All you need to know about Article 356 and President’s rule

Lucknow: With the imposition of President’s rule in Uttarakhand, for the first time in the history of the Hill state after it came into being in 1999, the newztrack.com brings you a knowledge pack about how and when it is clamped.

Article 356 of the Indian constitution:

The President’s rule is clamped in a state if a situation has arisen that the government of that state cannot run in accordance to the provisions of Indian Constitution.

The report of Governor

• The Governor usually sends report to the Centre on which the Union Cabinet recommends the President to use the Article 356 for imposing the President’s rule.
• The Governor is not supposed to take an advice of the state cabinet during this period but on the other hand President has to go by the advice of Union Cabinet.
• President can seek clarification from the Union Cabinet.

Image source: Livemint

Failure of constitutional machinery

• It arises when the government loses majority.
• Happens due to insurgence and many other reasons but a President has to be satisfied with the constitutional machinery.

The President’s rule:

• The state comes under the direct control of Central government once a President’s rule is clamped.
• The state assembly is kept under suspended animation during this period.
• The executive power shifts from ministers to the governor.
• It cannot last more than six months unless approved by the parliament.

This may surprise you :

• Post Independence, the President’s rule has been clamped 124 times in India.
• Kerala was the first state where the President's rule was imposed in 1959.
• It has been imposed six time in Jammu and Kashmir.
• There have been total 10 instances of President’s Rule in Manipur since 1967.
• Chattisgarh and Telangana have not come under the President’s rule.
• The Congress has effected Article 356 around 88 times during tenure at the centre. Non-Congress regimes (NDA, Janata Party etc) have imposed president’s rule 37 times during power.
• Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, holds the record for invoking Article 356 the maximum times,50 times