#260: President's address to joint parliament
All the related constitutional provisions for #UPSC 2025
President of India addressed her first ever joint session on Thursday
The budget introduced in February 2024 was dismissed and a new budget was introduced.
WHY?😕👇🏻
Let’s start from the start
Article 87
Special address by President to joint session of parliament after every general election
The President in his/her address provides a broad framework of all the governments agenda and priorities for the upcoming year.
Interestingly, an amendment in 1951 reduced the frequency of President’s address to only one each after every Lok Sabha elections.
Earlier the President of India addressed "every joint session" of the parliament.
In her address on June 29th, President Draupadi Murmu declared the emergency in 1975 to be “darkest chapter of direct attack on constitution”
But as far as we know the Indian constitution allows imposition of emergency 😕
If it was a ‘Direct attack’ why don’t we just amend the constitution and remove it?👇🏻
Significance of constitutional provisions of emergency
Article 352
allows national emergency to be imposed at times of war or when the national security is under threat.
Article 356
allows President’s rule to be followed in a state in case of complete failure of administrative mechanism in the state.
Article 360
provides for financial emergency in case of extreme financial instability in the country.
But, how do we avoid potential financial instabilities in the country?
Every year a budget is issued which properly outlines potential expenditures of government of India for an entire financial year.
Article 112
mandates the President of India to present before both Houses of Parliament a statement of estimated expenditure of Government of India which is called "The Annual Financial Statement"
NOTE: The term ‘Budget’ is nowhere used in the entire constitution
But, if your memory serves well the finance minister has already introduced a financial statement in Feb 2024. So, why is the budget introduced again? 👇🏻
Interim Budget and Union Budget
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had introduced in the month of Feb, what is called an Interim Budget or an Election Budget.
There is no specific constitutional provision for an "Interim Budget" per se.
The Interim Budget is presented by the outgoing government as a Vote on Account under Article 116, to ensure continuity of government expenditure until the new government presents the full Union Budget.
Interim budget is presented in every election year a few months before elections.
It only deals with:
Previous year's income
essential expenditures until the new govt takes over
It ensures continuity of govt operations in transition
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