President Of India Is A Rubber Stamp Or Not.docx

PRESIDENT OF INDIA IS A RUBBER STAMP IN COMPARISON WITH PRESIDENT OF USA

A Research Paper submitted to Himachal Pradesh National Law University Shimla

Course In-charge

Submitted by

Dr. Surendra Singh Jaiswal

Urvesh Bhardwaj (5020192018)

HIMACHAL PRADESH NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, SHIMLA 16 MILE, SHIMLA-MANDI NATIONAL HIGHWAY, GHANDAL DISTRICT SHIMLA, HIMACHAL PRADESH-171014

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INDEX 1. ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………. 2. INTRODUCION………………………………………………………. 3. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND…………………………………….. 4. POWERS OF INDIAN PRESIDENT………………………………... 5. POWERS OF USA PRESIDENT…………………………………….. 6. WHY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA IS TERMED AS ‘RUBBER STAMP’………………………………………………………………… 7. CONCLUSION………………………………………………………… 8.

BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………

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ABSTRACT

President of India is always termed as just a titular head of the Government. While some argues that the president is not just a titular head, he has many discretionary powers. There are many provisions regarding the powers of the President of India in the Constitution of India. Some of them showed that president has discretionary powers in some matters and some provisions showed that the president works on the advice of council of ministers merely. So, this research paper is to find it clear that President of India is just a titular head or have some real powers. In this research we will compare the powers of the Indian President to the powers of the USA President and will find that which one is more powerful.

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PRESIDENT OF INDIA IS A RUBBER STAMP IN COMPARISON WITH PRESIDENT OF USA

INTRODUCTION A rubber stamp, as a political metaphor, refers to a person or institution with considerable de jure power but little de facto power; one that rarely or never disagrees with more powerful organs.1 In situations where this superior official's signature may frequently be required for routine paperwork, a literal rubber stamp is used, with a likeness of their hand-written signature. In essence, the term is meant to convey an endorsement without careful thought or personal investment in the outcome, especially since it is usually expected as the stamper's duty to do so. In the situation where a dictator's legislature is a "rubber stamp", the orders they are meant to endorse are formalities they are expected to legitimize, and are usually done to create the superficial appearance of legislative and dictatorial harmony rather than because they have actual power Historian Edward S. Ellis called this type of legislature a toy parliament, with specific reference to Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II's General Assembly of the Ottoman Empire, created in 1876 with the sole purpose of appeasing the European powers. This is true even in some modern states. In the People's Republic of China, the nearly 3,000-memberstrong National People's Congress is ostensibly "the most powerful organ of state", but in reality "it is little more than a rubber stamp for party decisions." IN Other words, we can say that rubber stamp is to approve, endorse, or dispose of as a matter of routine or at the command of another, a mostly powerless yet officially recognized body or person that approves or endorses programs and policies initiated usually by a single specified source. A "rubber stamp" government body is one where decisions or legislation from another source are simply approved automatically with little or no real debate. The name comes from the image of a beaurocrat being handed a stack of papers from another authority and mindlessly "stamping" them to make it official.

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Webster's New World Dictionary, Second College Edition, ISBN 0-671-41809-2 - page 1242

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HISTORICAL BACKGROUND How the term rubber stamp was introduced? The first president of India Rajendra Prasad had sent a letter to Jawaharlal Nehru saying that he would take his decisions solely. The reason: President has to act according to the advice of the cabinet only on executive matters and not on legal decisions as per Articles 86 and 111. Seeing this Jawaharlal Nehru contacted the then AG of India who concluded that the President is just a rubber stamp. In 1986, the Parliament passed a bill known as Indian Post office (amendment) bill. This bill was widely criticised by many for it sought to curtail the freedom of the press. The then President, Gyani Zail Singh, did not take any decision on this bill. After his term was over, the next President, Venkataraman sent the bill finally back to the Parliament for reconsideration. By that time, the government that brought the bill before the Parliament had changed and a new government was elected in 1989. This government belonged to a different coalition and did not bring the bill back before the Parliament. Thus, Zail Singh’s decision to postpone giving assent to the bill effectively meant that the bill could never become a law! Here President used his discretionary power properly.

POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA Constitution of India provides some powers to the president under some articles: Indian President is not a ceremonial head, unlike many other countries. All important decisions regarding the country are taken in the name of Indian President, though most of these will be based on the binding advice given by Council of Ministers (CoM), as per Article 74 of Indian Constitution. POWER OF PARDON or JUDICIAL POWERS Article 72 empowers the President to grant pardon, reprieve, respite or remission of punishment, or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offense in all cases(a) Where the punishment or sentence is by a court martial; (b) Where the punishment or sentence is for an offence against a law relating to matter to which the union’s executive power extends; and 5

(c) Of a death sentence. This, however, does not affect the power conferred by law on any officer of the Union armed forces to suspend, remit or commute a sentence passed by court martial, as well as the power exercisable by the State Executive to suspend, remit or commute a death sentence.2 The President acts in this matter on the advice of the Home Minister. Reprieve means that the sentence of a person can be suspended for a temporary period of time. In pardons, the person files a mercy petition to the President and it is usually applied for in cases where the Supreme Court upholds the Capital punishment. If the President grants the pardon, then the person is relieved of any sentence and becomes free from any punishment. Under Respite, the person who is held guilty is awarded less punishment while under remission the amount of sentence awarded to a person is reduced after it has been awarded by the Court. In Commutation, the punishment of a person is changed from one to another. For. e.g., if the President approves the commutation of sentence, then a person who has been awarded Capital Punishment may instead be awarded life imprisonment.3 However, the power conferred under Article 72 is a Constitutional power and is absolute and cannot be fettered by any statutory provision such as Sections 432, 433 and 433A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1974.4 A pardon completely absolves the guilt of the offender. When a convict is granted pardon, he is completely absolved from the punishment imposed on him as also from all penal consequences and such disqualifications disentitle him from following his occupation and as are the concomitant of the conviction.5 EXECUTIVE POWERS ARTICLE-53

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Article 72. Also see Article 161. Prof. Narendra Kumar, CONSTITUTIONAL LAW OF INDIA, Eighth Edition (2011) p.524. 4 State of Haryana v. Jagdish, AIR 2010 SC 1690. 5 D.I.G. v. Rajaram, AIR 1960 A.P. 259. 3

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(1) The executive power of the Union shall be vested in the President and shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution. (2) Without prejudice to the generality of the forgoing provision, the supreme command of the Defence Forces of the Union shall be vested in the President and the exercise thereof shall be regulated by law. (3) Nothing in this article shall(a) Be deemed to transfer to the President any functions conferred by any existing law on the Government of any State or other authority; or (b) Prevent Parliament from conferring by law functions on authorities other than the President.6 Article 73 provides that the executive power of the union shall extend to the matters with respect to which Parliament has power to make laws. It is, however, subject to the provisions of the Constitution. Thus, the executive power of the President is co-extensive with the legislative power of the Parliament.7

Power to make appointments8 The President has the power to appoint many constitutional officers and the members of the Union Government. They include:

The Prime Minister Chief Justice of India Attorney General of India

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Article 53. J. & K. Public Service Commission v. Narinder Mohan, AIR 1994 SC 1808. 8 Under different Articles of Indian Constitution. 7

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Comptroller and Auditor General of India Governors of States Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners Administrators of Union Territories

Powers relating to the Council of Ministers The President has to exercise his Executive powers on the advice of the Council of Ministers so he is subjected to some limitations in exercising powers. But he has the power to send back the recommendation of the council for reconsideration. The council may or may not accept such a recommendation. So, the President while being the Executive head in name, the actual power resides with the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. But despite such limitations, the Prime Minister also has certain duties which he has to fulfil towards the President and it includes, the duty to communicate all the decisions made by the council on the administration and legislation of the country, the duty to such information as the President may demand etc.9

Legislative Powers The President despite being the executive head of the State, also possess many legislative powers which are important for the legislation of the country.10

Assent of the President

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Article 78(a), (b), (c). Article 79.

