Lesson 1 of 2 | GS Paper II (Polity, Governance, IR) / Constitution, Federalism and Separation of Powers
Features of Indian Federalism
1 practice test
Federal with a unitary bias
The Constitution does not use the word "federation"; Article 1 calls India a "Union of States". K. C. Wheare called it quasi-federal.
Federal features
- Dual polity (Union and States).
- Division of powers — Seventh Schedule: Union List, State List, Concurrent List.
- Written, rigid (partly) Constitution; supremacy of the Constitution.
- Independent judiciary to resolve Centre–State disputes (Article 131).
- Bicameral Parliament with the Rajya Sabha representing States.
Unitary features
- Strong Centre; residuary powers with Parliament (Article 248).
- Parliament can alter State boundaries (Article 3).
- Emergency provisions (Articles 352, 356, 360).
- Single citizenship, integrated judiciary, All-India Services.
- Governor appointed by the Centre.
Cooperative and competitive federalism
- Cooperative: GST Council (Article 279A), NITI Aayog, Inter-State Council (Article 263).
- Competitive: States compete for investment through ease-of-doing-business rankings.
Mains angles
Fiscal federalism (Finance Commission, GST compensation), misuse of Article 356 (S. R. Bommai case, 1994), role of Governors.
Analogy
Indian federalism is like a joint family with a strong head. Each household (State) runs its own kitchen and budget, but the family head (Union) keeps the final say in emergencies, can redraw rooms, and holds the leftover keys (residuary powers). It works best when everyone sits together at the dining table — cooperative federalism like the GST Council.