A S S I G N M EN T

FEDERALISM AND LOCAL SELF GOVERNMENT

IN RURAL INDIA

SUBJECT
ILBA 301 SOCIOLOGY PAPER-V (SOCIOLOGY AND LAW)

SUBMITTED TO
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR MRS. NAVANEETA MAJUMDER

SUBMITTED BY
TAPATI DAVE (67)
SAHIL NAIR (89)
SONAM RAJ (99)
ANKITA RAJPUT (101)
ISHA SINGH (111)
SEMESTER 5
DIVISION B
GROUP D

GLS LAW COLLEGE

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 ABSTRACT

Federalism, being one of the most desirable systems in the world is a system of government in which powers
are divided between the center and its constituent parts inclusive of states or provinces. How gracefully the
applicability of Federalism in Indian system is uniquely quasi-federal and the structure, governance and
functioning of Indian system can be climbed through four steps inclusive of democracy, law and order,
federal essence and perpetual decentralization. Indian governmental presence is dual in the form of Centre
and State and the decentralized chain extends to the village level as well. This system of decentralization
of democratic powers, authority, duties and responsibilities when linked to the institution of federalism
becomes a very fascinating topic to study. The local-self-government is a part of state that actually made
decisions and developmental activities more transparent and approachable. The way Indian federal system
is linked to the rural local self-government is a topic worth considering.

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 TABLE OF CONTENT

INTRODUCTION 4-5
• OBJECTIVES 5
LINKING FEDERALISM TO THE RURAL LOCAL- 6-10
SELF-GOVERNMENT
• THE RISING ACTION BEFORE THE CLIMAX 6
1. FEDERAL FEATURES OF INDIAN UNION 6
2. STRUCTURE OF GOVERNANCE 7
3. CONCEPT OF LOCAL-SELF-GOVERNMENT 8
• THE CLIMAX 9
ANALYSIS 11-12
DISCUSSION 13
CONCLUSION (THE DECODING OF THE 13
CLIMAX)

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 I N T R O D U CT I ON

The word federalism, understanding by its most theoretical meaning can be understood to be a system of
governance wherein decentralization of power takes place in a rigid format among states of country. The
Constitution of India mentions India to be a union of states and this union of states so far as Indian system
is concerned is not completely a federal state as per its theoretically rigid format expects. This happens
because India being an extremely diverse country with each state symbolizing a completely different
cultural, political existence, expectations, religious presence, etc., there has to be some power that is vested
on Centre higher than that of the state for the smooth functioning as well as for the stability of the diverse
co-habitation of Indian system. Article 356 could serve as a perfect example here because it allows the
President to proclaim the situation as an emergency in case, he is satisfied with the prevailing conditions to
be serious enough to apply Article 356. Not just that, but the Governor of the state is also appointed by the
President who at the end acts as a partisan to the Government that is in function at the central level.

Above discussed was just a single of many examples that showcase the presence of a lot of spoken and
unspoken restrictions on states by the Centre.

However, if we try to link the federal system in India it is seen the way local government has been
constructed to be proudly known as Local Self Government. The structure of federal system and local self-
government in RURAL INDIA is definitely a treat to study because from its deep rooting back in times to
this day this structure and part of societal law has developed in many aspects. Undeniably, an institution
for local-self government has been existing since years and can be called as old as a civilization known as
the Village panchayat which usually performed regulatory functions as well as adjudicating civil disputes.
After having tasted the Independence, Indian Constitution talked about the local governance by providing
for establishment of local bodies and Panchayati Raj under Article 40 (DPSP) with no further elaborations
as to the structure, functions and other details.

Pioneering of the idea of a stake of rural area in the participation of rural development has been an outcome
of an advantageous collaboration of the institution of quasi-federalism, local self-government and
democracy which unfortunately became stagnated as the funds for Community Development projects dried
up. It was then through the 73rd amendment of Indian Constitution in 1992 which ushered the present phase
where the Panchayats are known as Institution that defines the Local-Self-government.

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There are various and vividly elaborative aspects that are to be discussed under this topic for which there
has to be certain objectives attached in order to have a check point for the study that is conducted in order
to fulfill this academic obligation.

