Executive Of Bihar | Polity of Bihar Notes

Introduction:

• Bihar has a bicameral system of government.
• It has two houses:
  • Bihar Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha)
  • Bihar Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad). 
• The state executive is made up of the Governor, Chief Minister, Council of Ministers, and Advocate-General of State.
• The Governor is the head of state, appointed by the President. This post is mostly ceremonial.
• He is titular head or constitutional head of the state.
• He is the agent of the center as the central government nominates the Governor in each state. 
• Real executive power is vested in the Chief Minister. He is the head of the council of ministers.

The Governor:

• The Governor of Bihar is a constitutional head of the state.
• Article 153 to 161 of the Constitution lays down appointment, tenure, election and powers of Governor of a state. 
• As per the provisions of the Constitution, there is no direct or indirect election for the post of Governor.
• The Governor is appointed by the President for a term of 5 years but remains in office at the pleasure of the President. 

Qualifications:

• To be qualified as a Governor, a person
  • Should be a citizen of India.
  • Should be over 35 years of age.
  • Should  not hold any office of profit.
  • Should not be a member of the Legislature of Union or of any state.

Tenure and Removal:

• The normal term of a Governor’s office is five years, however he may be removed earlier by the President under Article 156(1).
• Governors may also get transferred from one state to another by the President. He also can be reappointed.

Powers and Functions of Governor:

• Every executive action that the state government takes, is taken in his name.
• Following important functionaries of the state are appointed by Governor of the state:
  • Chief Ministers
  • Other ministers
  • Advocate general of the state
  • State Election Commissioner
  • Chairman and Members of the State Public Service Commission
  • Vice-Chancellors of the universities in the state
• Legislative Powers:
  • He has power to prorogue the state legislature and dissolve the state legislative assemblies.
  • He addresses the state legislature at the first session of every year.
  • He appoints one-sixth of the total members of the legislative council.
  • He nominates 1 member in state legislative assembly from Anglo-Indian Community
  • If a bill is presented to the governor, He can give his assent, Withhold his assent, Return the bill or Reserve the bill for the President’s consideration.
  • His recommendation is mandatory for the introduction of a money bill in the state legislature.
• He has following pardoning powers:
  • Pardon
  • Reprieve
  • Respite
  • Remit
  • Commute
• Discretionary powers to be carried out according to the discretion of the Governor.
• The Governor has executive, legislative and judicial power similar to those of the President. However, he has no diplomatic or military powers like the President.
• Jairamdas Daulatram was the first Governor of Bihar after Independence.
• Zakir Husain and Ram Nath Kovind were two such governors of Bihar who later became the president of India.
• Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar is the current governor of Bihar.

Chief Minister:

• The Chief Minister of Bihar is the real executive head of the Indian state of Bihar. 
• After Bihar Legislative Assembly elections, the Governor usually invites the party or coalition with a majority of seats to form the government.
• Any person appointed as minister must become a member of the legislature within 6 months of such appointment. 
• The Chief Minister’s term is for 5 years. When he loses his majority support, he has to resign or the Governor can dismiss him.
• His oath is administered by the Governor.
• In Bihar, the first Cabinet was formed in 1946; consisting of two members, Dr Shri Krishna Singh as first Chief Minister of Bihar and Dr Anugrah Narayan Sinha as Bihar’s first Deputy Chief Minister cum Finance Minister.
• The Cabinet served as the first Bihar Government after independence in 1947. 
• Current CM of Bihar is Shri Nitish Kumar.

Council Of Ministers:

• Article 163 provides that there shall be a Council of Ministers with the Chief Minister as the head to aid and advise the Governor in the exercise of his functions.
• Article 164 provides that the Council of Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor. 
• Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly of the state whereas they are individually responsible to the Governor. 
• Before a Minister enters upon his office, the Governor administers to him the oaths of the office and of secrecy.
• The salary and allowances of Ministers are determined by the State Legislature.
• There are three categories of Council of Ministers:
  • Cabinet Ministers
  • Ministers of State
  • Deputy Ministers
• The Chief Minister decides the rank of the ministers.