PRESIDENT RULE
1. Context
Four days after Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh resigned, the State was put under President’s Rule on February 13. Though the ruling BJP still holds a majority in the Manipur Assembly, the party was unable to find a consensus Chief Minister candidate. The State has also been wracked by ethnic violence since May 2023, and Mr. Singh faced criticism for his handling of the conflict from many sides, including from within his own party. This is the 11th time that President’s Rule has been imposed in Manipur, the highest in any State.
2. What is President's Rule?
- President’s Rule, as outlined in Article 356, is invoked when a state’s constitutional machinery fails. In such cases, based on a Governor’s report or other relevant inputs, the President can issue a Proclamation to take over the state government’s functions, effectively placing them under the Union government’s control.
- Additionally, the State Assembly’s powers are transferred to Parliament. However, the President does not have the authority to assume the powers of a High Court.
- This proclamation must be presented before Parliament and will lapse in two months unless both Houses approve it.
- It can be extended every six months, up to a maximum of three years, but after the first year, further extensions require either the declaration of an Emergency at the national or state level or a determination by the Election Commission that elections cannot be conducted in the state.
- Article 356 does not specify the exact conditions for imposing President’s Rule, leaving it to the President’s discretion, based on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers, to determine whether governance in the state can continue as per constitutional provisions.
- A 2016 Lok Sabha Secretariat report identified various instances of its imposition beyond issues like militancy and law and order, including defections by legislators, collapse of coalitions, no-confidence motions, resignations of Chief Ministers, absence of legislatures in newly formed states, and public unrest causing instability.
- In the 1994 S.R. Bommai vs Union of India case, the Supreme Court outlined instances where the President’s Rule could or could not be applied, though it clarified that this list was not exhaustive
3. History of President's rule in India
- President’s Rule has been enforced 135 times across 35 States and Union Territories, including some that no longer exist. The first instance occurred in June 1951 in Punjab when Chief Minister Gopi Chand Bhargava resigned due to internal conflicts within the Congress party.
- Punjab has remained under Central administration for over a decade in total. The only region to have experienced President’s Rule for a longer duration is Jammu and Kashmir, where it has been in place for nearly 15 years, including its time as a Union Territory.
- The longest uninterrupted periods were from 1990 to 1996 and from 2019 to 2024. Uttar Pradesh has seen President’s Rule imposed 10 times, making it one of the most frequently affected states after Manipur.
- There have also been instances where Article 356 was applied even when the ruling party at the Centre and the State were the same, such as in Andhra Pradesh (1973), Assam (1981), Gujarat (1974), Karnataka (1990), and most recently in Manipur (2025).
- A notable political use of President’s Rule occurred in 1977 when the newly elected Morarji Desai government dismissed nine Congress-ruled States, arguing that they had lost the electorate’s confidence after the Congress was defeated at the national level.
- In response, when Indira Gandhi regained power in 1980, she similarly dismissed governments in nine States for the same reason. The Supreme Court at the time declined to intervene in these decisions
4. Why does the president's rule is not prevalent these days?
- A few decades later, the S.R. Bommai verdict marked a turning point in judicial oversight of President’s Rule. The nine-judge Bench ruled that the President’s proclamation could be reviewed by the courts to determine whether it was issued based on any material, whether that material was relevant, or whether the decision was made in bad faith.
- Former Attorney-General Soli Sorabjee had noted in his analysis of the 1994 judgment that this meant proclamations could be invalidated if found unconstitutional. Former Lok Sabha Secretary General P.D.T. Acharya highlighted that this served as a strong deterrent against arbitrary use of the provision.
- From 1950 to 1994, President’s Rule was enforced 100 times, averaging 2.5 instances per year. In the three decades since, it has been applied 30 times, roughly once per year.
- The most recent imposition, in Manipur, is the first since Puducherry in February 2021, marking almost four years without its use.
- Since the Narendra Modi-led NDA government assumed office in 2014, President’s Rule has been imposed 11 times, including four instances in Jammu and Kashmir.
- Courts have overturned the proclamation on two occasions— in Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand
5. What is the Relation Between Article 356 and Article 355?
Article 355 and Article 356 of the Indian Constitution are closely related, as the former lays the foundation for the latter.
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Article 355 – Duty of the Union to Protect States
- It places an obligation on the Union government to protect every state against external aggression and internal disturbances.
- It also ensures that the state government functions in accordance with constitutional provisions.
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Article 356 – President’s Rule
- If a state fails to function as per the Constitution, the President can invoke Article 356 based on the Governor’s report or other relevant inputs.
- This provision allows the Union to assume control of the state’s administration temporarily.
6. Way Forward
Although Manipur is currently under President’s Rule, its Assembly has not been dissolved. Instead, it remains in a state of suspended animation. This means that the Assembly can be reinstated whenever conditions allow for the formation of a democratically elected government following the revocation of President’s Rule.
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For Prelims: Article 356, Article 352, Article 360
For Mains: General Studies II - Polity & Governance
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Previous Year Questions
1.During which Five Year Plan was the Emergency clamped, new elections took place and the Janata Party was elected? (2009) (a) Third Answer (c) 2. Which of the following are not necessarily the consequences of the proclamation of the President’s rule in a State? (2017)
Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 1 and 2 only Answer (b) |
Source: The Hindu
