council of Ministers are appointed by the Governor. Their term of office is for five years. They remain in office till they enjoy the support of the majority in the Assembly.
If a person who is appointed as the Chief Minister or a Minister, is not a member of the State Legislature, he or she has to become member of any of the two houses within six months of his or her appointment.
State Legislature
In India every State has its own legislature. They are of two kinds i.e. bicameral and unicameral. Bicameral legislature has two houses - lower house and the upper house. In a unicameral legislature the house is known as legislative assembly or Vidhan Sabha whereas in the bicameral legislature the two houses are known as legislative assembly and legislative council i.e. Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad.
At present, only five States i.e. Bihar, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh have bicameral legislatures and the remaining states have unicameral legislatures.
Composition
According to the Indian Constitution, no Legislative Assembly shall have more than 500 members and less than 60 members. However, very small States like Goa, Sikkim and Mizoram have been allowed to have less than 60 members. Seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly.
The members of Legislative Assembly are directly elected on the principle of universal adult franchise. The tenure of the Vidhan Sabha is of five years. However, the Governor may dissolve the Assembly earlier on the advice of the Chief Minister. During emergency the term of legislative assemblies can be extended for a period not exceeding one year at a time.
The Legislative Council or Vidhan Parishad shall not have more than one third of the total membership of the State Legislative Assembly but not less than 40. The members of the Legislative Council are partly elected indirectly and partly nominated.
High Court and Subordinate Courts
In India, there has to be a High Court for every State. However, if need be a High Court may have more than one State under its jurisdiction. As an exception we find that the Guwahati High court acts as a common High Court for the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Tripura. Similarly, the Union Territories come under the jurisdiction of the High Court of the neighbouring States.
Each High Court has a Chief Justice and Judges. The Chief Justice and Judges of High Courts are appointed by the President. For appointment of the Chief Justice of the High Court, the President consults the Chief Justice of Supreme Court, whereas for the Judges, he or she consults the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court and the Governor of the concerned State.
Judges can be transferred from one High Court to the other by the President on the advice of the Chief Justice of India. While appointing a Judge of a High Court, the person concerned should possess the following qualifications: should be a citizen of India; should have held a judicial office in the territory of India for at least 10 years; or should have been an advocate in one or more High Courts for at least ten years continuously without break.
The Judges of High Court hold office till they attain the age of 62 years. Judge can be removed from office through an impeachment process by parliament on grounds of proved misbehavior or incapacity.
Subordinate or Lower Courts
Civil Cases: These cases pertain to disputes between two or more persons regarding property, breach of agreement or contract, divorce or disputes between landlords and tenants.
Criminal Cases: These cases relate to theft, robbery, rape, pick-pocketing, physical assault, murder etc. These cases are filed in the criminal courts by the police, on behalf of the State.
Revenue Courts: Board of Revenue exists at the State level, Under it are the Courts of Commissioner, Collectors, Tehsildars and Assistant Tehsildars. The Board of Revenue hears the final appeals against all the lower revenue courts under it.