POLITY
6. STRUCTURE , ORGANISATION, AND FUNCTIONING
OF EXCEUTIVE AND JUDICIARY /MINISTRIES AND
DEPARMENTS OF GOVT , PRESSURE GROUP AND
FORMAL/INFORMAL ASSOCIATION AND THEIR ROLE IN
INDIA
EXECUTIVE
PMO
The PMO is a staff agency meant for providing secretarial assistance and crucial advice to the
Prime Minister.
The PMO enjoys the status of a department of the Government of India under the Allocation of
Business Rules, 1961. It has no attached and subordinate office under it.
Body
Functions
Acting as the ‘think-tank’ of the Prime Minister.
Faster decision making: It helps in faster decision making as it involves experienced and
powerful decision makers. Assisting the Prime Minister in respect of his overall responsibilities
as head of the government like Maintaining liaison with central ministries/departments and the
state governments.
It acts as the residual legatee of the Central Government, that is, it deals with all such subjects
which are not allotted to any ministry/department. Certain functions like RAW, CBI, ISRO etc.
report directly to them and they need to be kept out of politics of the day.
It is not concerned with the responsibilities of Prime Minister as the chairman of the Union
Cabinet.
Specialists: Certain function needs specialists and also needs to be done away from public eyes
for greater good. Ex: Pokhran-II, External intelligence etc.
Transformation or Evolution of PMO
The PMO came into existence in 1947 by replacing the Secretary to the Governor-General (Personal).
,Till June 1977, it was called as the Prime Minister’s Secretariat (PMS). The evolution of PMO has a
distinct stamp of incumbent prime ministers:
During Nehru’s period, secretariat was a low key affair manned by officer of the rank of joint
secretary. Cabinet secretariat was the apex body in that era.
Lal Bahadur shastri enlarged the role. And first time the body become to be known as prime
ministers secretariat, manned by senior IAS officer of country. Still, the decision making power
was comparatively lesser than cabinet secretariat
The post of Principal Secretary to Prime Minister was created during the tenure of Indira
Gandhi as Prime Minister.
In 1977 Prime Minister Morarji Desai renamed the Prime Minister’s Secretariat as the Prime
Minister’s Office. He also circumscribed its roles and functions significantly.
In Rajiv Gandhi era it expanded qualitatively and quantitatively. It took keen interest in
technology and in the field of science.
Subsequently during the tenure of Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao between 1991 and 1996,
the Prime Minister’s Office played a crucial role in reshaping economic policies in response to
the balance of payments crisis of 1991.
During the period of Vajpayee It was by any reckoning an active PMO in the triple area of
economy, foreign policy and security framework.
After a subdued tenure under last PM Manmohan Singh, it has again gained its vigor under the
incumbent prime minister Narendra Modi.
Now PMO has become a necessity in last two decades due to:-
Governance has increased in its complexity and scope.
The international situation is more complicated.
PMO is the nerve centre of power. This office is the mirror to the incumbent’s character, personality
and style of functioning. Like in current government, PMO is more powerful due to influence of PM
over political party internally, full majority in the lower house and dominating personality
characteristics.
Since, Independence, there has been tussle between PMO and Cabinet secretariat for being the apex
bureaucratic organization of country. Some critics call PMO as supra cabinet, micro cabinet,
government of government etc.
A centralizing and powerful PMO is a hindrance to collective responsibility, against parliamentary
ethos and democratic set-up of executive but a weak PMO might lead to anarchy, policy paralysis and
, inefficiency.
Section 144 of CrPC:
Section 144 of CrPC, a law retained from the colonial era, empowers a district magistrate, a sub-divisional
magistrate or any other executive magistrate specially empowered by the state government in this behalf to issue
orders to prevent and address urgent cases of apprehended danger or nuisance.
The magistrate has to pass a written order which may be directed against a particular individual, or to
persons residing in a particular place or area, or to the public generally when frequenting or visiting a
particular place or area.
In emergency cases, the magistrate can pass these orders without prior notice to the individual against whom
the order is directed.
Reminisces of the colonial past:
The history of this Section goes back to British Raj. Section 144 was used for the first time in 1861 by the
British Raj, and thereafter became an important tool to stop all nationalist protests during the India’s
Independence Struggle.
The law is analogous to other Powers of the administration under Section 144:
The magistrate can direct any person to abstain from a certain act or to take a certain order with respect
to certain property in his possession or under his management.
This usually includes restrictions on movement, carrying arms and from assembling unlawfully.
It is generally believed that assembly of three or more people is prohibited under Section 144. However,
it can be used to restrict even a single individual.
Such an order is passed when the magistrate considers that it is likely to prevent, or tends to prevent,
obstruction, annoyance or injury to any person lawfully employed, or danger to human life, health or
safety, or a disturbance of the public tranquillity, or a riot, of an affray.
No order passed under Section 144 can remain in force for more than two months from the date of the
order.
0.
The state government can extend this, but not more than six months. Issues related to Section 144:
The term cases of apprehended danger or nuisance are too broad and wide enough to give absolute power to
a magistrate.
The immediate remedy against such an order is a revision application to the magistrate himself.
An aggrieved individual can approach the High Court by filing a writ petition (article 226) if his fundamental
rights are at stake. This however is a time taking process.