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For any bill to get the sanction of law, it has to receive the assent of the President. Thus only when the President gives his assent to a bill which has been passed by both the houses of Parliament, the bill can become a valid law. This means that the President is an integral part of the Parliament in India.11 The President also possess the power to veto the bill which is presented to him. The veto means that the President has the power to send the bill back to the Parliament if the President thinks that some reconsideration should be made in the bill. But if the Parliament sends the bill again without any changes then the President has to give his assent to the bill. In some cases, the Bills presented to the Governor by the State Legislature may be reserved by the Governor for the consideration of the president if that bill is not money bill of the State legislature. The President can accept it or tell the Governor to send it back for reconsideration or he may direct him to not send it back. If the State legislature again sends the bill and the Governor again reserves the bill for consideration of the President, he is not obliged to accept that bill. In case of a Money Bill, the previous recommendation of the President is necessary as a result, the President may either give his assent or withhold it but he cannot send the bill back to the house for reconsideration.12

Power to Summon and Prorogue both the houses The President has the power to summon either or both the Houses. The President also has the power to dissolve the House of People in some cases.13 Prorogue means that the house is discontinued without dissolving the House. The President also addresses the Houses after the general elections are concluded. The President also possesses the power to summon a joint sitting of the house in cases of a deadlock in which both houses sit together and the conflict is resolved.14

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Article 111. Article 113. 13 Article 85(2)(b). 14 Article 86(1). 12

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Power to Promulgate Ordinance Under Article 123 of the Constitution, when the Parliament is not in session and there is an urgency, the President has the power to issue an ordinance and such an ordinance has the force of law. This ordinance remains valid for six weeks from the date when the Legislature resumes its session. The effect of the ordinance is the same as the act of Legislature and thus the President is entrusted with great legislative power.15

The President may promulgate Ordinances under Article 123(1), with respect to all those matters with respect to which the Parliament is competent to make laws. The power of the President to promulgate Ordinances is thus declared to be co-existence with the power of the Parliament to make laws.16

Nominating Members to Parliament The President has the power to nominate 2 members of the Anglo-Indian community in the House of People if he thinks that they are not represented properly.17 He also has the right to nominate 12 members in the Council of States from the field of Arts, Literature, Science, Social Science etc.18

Power to declare Emergency Under the Provisions of Article 352, 356 and 360 the president has the power to declare emergency situation either in the whole territory of India or in any State or part of it. There are 3 types of Emergency which can be declared by the president: 1. National Emergency (Article 352) 2. State Emergency (Article 356) 3. Financial Emergency (Article 360)

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Article 123(2)(b). R.K. Garg v. Union of India, AIR 1981 SC 2138 17 Article 331. 18 Article 80. 16

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During Emergency, any rights including Fundamental rights except for Article 20 and 21 can be suspended by the President and the Parliament can also pass a resolution to impose President’s rule in any State. Also, all the Government Contracts made by the Union are made in the name of the President and in the absence of this requirement being fulfilled, a Government contract cannot be regarded as valid. The above range of responsibilities would suggest that the Office of Head of State is a very important one as these duties are vital to maintaining the nation’s political unity and guaranteeing the constitutional powers. But the significance of the Office is far greater than that and can in no way be combined with the responsibilities of any other high office or function. One of the paramount functions of the Office is to influence political thought and institutional direction in the national interest. In this regard the President serves as a mediator in times of national crisis and should be instrumental in preparing the nation to co-operate with the government’s policies and programmes. This leaves no room for the Head of State to be regarded as a ‘rubber stamp’ because his sphere of influence has far reaching implications. Another important aspect of the Office is the fact that the Head of State being independent of political parties, represents the nation as a whole. This neutrality is crucial to the integrity of the Office and can be a sensitive issue at the community level of service. Constitutionally, the President has a right to be informed of all important matters and deliberations of the Council of Ministers. The Prime Minister is obliged to furnish all the information that the President may call for. The President often writes to the Prime Minister and expresses his views on matters confronting the country.

