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TMI Blog1971 (3) TMI 116X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the High Court of, Judgment Madras dismissing Writ Petition No. 63 of 1971 filed by U. N. R. Rao, appellant before us. In this petition the appellant had prayed that a writ of qua warranto be issued to the respondent, Smt. Indira Gandhi, and it be declared that the respondent has no constitutional authority to the office of and to function as Prime Minister of India. In brief, the appellant contends that under the Constitution :as soon as the House of the People is dissolved under art. 85(2) of the Constitution the Council of Ministers, i.e., the Prime Minister and other Ministers, cease to hold office. According to him this follows plainly from the wording of art. 75(3), which provides that the Council of Ministers shall be collectively r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... med. Speaking for the Court (Mukherjea, C. J.) observed in Ram Jawaya Kapur v. State of Punjab([1955] 2 S. C. R. 225, 236-37.). The limits within which the executive Government can function under the Indian Constitution can be ascertained without much difficulty by reference to the form of the executive which our Constitution has set up. Our Constitution, though federal in its structure, is modeled on the British Parliamentary system where the executive is deemed to have the primary responsibility for the formulation of governmental policy and its transmission into law though the condition precedent to the exercise of this responsibility is its retaining the confidence of the legislative branch of the State. The executive function compr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... utive part . The Cabinet enjoying, as it does, a majority in the legislature concentrates in itself the virtual control of both legislative and executive functions; and as the Ministers constituting the Cabinet are presumably agreed on fundamentals and act on the principle of collective responsibility, the most important questions of policy are all formulated by them. In A. Sanjeevi Naidu v. State of Madras (A. I. R 1970 S.C.R 1102, 1106.) it was urged on behalf of the appellants in case that, the Parliament has conferred power under Section 68(C) of the (Motor Vehicles Act, 1939) to a designated authority. The power can be exercised only by that authority and by no one else. The authority concerned in the present case is the State Gov ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e to be allocated to one or the other of the Ministers on the advice of the Chief Minister. Apart from allocating business among the Ministers, the Governor can also make rules on the advice of his Council of Ministers for more convenient transaction of business. He can, not only allocate the various subjects amongst the Ministers but may go further and designate a particular official to discharge any particular function. But this again he can do only on the advice of the Council of Ministers. The Cabinet is responsible to the legislature for every action taken in any of the Ministries. That is the essence of joint responsibility. Let us now look at the relevant articles of the Constitution in the context of which we must interpret a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... so what, advice was tendered by Ministers to the President shall not be inquired into in any court. 75. (1) The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President and the other Ministers shall be appointed, by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. (2) The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President. (3) The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People. (4) Before a Minister enters upon his office, the President shall administer to him the oaths of office and of secrecy according to the forms set out for the purpose in the Third schedule. (5) A Minister who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of either House of Parliament shall at the expi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sure of the President. The President has not said that it is his pleasure that the respondent shall not hold office. Now comes the crucial clause three of Article 75. The appellant urges that the House of People having been dissolved this clause cannot be complied with. According to him it follows from the provisions of this clause that it was contemplated that on the dissolution of the House of People the Prime Minister and the other ministers must resign or be dismissed by the President and the President must carry on the Government as best as he can with the aid of the Services. As we have shown above, Article 74(1) is mandatory and, therefore. the President cannot exercise 'the executive power without the aid and advice of the Co ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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