OBJECTIVES:

This study is conducted in order to:

1. Deeply understand the conceptual existence of federalism and local-self-Government in rural India.
2. Understand the extent to which the concept of federalism is applied in the Indian context.
3. Understand the link or the point of connection between federalism and rural local-self-
government (main objective).
4. Understand the concept of Quasi-federal in the Rural India concept.
5. Fulfill the academic obligation with a zest to conduct thorough study of the topic and justify the
very reason for the allotment of the assignment.

Moreover,

The whole concept and institution of decentralization of powers would at the end be linked with the
rural area of India in order to actually decode the actual idea of united participation in the
planning of development in an individual’s area.

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 L I N K I N G F E D R A LI S M W I T H T H E R U R A L L O C A L - S E LF -
G O V E R N ME N T

THE RISING ACTION BEFORE THE CLIMAX

For better understanding and gaining a broader perspective while actually estimating in what boat we are
actually sinking in it is important for us to first understand the basic features of federalism that is sustaining
in Indian Union. So, let us first have an explicit look at the features of federalism in Indian Union:

FEDERAL FEATURES OF INDIAN UNION 1

1. DIVISION OF POWERS

In the context of this assignment, the division of power is to be considered to be the VERTICAL
DIVISION OF POWER which gives certain power to CENTRE as well as STATE. The powers between
center and state have been specifically mentioned in the Constitution under 3 different lists:

1. UNION LIST: The Union Government has exclusive powers to deal with matters relating to Centre
like defense.
2. STATE LIST: The respective state government has exclusive powers to legislate on matters relating
to these items.
3. CONCURRENT LIST: This list includes items which are in joint domain of both center and the
state.

Basically, Article 2482 of Constitution of India clearly states, “The Union Parliament has exclusive powers
to make any law with respect to any matter not enumerated in the concurrent list or the state list.”

2. SUPREMACY OF THE CONSTITUTION

It is very much kept in mind that the basic structure of the Constitution is the very essence over which
democracy exists and is the actual fruit of the freedom struggle. It is very much laid by the judiciary that
no decision should be against the basic structure of the Constitution.

No power is above that of Constitutional powers, no law is above the Constitutional provisions and
more than that, no wisdom is wiser than that of the Constitution.

1
GeeksforGeeks, key features of federalism, https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/key-features-of-federalism/, {Last
visited on 30 th July, 2022}
2 INDIA CONST., Art § 248

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 3. INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY

The epitome of Justice for the Indian citizens is the Indian Judiciary and therefore, its independence is
inevitable if one dreams of breathing the air of democracy and people’s power forever. Judiciary is kept
separate from the legislature and executive to make sure that the decisions are not just uninfluenced but
also the most accurate versions of Justice.

Until and unless the independence of Judiciary is striving in the country; the trust of people will keep on
beating in the heart of the country.

4. DUAL GOVERNMENT SYSTEM

In the Indian system of federation, there is a system of dual government i.e., Centre and the State. The status
of the authority working at the center as well as the state is that of a “government”, democratically, by
choice, elected by the people of the country.

The above discussed were the few features of federal India that would help us understand the topic in a
better way as we would move forward.

Note: India follows Holding Together Federation which basically means that powers are shared between
various constituent parts which would further accommodate the diversity that exists in the entire country
wherein powers are being tilted towards the central authority.

Before we actually start linking, we are still left discussing a couple of more concepts on individual basis;

STRUCTURE OF GOVERNANCE

Since, the Indian system of Governance is based on the idea of Federalism, it follows a decentralized way
of governance wherein the power and authority of governance is widespread through different levels as
well as all the responsibilities and duties are imposed on all these levels in different ways, frequencies and
intensities.

These different levels of Indian governance system are as follows:

1. Central Government
2. State Government {Provisions}
3. District Administration

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 4. Mandal Administration (block)
5. Village Administration

There is a strategic importance as to why the structural chain of governance has been discussed before the
moving to the actual concept. Mentioning this chain will aid in relating a lot of concepts of the institution
in a far better manner because as soon as there would be any discussion as to the governance of the rural
India, the whole chain of governance would erupt in the mind which would consequently contribute in
widening the scope of personal understanding.