PRESIDENT OF USA President of USA is the head of the state as well as head of the Government. In USA president directs the executive branch and he is commander in chief of the Armed Forces of USA, he is looked upon as the most powerful figure of the world and as the leader of a superpower. And big responsibilities also came with more power and with most expensive military. Same like 11

the president of India the USA president is also the head of the executive, but he possesses more power than the president of India .GDP of USA is also termed as the largest economy nation GDP, so as per this the president have some significant domestic and international soft and hard powers in his hand. Let us discuss the powers of USA president broadly:

POWERS OF THE USA PRESIDENT As USA have presidential form of Government so president have almost all powers regarding Government and decision-making powers for his country. Constitution of USA provides him powers as follows: Article II of the US Constitution vests the executive power in the President, this article mainly establishes the executive branch of federal Government. This executive power includes appointing of regulatory and judicial officers, federal executive and diplomatic, execution and enforcement of federal laws, and concluding the treaties with the foreign powers, with the advice and consent of senate. LEGISLATIVE POWERS Similarly like the system in India bill is passed in USA. To make any bill a law the parliament of USA that is congress pass a bill and send it to the president for his confirmation. When the legislation presented to the president, he has some choices like to sign the legislation within the ten days so then it becomes the law or may veto the legislation within ten days and return it back to the congress with some objections. Both house of congress has the power to override the veto by vote majority of two-third or take no action within the said time limit of 10 days then the bill becomes automatically a law unless the congress is adjourned at that time, it is termed as pocket veto. The president can also be involved in crafting legislation by suggesting, requesting or even insisting that Congress enact laws he believes are needed. Additionally, he can attempt to shape legislation during the legislative process by exerting influence on individual members of Congress. Presidents possess this power because the Constitution is silent about who can write legislation, but the power is limited because only members of Congress can introduce

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legislation. Article I, Section 1 of the Constitution19, bolstered by Article I, Section 8, puts all law-making power in Congress's hands, and Article 1, Section 6, Clause 2 prevents the president (and all other executive branch officers) from simultaneously being a member of Congress. The president or other officials of the executive branch may draft legislation and then ask senators or representatives to introduce these drafts into Congress. The president can further influence the legislative branch through constitutionally (e.g. Article II, Section 3) or statutorily mandated periodic reports to Congress. These reports may be either written or oral, but today the greatest in importance is given as the oral State of the Union addresses, which often outline the president's legislative proposals for the coming year. Additionally, the president may attempt to have Congress alter proposed legislation by threatening to veto that legislation unless requested changes are made.

EXECUTIVE POWERS One of the most important of executive powers is the president's role as commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. The power to declare war is constitutionally vested in Congress, but the president has ultimate responsibility for the direction and disposition of the military. The exact degree of authority that the Constitution grants to the president as commander-in-chief has been the subject of much debate throughout history, with Congress at various times granting the president wide authority and at others attempting to restrict that authority. The amount of military detail handled personally by the president in wartime has varied greatly. The present-day operational command of the Armed Forces is delegated to the Department of Defense and is normally exercised through the secretary of defense. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Combatant Commands assist with the operation as outlined in the presidentially approved Unified Command Plan (UCP). The framers of the Constitution took care to limit the president's powers regarding the military. Congress must authorize any troop deployments longer than 60 days, although that process relies on triggering mechanisms that have never been employed, rendering it ineffectual. Additionally, Congress provides a check to presidential military power through its control over military spending and regulation. The Constitution also empowers the president to propose and chiefly negotiate agreements between the United States and other countries. Such agreements,

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US Constitution

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upon receiving the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate (by a two-thirds majority vote), become binding with the force of federal law. Suffice it to say that the President is made the sole repository of the executive powers of the United States, and the powers entrusted to him as well as the duties imposed upon him are awesome indeed.20 JUDICIAL POWERS The president has power to nominate federal judges, including members of the United States courts of appeals and the Supreme Court of the United States. However, these nominations require Senate confirmation before they may take office. Securing Senate approval can provide a major obstacle for presidents who wish to orient the federal judiciary toward a particular ideological stance. When nominating judges to U.S. district courts, presidents often respect the long-standing tradition of senatorial courtesy. Presidents may also grant pardons and reprieves. The state secrets privilege allows the president and the executive branch to withhold information or documents from discovery in legal proceedings if such release would harm national security. Precedent for the privilege arose early in the 19th century when Thomas Jefferson refused to release military documents in the treason trial of Aaron Burr and again in Totten v. United States 92 U.S. 105 (1876), when the Supreme Court dismissed a case brought by a former Union spy. However, the privilege was not formally recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court until United States v. Reynolds 345 U.S. 1 (1953), where it was held to be a common law evidentiary privilege. Before the September 11 attacks, use of the privilege had been rare, but increasing in frequency. Since 2001, the government has asserted the privilege in more cases and at earlier stages of the litigation, thus in some instances causing dismissal of the suits before reaching the merits of the claims, as in the Ninth Circuit's ruling in Mohamed v. Jeppesen Dataplan, Inc. Critics of the privilege claim its use has become a tool for the government to cover up illegal or embarrassing government actions.

ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS The president is head of the executive branch of the federal government and is constitutionally obligated to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed". The executive branch has over four million employees, including the military. Presidents make numerous executive branch

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Nixon v. General Services Administration,433 U.S. 425, (1977) (Rehnquist, J., dissenting).

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appointments: an incoming president may make up to 6,000 before taking office and 8,000 more while serving. Ambassadors, members of the Cabinet, and other federal officers, are all appointed by a president with the "advice and consent" of a majority of the Senate. When the Senate is in recess for at least ten days, the president may make recess appointments. Recess appointments are temporary and expire at the end of the next session of the Senate. The power of a president to fire executive officials has long been a contentious political issue. Generally, a president may remove executive officials purely at will. However, Congress can curtail and constrain a president's authority to fire commissioners of independent regulatory agencies and certain inferior executive officers by statute. To manage the growing federal bureaucracy, presidents have gradually surrounded themselves with many layers of staff, who were eventually organized into the Executive Office of the President of the United States. Within the Executive Office, the president's innermost layer of aides (and their assistants) are located in the White House Office. To allow the government to act quickly in case of a major domestic or international crisis arising when Congress is not in session, the president is empowered by Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution to call a special session of one or both houses of Congress. Since John Adams first did so in 1797, the president has called the full Congress to convene for a special session on 27 occasions. Harry Truman was the most recent to do so in July 1948 (the so-called "Turnip Day Session"). In addition, prior to ratification of the Twentieth Amendment in 1933, which brought forward the date on which Congress convenes from December to January, newly inaugurated presidents would routinely call the Senate to meet to confirm nominations or ratify treaties. Correspondingly, the president is authorized to adjourn Congress if the House and Senate cannot agree on the time of adjournment; no president has ever had to exercise this administrative power. The president also possesses the power to manage operations of the federal government through issuing various types of directives, such as presidential proclamation and executive orders. When the president is lawfully exercising one of the constitutionally conferred presidential responsibilities, the scope of this power is broad. Even so, these directives are subject to judicial review by U.S. federal courts, which can find them to be unconstitutional. Moreover, Congress can overturn an executive order through legislation (e.g., Congressional Review Act).

President of USA is sometimes ceremonial head also, he fulfils ceremonial duties.

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WHY THE PRESIDENT of INDIA IS TERMED AS ‘RUBBER STAMP’ “We did not give him any real power but we have made his position one of authority and dignity. The constitution wants to create neither a real executive nor a mere figurehead, but a head that neither reigns nor governs; it wants to create a great figurehead...”21 Indian Presidency is symbolically similar to the British monarchy. Whereas the real power at most times resides with the legislature, the monarch's role is that of a 'political referee'. Similar presidencies also exist in Israel and Germany. Article 53 of the constitution states the executive power of the union is vested by the president who can directly exercise it or can be exercised by officer’s subordinate to him on his behalf. It is the duty of the President to defend and protect the Constitution because of which he is not obliged to pass any illegal bill of the parliament. This gives him tremendous power. However, if the parliament introduces the same bill even after (which is not easy) the President has no choice but to pass it. The president of India, executive head, is many a times considered to be a rubber stamp, because of the fact that, it has been seen that though he has been appointed as head but his powers are virtual, in the sense that they are restricted. Because in India, president does not have any real power. Though, a bill becomes a law only after president's signature, but President cannot quotation or overturn the parliament's decision. Thus, he is only a rubber stamp. The President has to exercise his Executive powers on the advice of the Council of Ministers so he is subjected to some limitations in exercising powers. But he has the power to send back the recommendation of the council for reconsideration. The council may or may not accept such a recommendation. So, the President while being the Executive head in name, the actual power resides with the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.

