Important Notes on the Impeachment Process 

The President of India is the official head of the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary and commander in chief of our army, navy and air force. They exercise great power for a period of five years when they are in office. However, at times, it becomes imperative to question such authority for legitimacy and integrity. If the President is accused of misconduct against the constitution they can be removed from position through the impeachment process.

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What is the Impeachment Process?

The impeachment process is one such process that provides the privilege of relieving the existing President from all powers and obligations that come with that post. Hence, impeachment is a provision to keep the power of the President and other authorities in check. However, it can only be implemented in case of misconduct from their end. To date, none of the Presidents of India has been impeached. 

Process of Impeachment 

If you look at the process of impeachment, it is not as easy as voting out a minister in power. It is concerned with higher authority and also looks into cases of false accusations, therefore, there is a detailed process to impeach a president. The process is as follows; 

• To impeach a president for violation of the Constitution, the charges should be approved by both houses of the parliament. 
• The proposal of accused charges must be contained in a resolution. 
• The proposal should have moved after a 14-day notice period. 
• One-fourth of the members of the House of Parliament should sign it. This is done in the house where the resolution is introduced
• It should be passed with a two-thirds majority from the total membership of the house. 
• The other house will then investigate the charge of which the President has been accused. 
• Moreover, the president can also be present at this time to present his case. 
• If the charges are sustained after the investigation has been completed. The members then vote on the resolution. If they are in favour of removing the President from office with at least a two-thirds majority of the total membership, it leads to the immediate removal of the President from office.

Also Read: Important Articles in Indian Constitution [Complete List]

Article 50 

Article 50 of the Indian Constitution is a part of Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSPs) under Part IV of the Constitution. It provides detailed knowledge of the separation of power between the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. Moreover, it also lists the powers and functions of each pillar of the government. It mentions provisions to separate the judiciary from the executive to prevent abuse of power. The President and the Prime Minister fall under the Executive powers. This article of the Indian Constitution contains details about their tenure, process of appointment, duties, and other information.

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Article 61

Article 61 of the Indian Constitution states the procedure of impeachment. The removal of the President for a violation of the constitution before the completion of their tenure is the focus. In this process, one house of the parliament initiates the process of impeachment and the other investigates it. Both houses together vote on the resolution with two-thirds of the total majority to pass this resolution and remove the President. In other cases, the resolution would fail. 

These were all the important notes to understand the impeachment process. For more such informative blogs on Civics & Polity of India stay tuned to our General Knowledge section.