CONCEPT OF LOCAL SELF GOVERNMENT (With light on the Rural Local-Self-Government)

The functioning of local-self-government is actually an art because the way a single system could actually
make it possible to involve maximum number of participations in the decisions of development is actually
a beautifully designed concept if thought philosophically.
Basically, Local Government is the part of State Government in the federal countries which basically deals
with local affairs, administered by authorities, subordinate to that of state government. The derivation of
powers of local authorities are usually in sync through the same electorate from where the state authority
gets its power.
Specifically talking about the Rural Local Self Government, it comprises of Village Panchayats,
Intermediate Panchayats and District Panchayats, collectively and popularly known as the PANCHAYATI
RAJ SYSTEM.
The Panchayati Raj system is a system developed for rural self-government which was constitutionalized
through the 73rd Amendment of 1992. This system works on three tiers which are Gram Panchayat,
Panchayat Samiti and zila parishad for village, block and district levels respectively.
Features:
• This act has added a new Part-IX to the Constitution of India. This part is entitled as ‘The
Panchayats’ and consists of provisions from Articles 243 to 243 O.
• In addition, the act has also added a new Eleventh Schedule to the Constitution. This schedule
contains 29 functional items of the panchayats. It deals with Article 243-G.

In its present form and structure PRI has completed 30 years of existence. However, a lot remains to be
done in order to further decentralization and strengthen democracy at the grass root level.

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THE CLIMAX

This is the perfect time to actually start our study by linking the presence of federal system in the Rural
Government functioning.
The establishment of Panchayati Raj system is a successful implementation of the Article 40 of the Indian
Constitution. This Article served as a principle that suggested steps to be taken by the states to organize
village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as much as necessary in order to enable
them to work and function as independent unit and can call themselves self-government.
If we make anticipations here, it could be linked here that the directive principle that is talked about in the
Article 40 is an indirect appeal by the Constitution to the center and the state to consider and accept the
institution of Federalism in a deeper sense. Indian system has been federal to a lot of extent since past but
after the independence, the state in which India was handed over to us, it was then important to slowly and
gradually scrutinize and imbibe the concept of federalism in the Indian system again and this time make
am extra effort into not just introducing federalism but constitutionalizing it as well.

Furthermore, constitutionalizing Panchayati Raj has done the work of bringing them under the radar of
justiciable part of the Constitution. India’s Federal stake can be understood from the fact that the
Government made efforts onto bringing Panchayati Raj system into the preview of justiciable acts which
would in a way contribute into strengthening the implementation of Panchayati Raj. By putting the state
government under the obligation of establishing and adopting the new Panchayati Raj system, India made
efforts to match the rigidness of the concept of Federalism that supported complete decentralization.
However, India has been maintaining its own unique form of Federalism wherein the rural authorities do
have power but have to be dependent on the state authority for a lot of reasons like for allotment of funds
for conducting developmental activities. This unique system in India doesnot make India any less of a
federal state this is because with all the restrictions, at least theoretically, almost such powers are given to
the Panchayati Raj system which would make it possibly convenient for them to conduct general
developmental activities.
This amendment is truly a landmark evolution for making sure that the development is rooted deep and the
governance is possible from the grass root level which would eventually lead to better functioning because
after all, decentralized governance is a widespread governance. The commendable aspect of this system is
the fact that it literally evolves the whole democracy of representation into the democracy of participation
hinting directly to the presence of federalism.

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Furthermore, the federalism in rural self government is not just an opportunity of involving the
developmental process from the grass root level, but in larger perspective, if we think of the rural areas, it
is always these areas which are expected to have lesser stake in decision making due to various myths like
lake of education, prejudices, etc., and the existence of the institution of Federalism gives a scope for giving
opportunities to the rural Indians to choose their development which truly is an important aspect because it
is the rural lands where the great Indian agriculture strives.
Furthermore, it is not just about giving this scope of opportunity to the rural people but it is also about
justifying the fact that it is the democracy that is imbibed by India and it is the institution of federalism that
makes it possible for the government to not only ensure participation from the grass root level but also
merge the concept of democracy from the down level.