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Jawaharlal Nehru CAD, Vol. VI, p. 734

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CONCLUSION We have already seen that President is the formal head of the government in India. In this formal sense, the President has wide ranging executive, legislative, judicial and emergency powers. In a parliamentary system, these powers are in reality used by the President only on the advice of the Council of Ministers. The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers have support of the majority in the Lok Sabha and they are the real executive. In most of the cases, the President has to follow the advice of the Council of Ministers. As we observed that the powers of the Indian president are restricted in many ways and almost in every Article (of Indian Constitution) in which powers are provided to the president they are restricted or limited. Even his discretionary powers have some restrictions. We can say that president may be the apex body of the union or executive but work just as a rubber stamp in many cases or on the advice of council of ministers. While the President of USA have more powers than the President of India as the USA have Presidential from of Government. Regarding legislative powers president of USA can veto a bill passed by the congress while in India President can only recommend some changes in the bill or send it back to the Parliament that is passed by parliament and if it is passed again by the parliament then president has no power to hold it again or to recommend any changes again in it. President of USA have more powers during the war time, he directs the army and other war related functions during war. War is declared by the congress but after declaration president have extraordinary powers. But now in present time these powers are little bit controlled by the congress. While in India President is the head of army but during war army and Prime Minister have powers to direct the forces. The President of USA can also insist the congress to enact some laws which he believes are needed. President of USA can appoint judges of higher to lower courts while in India president can appoint higher judges that also with the recommendations of the Government. President of USA has many administrative powers in comparison to the President of India. So, this comparison clearly shows us that the President of USA is more powerful than the President of India or we can say that the President of India is merely a rubber stamp in comparison with the President of USA.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY PRIMARY SOURCES: i.

Constitution of India

ii.

Constitution of USA

SECONDARY SOURCES: BOOKS 

M.P. Jain, Indian Constitutional Law, Lexis Nexis, 7th edtn.,2014. Durga Das Basu, Commentary on the Constitution of India, Lexis Nexis, 9th edn.,2014.

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Prof. Narendra Kumar, CONSTITUTIONAL LAW OF INDIA, Eighth Edition (2011) p.524. NCERT Milkis, Sidney M.; Nelson, Michael (2008). The American Presidency: Origins and Development (5th ed.). Washington, D.C.: CQ Press. Waldman, Michael – Stephanopoulos, George. My Fellow Americans: The Most Important Speeches of America's presidents, from George Washington to George W. Bush. Sourcebooks Trade. 2003. Maier, Pauline (2010). Ratification: The People Debate the Constitution, 1787– 1788. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 433.

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CASE LAWS       

State of Haryana v. Jagdish, AIR 2010 SC 1690. D.I.G. v. Rajaram, AIR 1960 A.P. 259. J. & K. Public Service Commission v. Narinder Mohan, AIR 1994 SC 1808. R.K. Garg v. Union of India, AIR 1981 SC 2138. Clinton v. City of New York, 524 U.S. 417,1998. Nixon v. General Services Administration,433 U.S. 425, (1977) (Rehnquist, J., dissenting). Totten v. United States 92 U.S. 105 (1876). United States v. Reynolds 345 U.S. 1 (1953)

WEBSITES

White House homepage (https://whitehouse.gov/) 18

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President of the United States (https://curlie.org/Regional/North_America/United_States/Government/Execut ve_Branch/President/) at Curlie. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States http://www.legalserviceindia.com https://www.thequint.com/voices/blogs/dont-want-a-rubber-stamp-presidentgive-the-office-real-powers https://www.clearias.com/president-india-powers-roles/ https://www.insightsonindia.com/2016/01/27/insights-daily-debates-day-131the-president-of-india-is-indeed-a-rubber-stamp/ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-40772945 https://m.dailyhunt.in/news/india/english/newsbytes-epapernewbyt/is+the+indian+president+a+rubber+stamp-newsid-71199251 https://www.newslaundry.com/2017/05/18/president-a-rubber-stamp-not-quitecould-even-prosecute-pm

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