At the head of the Union Executive stands the President of India.
Election of the President of India:- The President of India is elected by indirect election, that is, by an electoral college, by the system of proportional representation using the single transferable vote. The electoral college shall consist of the following:
(a) the elected members of both the House of Parliament;
(b) the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the state; and the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the Union Territories [Article 54].
The system of indirect was criticized by some as falling short of the democratic ideal underlying universal franchise, but the indirect election was supported by the framers of the Constitution, on the following grounds-
(i) Direct election by an electorate of some 510 million people would mean an enormous loss of time, energy, and money.
(ii) Under the system of responsible Government introduced by the Constitution, real power would vest in the ministry; so, it would be bizarre to elect the President directly by the people without giving them real power.
Qualification of the President:- In order to be qualified as President of india, one must –
(a) be a citizen of India;
(b) has completed the age of 35 years;
(c) be qualified for election as a member of the House of the People; and
(d) must not hold any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any of the state or any local or other authority subject to the control of any of the said Government [Article 58].
Term of Office of President:- The President holds his office for five years from the date of the appointment in the office, and he is eligible for re-election [Article 56-57].
Appointment of the President:- The President is appointed by the Prime Minister into his office.
Termination:- The President’s office may terminate within the term of five years in either of the two ways-
(a) by written resignation in his handwriting, addressed to the Vice President of India.
(b) by removal for the violation of the Constitution [Article 61(1)].
Procedure for the impeachment of the President:- An impeachment is a quasi-judicial procedure in Parliament. Any of the House may charge for the violation of the Constitution, before the other, and shall either investigate the charges by themselves or may stimulate once to be investigated. But the charge cannot be preferable unless-
(a) a resolution passed by the any House of the Parliament with not less than 1/4 of the total members of that House within 14 days of notice.
(b) the resolution was then passed by a majority of not less than 2/3 of the members of both the House of the Parliament.
Employments Allowances of the President:- The President shall be entitled without payment of rent to the use of his official residence and shall also be entitled to such emoluments, allowances, and privileges as may be determined by the Parliament. The emoluments and allowances of the President cannot be diminished till he holds his office [Article 54(4)].