6. STRUCTURE , ORGANISATION, AND FUNCTIONING
OF EXCEUTIVE AND JUDICIARY /MINISTRIES AND
DEPARMENTS OF GOVT , PRESSURE GROUP AND
FORMAL/INFORMAL ASSOCIATION AND THEIR ROLE IN
INDIA
EXECUTIVE
PMO
The PMO is a staff agency meant for providing secretarial assistance and crucial advice to the
Prime Minister.
The PMO enjoys the status of a department of the Government of India under the Allocation of
Business Rules, 1961. It has no attached and subordinate office under it.
Body
Functions
Acting as the ‘think-tank’ of the Prime Minister.
Faster decision making: It helps in faster decision making as it involves experienced and
powerful decision makers. Assisting the Prime Minister in respect of his overall responsibilities
as head of the government like Maintaining liaison with central ministries/departments and the
state governments.
It acts as the residual legatee of the Central Government, that is, it deals with all such subjects
which are not allotted to any ministry/department. Certain functions like RAW, CBI, ISRO etc.
report directly to them and they need to be kept out of politics of the day.
It is not concerned with the responsibilities of Prime Minister as the chairman of the Union
Cabinet.
Specialists: Certain function needs specialists and also needs to be done away from public eyes
for greater good. Ex: Pokhran-II, External intelligence etc.
Transformation or Evolution of PMO
The PMO came into existence in 1947 by replacing the Secretary to the Governor-General (Personal).
,Till June 1977, it was called as the Prime Minister’s Secretariat (PMS). The evolution of PMO has a
distinct stamp of incumbent prime ministers:
During Nehru’s period, secretariat was a low key affair manned by officer of the rank of joint
secretary. Cabinet secretariat was the apex body in that era.
Lal Bahadur shastri enlarged the role. And first time the body become to be known as prime
ministers secretariat, manned by senior IAS officer of country. Still, the decision making power
was comparatively lesser than cabinet secretariat
The post of Principal Secretary to Prime Minister was created during the tenure of Indira
Gandhi as Prime Minister.
In 1977 Prime Minister Morarji Desai renamed the Prime Minister’s Secretariat as the Prime
Minister’s Office. He also circumscribed its roles and functions significantly.
In Rajiv Gandhi era it expanded qualitatively and quantitatively. It took keen interest in
technology and in the field of science.
Subsequently during the tenure of Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao between 1991 and 1996,
the Prime Minister’s Office played a crucial role in reshaping economic policies in response to
the balance of payments crisis of 1991.
During the period of Vajpayee It was by any reckoning an active PMO in the triple area of
economy, foreign policy and security framework.
After a subdued tenure under last PM Manmohan Singh, it has again gained its vigor under the
incumbent prime minister Narendra Modi.
Now PMO has become a necessity in last two decades due to:-
Governance has increased in its complexity and scope.
The international situation is more complicated.
PMO is the nerve centre of power. This office is the mirror to the incumbent’s character, personality
and style of functioning. Like in current government, PMO is more powerful due to influence of PM
over political party internally, full majority in the lower house and dominating personality
characteristics.
Since, Independence, there has been tussle between PMO and Cabinet secretariat for being the apex
bureaucratic organization of country. Some critics call PMO as supra cabinet, micro cabinet,
government of government etc.
A centralizing and powerful PMO is a hindrance to collective responsibility, against parliamentary
ethos and democratic set-up of executive but a weak PMO might lead to anarchy, policy paralysis and
, inefficiency.
Section 144 of CrPC:
Section 144 of CrPC, a law retained from the colonial era, empowers a district magistrate, a sub-divisional
magistrate or any other executive magistrate specially empowered by the state government in this behalf to issue
orders to prevent and address urgent cases of apprehended danger or nuisance.
The magistrate has to pass a written order which may be directed against a particular individual, or to
persons residing in a particular place or area, or to the public generally when frequenting or visiting a
particular place or area.
In emergency cases, the magistrate can pass these orders without prior notice to the individual against whom
the order is directed.
Reminisces of the colonial past:
The history of this Section goes back to British Raj. Section 144 was used for the first time in 1861 by the
British Raj, and thereafter became an important tool to stop all nationalist protests during the India’s
Independence Struggle.
The law is analogous to other Powers of the administration under Section 144:
The magistrate can direct any person to abstain from a certain act or to take a certain order with respect
to certain property in his possession or under his management.
This usually includes restrictions on movement, carrying arms and from assembling unlawfully.
It is generally believed that assembly of three or more people is prohibited under Section 144. However,
it can be used to restrict even a single individual.
Such an order is passed when the magistrate considers that it is likely to prevent, or tends to prevent,
obstruction, annoyance or injury to any person lawfully employed, or danger to human life, health or
safety, or a disturbance of the public tranquillity, or a riot, of an affray.
No order passed under Section 144 can remain in force for more than two months from the date of the
order.
0.
The state government can extend this, but not more than six months. Issues related to Section 144:
The term cases of apprehended danger or nuisance are too broad and wide enough to give absolute power to
a magistrate.
The immediate remedy against such an order is a revision application to the magistrate himself.
An aggrieved individual can approach the High Court by filing a writ petition (article 226) if his fundamental
rights are at stake. This however is a time taking process.
