Is the post of deputy PM/ CM legal?

M. Gautham Machaiah

Are the posts of Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Chief Minister legal or are they unconstitutional?

The trend of having a deputy is not new. Sardar Vallab Bhai Patel was the first to hold the post of DPM (1947-50), the latest being BJP’s L.K. Advani (2002-2004). Over the years, this has cascaded to the States, the most recent instance being that of M.K. Stalin in Tamil Nadu.

But not many seem to be aware that the Constitution of India does not provide for a DPM or DCM.

Article 75 (1) reads: “The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President and the other Ministers shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.”

Similarly, with regard to the States, Article 164 (1) lays down: “The Chief Minister shall be appointed by the Governor and the other Ministers shall be appointed by the Governor on the advice of the Chief Minister, and the Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor.”

Clearly, there is no provision in the Constitution for a deputy. However, there have been umpteen instances where the President of the Governor issues a notification appointing an individual as the DPM or DCM. There have also been several cases where individuals have been administered the oath of office as Deputy Chief Minister.

Is it legal to make an appointment to a post which is not sanctioned by the Constitution? Can the oath of office be administered when the post itself does not exist?

Present day political expediency and coalition politics may have made these posts a necessity, but should not the Constitution be amended accordingly so that there is some legitimacy to such high offices?

(Picture sourced from www.loc.gov)

COMMENTS

(This article was also posted on MSN. Some of the responses received are reproduced below)

The Constitution makes a mention of Prime Minister and Ministers / Chief Minister and Ministers. It can be taken that DPM and DCM are included in the "Ministers" category. There is nothing unconstitutional or illegal about it.
-Murali, Bangalore

No, there is no constitutional provision for the same
-Godfrey Pimenta, Mumbai

It is alright if deputies are appointed. In fact, it gives the person concerned some experience to occupy the No.1 position. Also, it may help in a crisis situation when the No.1 is not available due some reason.
-Dayanand Patil, Navi Mumbai

An additional chief executive means extra burden on the Indian public to feed these highly paid bosses. These politicians are very smart. They create one post after another to gain more salary and incentives at the cost of the poor Indians.
-Alex, Kuwait

Wonderful query. But everything need not be amended in the Constitution. It is already bulky. Let us start some healthy precedence. Are not companies having many high level posts like deputy, associate, joint, etc? Executives should be left free like in the US, but of course within the basic structure of Constitution.
-C Seshu, Hyderabad

It is alright if a bachelor like Vajpayee has a Deputy.Prime Minister, but why should Karunanidhi have one when he already has three deputy wives? Jokes apart, having deputies is not a healthy sign, leave alone constitutional validity.
-Dayanand P, Chennai