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 ANALYSIS

In this segment of Analysis those features of Panchayati Raj would be discussed that helps in aiding and
proving different objectives of the study.
1. The very first feature to discuss is the GRAM SABHA. Gram Sabha is the basic foundation of the
structure of Panchayati Raj system which extensively is a body consisting of persons registered in
the electoral rolls of a village that are comprised within the area of Panchayat at the village level.
Moreover, it exercises such powers and performs activities at the level of village which usually
pertains to developmental aspects as per the decision of the state legislature.
This feature of Panchayati Raj is the wisest proof of reaching the grass-root level that we talked about
earlier. Gram Sabha makes it possible to have electoral option for the individuals at village level as well.
The power is delegated by the state to the Sabha’s at village levels which very much uplifts and fosters the
institutions of democracy as well as Federalism. This feature of Panchayati Raj is the most understandable
hint towards intangible link between Federalism and the rural local self-government. It is important to note
that the feature of Gram Sabha doesn’t hold absoluteness because it work as per the guidelines of the
government at the state.
2. The amendment provides for a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj in every state, i.e., panchayats
at village, intermediate, and district levels. In this system, the chairman of panchayats at
intermediate and district levels shall be elected indirectly amongst the elected members and the
chairperson of a panchayat at village level would however, be elected in the manner that is
prescribed by the state legislature.
This feature highlights how even in the rural system of federalism, there has been division in delegation of
power extending from district, blocks and villages. The fact that the state legislature is accountable for the
matter in which certain elections are carried on in the rural India is a sign of Quasi-Federal Union of India.
3. The third point to discuss here is the Powers and Functions of the Rural Government. The state
legislature endows the Panchayats at all levels with such powers and authority as much as necessary
for the smooth conduct of developmental activities and more than that for making sure that the rural
authority is able to function as institution of self-government.
It is the state that aids, allows, funds and authorizes the panchayats for preparation as well as execution of
plans for economic development and social justice. Therefore, it can be undoubtedly said that the rural
system of Federalism is strong enough to actually conduct activities for the betterment of its area but with
it has an accountability to the State government.

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After understanding the above three features of Panchayati Raj there are a lot of aspects that has been
enlightened. In what way the analysis and other discussions is contributing in fulfillment of the objectives
of the study would be discussed further. For now, what has to be kept in mind is that the Panchayati Raj is
a symbol and epitome of every element that confronts each other in India’s unique institution of Federalism.

MOREOVER,
1. Through the first feature, the foundation over which the rural self-government is been established
is talked about which on a serious and larder note is a proof of delegation in the democratic land
of the country.
2. Through the second feature, the further extensions in the delegation of rural self-government is
highlighted.
3. Through the third feature, am estimation can be made about the extent of authority that is given to
the rural authority by the state for developmental activities.

STATE LEGISLATURES ARE THE PRINCIPLES NOT JUST FOR STATE AUTHORITIES
BUT ALSO FOR THE RURAL AUTHORITIES!

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 D I S C U S S I ON A N D C O N C L U SI O N

The basic ideology for the formation of Panchayati Raj was to spread political awareness in local and rural
areas. Basically, Panchayati Raj is the political system of the rural areas of India that could contribute in
strengthening the developmental process in the concerned local area.

Since, the state authority delegates power to the rural self-government it is very much important to
understand that the allotment of this power is better if it is kept closest with the theoretical view over it,
meaning that the state should, as prescribed theoretically truly delegate powers that are necessary to enhance
the goal of Panchayati Raj and Federalism in the larger sense. It is the state legislature that authorizes to
levy, collect and appropriate taxes, it is the state government that collects taxes from the panchayats, it is
the state that grants in aid which clearly showcase the inter-relation between the rural and state authority in
financial terms. Therefore, the state, in order to keep alive federalism in the rural government should
consider aiding and helping the rural government in a lenient manner without being rigid and should not be
driven by self-interest in its extremeness.
Through this assignment, the concept of Panchayati Raj and its link with the Federalism in India got a
completely new perspective. This study decorated our eye to actually be able to link various concept to be
able to find the common connection of every aspect that supplements in helping democracy breathe in our
country.
It is through this study that we are able to gather the importance of decentralization and delegation to each
and every level of divisions in the country which would make sure that there is people’s power, there is
proper developmental activities carried on and the basic idea of democracy is able to sustain.

It is through this study that we are now able to distinguish, relate, accept, understand, modify, correct, and
most importantly decode the senses that had a completely different thinking pertaining to this topic before.

DELEGATION LEADS TO FEDERALISM

THEREFORE, INDIAN RURAL LOCAL-SELF-GOVERNMENT IS A FEDERAL
INSTITUTION WITH ITS OWN UNIQUENESS!

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