In an explosive tell-all interview published on Friday, Malik has implied that the President of India, Draupadi Murmu, is functioning under the command of the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
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“YOU will be amazed to hear this, but I had an appointment with the President while I was the governor of a state. As I was on my way to meet the President, I got a call from Rashtrapati Bhavan that the President has more pressing matters to attend to and your appointment has been cancelled.
“I was later told by sources within Rashtrapati Bhavan that ‘Inki to appointment list bhi PMO mein jaati he, vahaan se clear hoti he. Unse (hi) milte hai.’” (Even the President’s list of appointments is cleared by the Prime Minister’s office (PMO). They get directions (on whom to meet) from the PMO).
This shocking claim was made by politician Satya Pal Malik, who has previously served as the governor of four states— Bihar, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir and Meghalaya— between 2017–22, as well as a member of both the Houses of Parliament from 1980–91 from Uttar Pradesh, in an interview with The Wire, released on Friday.
“Are you talking about President Murmu?” the interviewer, journalist Karan Thapar, asks Malik, which the latter confirms, “She can’t meet anyone she wants?” “Yes,” pat comes a second confirmation.
Thapar then asks, “So she’s a puppet of the Prime Minister?” “Of course,” replies Malik, alleging that the President of India, Draupadi Murmu, is functioning under the command of the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
“But this is disrespect to the highest person in the country,” Thapar exclaims. “Koi namumkin nahi hai” (It is not impossible), Malik replied with a smirk.
Executive head of the Union
As per Article 53 of the Constitution, the executive power of the Union is vested in the President and exercised by them either directly or through officers subordinate to them in accordance with this Constitution. The President is, therefore, the executive head of the State. The term ‘executive power’ has not been expressly defined in the Constitution. Article 73 of the Constitution merely defines the matters with respect to which the executive authority of the Union extends.
Article 74, which provides for a council of ministers to aid and advise the President, states that the President shall, in the exercise of their functions, act in accordance with the advice of the council of ministers with the Prime Minister at the head.
The President can require the council of ministers to reconsider their advice, but the President is to act in accordance with the advice tendered after such reconsideration.
While the above provision is clear in its wording that it is the council of ministers that makes decisions relating the administration of the affairs of the Union and its decisions are binding on the President, this may not be interpreted to mean that all decisions taken by the President in their official capacity are to be pre-approved by the council of ministers. In particular, decisions surrounding the functioning of the Rashtrapati Bhavan rest solely with the President.
In the ‘table of precedence‘ formulated by the President’s secretariat, the President holds the highest status, followed by the Vice President. The Prime Minister comes third in that list, and governors of states are placed fourth. This table of precedence was last updated in July 1979, and has remained unaltered since.
Malik’s claim that the PMO clears the list of potential invitees of the President may be considered to reinforce the allegations that she had been selected by the Union government not only for the symbolism of appointing a Scheduled Tribe woman as President, but also with an expectation of unrestrained cooperation.
If Malik’s allegations are to be believed, it could be considered a violation of constitutional propriety and practices.
