Rajasthan Governor, CM, Vidhan Sabha and High Court

Rajasthan is governed by the same constitutional machinery as every other state, so the chapter is really the state executive, the state legislature and the state judiciary read with the facts peculiar to Rajasthan. Three of those facts carry most of the marks: the Assembly has two hundred seats, the state has no second chamber, and the High Court sits at Jodhpur with a bench at Jaipur. The rest is the Articles, and they are the same ones that come up in the general Polity paper, which makes this chapter double value for a candidate preparing for both.

The Governor

Article 153 provides that there shall be a Governor for each state, and Article 154 vests the executive power of the state in him, to be exercised by him directly or through officers subordinate to him. He is appointed by the President under Article 155 by warrant under his hand and seal, and under Article 156 he holds office during the pleasure of the President for a term of five years; he may resign, and he continues until his successor takes charge. Article 157 lays down only two qualifications, that he be a citizen of India and have completed thirty-five years of age, and Article 158 requires that he not be a member of either House of Parliament or of a state legislature and not hold any office of profit. Under Article 159 he takes the oath before the Chief Justice of the High Court of the state, or in his absence the senior-most judge available, a detail examiners like because the President takes his oath before the Chief Justice of India.

His powers run through the state's business. He summons, prorogues and dissolves the Assembly under Article 174, addresses it, gives or withholds assent to Bills under Article 200 or reserves them for the President, promulgates ordinances when the House is not in session under Article 213, appoints the Chief Minister and the ministers under Article 164, the Advocate General under Article 165 and the Chairman and members of the State Public Service Commission, and may grant pardons, reprieves and remissions under Article 161, although the power to pardon a death sentence rests with the President. He is also, under the state's own university laws rather than the Constitution, the Chancellor of the state universities. His genuine discretion is narrow: choosing a Chief Minister when no party has a majority, reserving a Bill for the President, and reporting to the President that the government of the state cannot be carried on in accordance with the Constitution.

The Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers

Article 163 provides a Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister to aid and advise the Governor except where he acts in his discretion. Under Article 164 the Chief Minister is appointed by the Governor and the other ministers are appointed on the Chief Minister's advice; they hold office during the Governor's pleasure, and the Council is collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly. Article 164(1A), inserted by the Ninety-first Amendment of 2003, fixes the size of the Council at not more than fifteen per cent of the strength of the Assembly and not fewer than twelve, so in Rajasthan, with two hundred members, the Council of Ministers cannot exceed thirty including the Chief Minister. A minister who is not a member of the legislature must become one within six months. Article 167 makes it the duty of the Chief Minister to communicate the decisions of the Council to the Governor and to furnish any information he calls for.

The Vidhan Sabha

Article 168 constitutes a legislature for every state, and Article 169 allows Parliament to create or abolish a second chamber if the Assembly of the state passes a resolution by a special majority. Rajasthan has never had a Legislative Council, so its legislature is unicameral: the Governor and the Vidhan Sabha. Under Article 170 an Assembly may have between sixty and five hundred members chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies, and Rajasthan's strength is two hundred. Its normal term is five years under Article 172, extendable by a year at a time during a Proclamation of Emergency, and Article 174 forbids a gap of more than six months between two sessions. The House elects a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker, the quorum is one tenth of the total membership, and a Money Bill may be introduced only here and only on the Governor's recommendation. The first Vidhan Sabha of Rajasthan was constituted in 1952, and its first Speaker was Narottam Lal Joshi.

The High Court of Rajasthan

Article 214 provides a High Court for each state. The High Court of Rajasthan was established in 1949, when the princely courts of the merging states were replaced by a single court, and its principal seat is at Jodhpur; a bench was established at Jaipur in 1977, so the court sits in two cities. Its first Chief Justice was Kamala Kant Verma. Under Article 217 the judges are appointed by the President after consultation with the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of the state, and the Chief Justice of the High Court is consulted for the appointment of other judges; a High Court judge retires at sixty-two. Under Article 226 the High Court may issue the writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari, and its writ jurisdiction is wider than the Supreme Court's because it extends to any legal right, not only to a fundamental right. Article 227 gives it superintendence over all courts and tribunals in the state, and Article 233 makes the appointment of district judges a matter for the Governor in consultation with the High Court.

The commissions and offices of the state

Three bodies are asked with this chapter. The Rajasthan Public Service Commission, set up in 1949 and seated at Ajmer, conducts the state services examinations; its Chairman and members are appointed by the Governor under Article 316 and removed only by the President. The Rajasthan Lokayukta was created by a state Act of 1973 to inquire into allegations against ministers and public servants. The State Human Rights Commission, the State Election Commission, which conducts panchayat and municipal elections, and the State Information Commission complete the set. Rajasthan sends twenty-five members to the Lok Sabha and ten to the Rajya Sabha.