Legislative and Financial Powers of the President

Some of the major legislative and financial powers and functions of the President can be stated as:

1. “The President summons or prorogues the Houses of Parliament and can dissolve the lower House (Article 85). He has the power to call a joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament in case of a deadlock between them over any ordinary bill (Article 108).
2. “The President addresses both the Houses of Parliament assembled together at the first session after each general election to the House of the People and at the first session of each year, and ‘inform Parliament of the causes of its summons’ (Article 87).
3. “The President has the power to address either House or the joint sitting of both the Houses, at any time, and to require the attendance of members for this purpose [Article 86(1)]. Additionally, the President has the power to send messages to either Houses of Parliament in regard to any pending Bill [Article 86(2)].
4. In the Council of States, 12 members are to be nominated by the President from those having special knowledge or practical experience of literature, science, art and social service [Article 80(1)]. “The President has the power to nominate not more than two members to the Lok Sabha from the Anglo-Indian community, provided he is satisfied that the Anglo-Indian community has not been adequately represented in that House (Article 331).
5. “The President’s duties include to lay before the Parliament the following

(a) the Annual Financial Statement (Budget) and the Supplementary Statement, if any;

(b) the report of the Auditor-General related to the accounts of the Government of India (Article 151);

(c) the recommendations made by the Finance Commission, with an explanatory memorandum of the action taken thereon (Article 281);

(d) the report of the Union Public Service Commission (Article 323);

(e) the report of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Article 338, 338A);

(f) the report of the Commission on backward classes (Article 340);

6. “The Constitution requires the previous sanction or recommendations of the President in introducing legislation on matters such as: (i) the formation of new state or the alternations of boundaries etc. in the existing states (Article 3), (ii) a bill providing for any of the matter specified in Article 31 A(1); (iii) a money bill [Article 117(1)(3)]; (iv) a bill affecting the taxation in which the States are interested etc. [Article 274(1), Chapter 1 of Part XII]; (v) State bills imposing restrictions upon freedom of trade (Article 304).
7. After a bill is passed by the Parliament, the President (i) may give his assent to the Bill; or (ii) may declare that he withholds the assent to the Bill; or (iii) may, in the case of Bills other than Money Bills, return the Bill for reconsideration of the Houses, with or without a message suggesting amendments. A Money Bill cannot be returned for consideration. In the case of (iii), if the Bill is passed again by both the Houses of Parliament with or without amendments and again presented to the President, it would be obligatory upon him to declare his assent to it (Article 111). “The President has the right to disallow or return for reconsideration of a state bill, which may have been reserved for his consideration by the Governor (Article 201).
8. “The President has the power to issue an ordinance at a time when it is not possible to have the parliamentary enactment (Article 123).
9. “The annual budget/supplementary budget and money bills are introduced in the Lok Sabha on the recommendations of the President (Articles 112, 117).
10. “The Contingency Fund of India is placed at the disposal of the President (Article 267).