BJP TODAY

June 1--15, 2003 - Vol. 12, No. 11

The Centre, Art 356 and Article 355
India not a federation of Independent States.
Arabinda Ghose

When the States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) was going round the country in 1954-1955 assessing public opinion and studying the ground situation before delivering its verdief, it had called several political leaders for discussions at various places in the country. In a city now in the State of Karnataka, a few Bharatiya Jana Sangh leaders led by the Late Shri Jagannathrao Joshi (most prabably) had called on the commission and had pleader for amending the Constitution in order to make India a Unitary State.

"Why young man," one member of the SRC was said to have asked Shri Joshi, "You donot want to contest elections"? The atmosphere in the country as that time was highly surcharged by the death of the fasting Telugu leader Potti Sriramulu, and Nehru acceding to the demand of the Telugu-speaking people of the country to grant them a separate State called Andhra Pradesh. The capital of the State, carved out of the Madras Provinee (Presidency earlier) was Kurnool.

Once this was done, demand for re-organisation mainly on the basis of languages had to follow, and hence the Commission headed by Justice Fazal Ali. The recommendation of the SRC were inplemented from Nov. 1, 1956 and the map of India was re-drawn from that date. However, this did not change Article 1 of the Coustitution, which says: "India that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States". not a federation. If remains so, although soumetimes the terminology "co-operative federalism" is misconstrued to imply that India, actually, is a federation.

In this context, one has to refer to an article in the Constitution which safeguards the concept of India being a Union of States. This is article 355, placed just before the more well-known and more popular or notorious according to one's perception, Article 356. It is a longish article with several clauses, However, almost everyone in the country interested in political developments is aware that this is the Article which the union government uses (or misuses) in order to dismiss a State Government and to impose President's rule in that State.

Article 355 came into focus recently (May 13 to be precise) at the standing committee of the Inter-State Council which met under the chairmanship of the Union Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani.

At this meeting, attended by six Chief Minister, there was a demand that Article 356 be amended in order to give effect to the Supreme Court Judgement in the S.R. Bommai case which had inter alia said that the floor of the Legislative Assembly should be the place where it had to be decided whether a Chief Minister still enjoyed majority support in the House or not. The implication was that Raj Bhavans were not the places where such decisions should be arrived at. Shri Advani said that since this measure meant an amendment to the Constitution, he would cousult leaders of Parliamentary parties on this issue.

Another issue discussed of this meeting was whether it should be made mandatory for the centre to seek the concurrence of the States before sending central armed forces there. This question arose from the Constitutional provision that law and order is a State subject (Entries 1 and 2, List II, Seventh Schedule) and it was not possible for the centre, therefore, to interfere in the internal law and order situation in the States, by despatching central armed forces to the States without their concurrence.

Shri Advani rejected this concept saying that Art. 355 of the Constitution imposed a duty upon the centre to protect the States from external or internal threats.

Here is the full text of the Article in question which supports Shri Advani's contention.

Article 355 of the Constitution :

355 Duty of the Union to protect States against external aggression and internal disturbances- It shall be the duty of the union to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance and to ensure that the government of every State is carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Coustitution.