Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s satirical rhetoric at the Lok Sabha, mostly targeted om Congress and Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Adani’ allegations are making headlines. In his reply to the President’s Motion of Thanks, the prime minister accused the age-old party of engaging in vendetta politics while it has trampled the rights of the country and its citizens for years.
On Congress’s ‘democracy is dead’ cry, PM Modi said that Congress has played with the ideals of democracy by using the constitution for its personal gains. He alleged that Congress dismissed democratically elected governments at least ‘90 times’ with the help of Article 356.
He further added that Indira Gandhi alone, during whose rule India saw the black period of emergency, had misused the concerned article “50 times” to dismiss governments. The term found several mentions in PM’s fiery speech, here’s what Article 236 is all about.
What is Article 356?
In simplest terms, Article 356 is President’s rule. Under this, the Constitution of India empowers the President to withdraw executive and legislative powers of any state or the entire country if he or she “is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the state cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and take over the governance machinery.
Subsequently, executive authority is exercised through the centrally appointed governor, who has the authority to appoint other administrators to assist them. The administrators are usually nonpartisan retired civil servants.
According to the provisions of Article 356 as mentioned in the Indian constitution, President’s Rule can be imposed for six months at a time for a maximum duration of three years.
In case the situation drags on for more than six months, half-yearly Parliamentary approval to impose President’s Rule will be required again.
Can President’s rule get extended?
While as per the constitution, President’s rule under Article 356 can be extended only up to 3 years, the provision has been extended for significantly longer periods under specific special circumstances.
One such example is Punjab, which was under President’s Rule from 1987-1992 due to the growing militancy.
How was Article 356 originated?
The origin of Article 356 can be found in Section 93 of the Government of India Act, 1935. Under this, the Constitution states that if a Governor of a province was unsatisfied with the situation of the state in which the government of the province cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the said Act, it could take over the systematic machinery for a specified period of time.
