Not just the symbol of the nation

In the Constituent Assembly, after the articles relating to the office of the President took final shape, Dr B.R. Ambedkar said: “He is the head of the state, but not of the executive. He represents the nation, but does not rule the nation. He is the symbol of the nation.”

However, under our Constitution, the President shall be the sole repository of the executive power of the Union of India with the condition that he shall, in exercising his functions, act in accordance with the advice of the Council of Ministers. Thus, if a President is bound to act only in accordance with the advice of the Council of Ministers, how does it matter who the President is? The precedents, however, show that the occupant of the Rashtrapati Bhavan can change the course of the country’s history — in fact, many of them have done precisely that.
Nothing revolutionary happened during the first 20 years of the republic, till the unfortunate passing away of President Zakir Hussain while in office, on May 3, 1969. V.V. Giri, then vice-president, became the acting President and immediately it was realised that there was no provision for filling the vice-president’s chair. Accordingly, on May 28, 1969, Parliament hurriedly passed a law nominating the Chief Justice of India to fill that post. As it happened, Giri resigned from the posts of the vice-president and of acting President to contest the forthcoming presidential election. The then Chief Justice Hidayatullah, acting as vice-president, naturally became the acting President — the only such occasion so far. Incidentally, while acting as President, he signed the ordinance nationalising 14 banks. The Supreme Court later struck down the law that followed.
Giri defeated N. Sanjeeva Reddy who was the official candidate. However, he had to face an election petition — the first in India’s history — and in connection with that President Giri sat in a witness box in the Supreme Court.
It was during the tenure of President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmad (August 24, 1974 to February 11, 1977) that the infamous Emergency was promulgated on June 26, 1975. The President’s abject participation in the declaration of Emergency was the subject of criticism on several grounds, including the fact that the President had not noticed that the country was already under the Emergency declared in 1972 during the Bangladesh liberation war, and, of course, that the recommendation was not backed by a Cabinet resolution. Perhaps, Emergency would not have been imposed if the readiness of the Rashtrapati to sign anything that was presented to him was a little less mechanical.
President N. Sanjeeva Reddy (July 25, 1977 to July 25, 1982), who missed the bus in 1969, was unanimously elected President during the Janata government. In August 1979, when the government headed by Morarji Desai resigned due to internal dissensions, President Reddy had to decide whether Jagjivan Ram or Charan Singh should be invited to form the new government. The latter’s claim was based on the assurance of support given by the Congress-led Indira Gandhi. President Reddy consulted many constitutional experts but finally announced that he would be guided by the dictates of Lord Venkateswara of Tirupati. It is a matter of history that he invited Charan Singh to form the government, who had to go out of office without facing Parliament even for a day because as soon as the government was formed, Indira Gandhi announced withdrawal of support — a possibility foreseen by all except President Reddy, and perhaps Lord Venkateswara. If Babu Jagjivan Ram had been called upon to form the government, in all probability the course of history would have been different — Indira Gandhi would not have come back to power in January 1980.
President Giani Zail Singh (July 25, 1982 to July 25, 1987), who became famous for his public declaration that he would sweep the floors if Indira Gandhi asked him to do so, had a very important role to play. In the aftermath of the unfortunate assassination of Indira Gandhi, President Singh straightaway appointed the young MP Rajiv Gandhi as the Prime Minister, ignoring the tradition of asking the seniormost Cabinet minister — then Pranab Mukherjee — to officiate as interim Prime Minister. Even the formality of a parliamentary party’s recommendation was dispensed with before entrusting the huge responsibility on young shoulders. Again, when Rajiv Gandhi was facing controversies on account of the Bofors deal, President Singh publicly invited constitutional experts to advise him whether the President of India had the power to dismiss a Prime Minister.
President K.R. Narayanan (July 25, 1997 to July 25, 2002) had the distinction of dissolving the Lok Sabha twice — in 1997 and 1999. In April 1999, soon after the Vajpayee government fell because of J. Jayalalithaa’s withdrawal of support, Mrs Sonia Gandhi staked claim to be the Prime Minister on the basis of support of 272 MPs. President Narayanan reportedly was ready to invite her to take oath; but in the nick of time Mulayam Singh Yadav openly declared that 20 MPs belonging to his party were not to be counted for making up the figure of 272.
President Narayanan also refused to dismiss the Kalyan Singh government in Uttar Pradesh as recommended by the Gujral government and the Rabri Devi government in Bihar as advised by the Vajpayee government. During the Kargil war, when the Vajpayee government was a caretaker government as the Lok Sabha stood dissolved, President Narayanan reportedly took active interest in pursuing war efforts.
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (July 25, 2002 to July 25, 2007) was probably the second most popular head of state, after President Radhakrishnan. No one really knows what role he played in making Dr Manmohan Singh the Prime Minister after Mrs Sonia Gandhi had triumphantly announced that the leader of the parliamentary party — she was the leader — would be the Prime Minister. All one knows is that the surprising change came about after she had a meeting with the President.
“The President shall act in accordance with the advice of the Cabinet”; but the President alone is to decide who should form the Cabinet. On the day of that decision, there is no Council of Ministers to advise him. In a situation where no single party is expected to command absolute majority in the Lok Sabha, the decision as to who should be called upon to form the coalition government is crucial.
In areas like dealing with clemency petitions or clearing the files promptly a President can make a real difference, and set precedents.
President Pranab Mukherjee is a seasoned politician with experience of governance. The consequent profound knowledge of the working of the Constitution is only natural. He will surely make a difference and write a new chapter of India’s history.

The writer is a senior advocate of the Supreme Court and former additional solicitor-general of India