CDS Polity · Government Structure — Parliament, Judiciary and Constitutional Bodies
The President and Vice-President
Who elects the President and how, who may stand, the term, resignation and removal, the President's immunity, and how the Vice-President's office differs.
Why this matters
Ten CDS questions from 2017 to 2026, eight MODERATE and two HARD. Four are about the election itself: who votes, the voting system and who may stand. Two ask to whom an office-holder hands a resignation, so learn the resignation table as pairs.
Concept 1 of 3: Electing the President
The President is not chosen by the people directly. A special body of elected lawmakers, from the Centre and from the States, chooses the President, so the head of the whole country has the backing of both. Only ELECTED members take part: anyone who was nominated, or who sits in a State's upper House, does not vote.
Definition
The rules (Articles 54, 55, 57 and 58):
- Article 54: the President is elected by an electoral college of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States.
- The 70th Amendment (1992) added the elected members of the Assemblies of Delhi and Puducherry.
- Nominated members of Parliament or an Assembly and members of Legislative Councils do not vote.
- Article 55: the voting is by proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote, by secret ballot.
- Article 58: a candidate must be a citizen, at least 35 years old, qualified to be a Lok Sabha member, and must not hold an office of profit. Being President, Vice-President, a Governor or a Union or State Minister does not count as an office of profit.
- Article 57: a President may be re-elected. Article 71: disputes about the election are decided by the Supreme Court.
| Member | Votes for the President? |
|---|---|
| Elected member of the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha | Yes |
| Nominated member of the Rajya Sabha | No |
| Elected member of a State Legislative Assembly | Yes |
| Member of a State Legislative Council | NoQ CDS 2022 (I): an electoral college of all MPs and all State legislators is the wrong statement. Only elected MPs and MLAs vote. |
| Elected member of the Delhi or Puducherry Assembly | Yes, since the 70th Amendment (1992) |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (II) 2017 — General Knowledge · Q69Moderate
Example 1 · Government Structure — Parliament, Judiciary and Constitutional Bodies · The President and Vice-President
The President of India is elected by an Electoral College comprising of elected members of which of the following?
1. Both the Houses of the Parliament
2. The Legislative Assemblies of States
3. The Legislative Councils of States
4. The Legislative Assemblies of NCT of Delhi and Puducherry
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Elected members only
The President's electoral college has elected MPs and elected MLAs only. Nominated members and members of Legislative Councils have no vote, so a statement that all MPs and all State legislators vote is false.
A Minister may stand
Article 58 bars an office of profit, but it says that the posts of President, Vice-President, Governor and Union or State Minister are not offices of profit. A statement that a Union Minister cannot be elected President is false.
Concept 2 of 3: Term, resignation, removal and immunity
The President holds the highest office, so the rules about leaving it are written into the Constitution. Every office-holder who resigns hands the letter to a named person, and those pairs are what CDS asks. While in office, the President cannot be dragged into court for official acts, so the office is never held up by lawsuits.
Definition
The office:
- Article 53: the executive power of the Union is vested in the President; Parliament may by law give functions to other authorities too.
- Article 56: the term is five years. The President resigns by writing to the Vice-President and continues in office until the successor takes over.
- Article 61: removal is by impeachment, on one ground only: violation of the Constitution.
- Article 361: the President (and a Governor) is not answerable to any court for the exercise of the powers and duties of the office.
- Table of Precedence: President (1), Vice-President (2), Prime Minister (3), Governors within their own States (4), former Presidents (5), Deputy Prime Minister (5A), Chief Justice of India and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha (6).
| Office | Resigns by writing to | Removed by |
|---|---|---|
| President | The Vice-President | Impeachment by Parliament for violating the ConstitutionQ CDS 2020 (II): resigning by writing to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha is the false statement. |
| Vice-President | The President | A Rajya Sabha resolution agreed to by the Lok Sabha |
| Judge of the Supreme Court | The President | The President, after an address by both Houses passed by a special majorityQ CDS 2019 (II): a Supreme Court judge resigns to the President, not to the Chief Justice of India. |
| Comptroller and Auditor General | The President | In the same way as a Supreme Court judge |
| Speaker of the Lok Sabha | The Deputy Speaker | A Lok Sabha resolution passed by a majority of all its then members |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2019 · CDS (II) 2019 — General Knowledge · Q24Moderate
Example 2 · Government Structure — Parliament, Judiciary and Constitutional Bodies · The President and Vice-President
Which provision of the Constitution of India provides that the President shall not be answerable to any Court in India for the exercise of powers of his office?
The CAG is removed like a judge
The Comptroller and Auditor General is removed in the same way as a Supreme Court judge, not in the same way as the President. The President alone is removed by impeachment.
Governors outrank former Presidents
Within their own States, Governors are 4th in the Table of Precedence, above former Presidents (5th) and the Deputy Prime Minister (5A). The Chief Justice of India comes after all three, at 6th.
Concept 3 of 3: The Vice-President
The Vice-President has two jobs: chairing the Rajya Sabha every day, and stepping in if the President's office falls vacant. Because the job is tied to Parliament, only Parliament elects the Vice-President: the State Assemblies have no part in it.
Definition
The office (Articles 63 to 71):
- Article 64: the Vice-President is the ex officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
- Article 66: elected by an electoral college of all members of both Houses of Parliament, elected and nominated. State Assemblies do not vote.
- Must be at least 35 years old and qualified to be a Rajya Sabha member. The term is five years, and there is no bar on re-election.
- Resigns by writing to the President. Removed by a Rajya Sabha resolution passed by a majority of all its then members and agreed to by the Lok Sabha.
- Acts as President when that office falls vacant, until a new President is elected (within six months).
| Person | Vice-President | President |
|---|---|---|
| Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | 1952 to 1962 (two terms) | 1962 to 1967 |
| Zakir Husain | 1962 to 1967 | 1967 to 1969 |
| V. V. Giri | 1967 to 1969 | 1969 to 1974 |
| R. Venkataraman | 1984 to 1987 | 1987 to 1992 |
| Shankar Dayal Sharma | 1987 to 1992 | 1992 to 1997 |
| K. R. Narayanan | 1992 to 1997 | 1997 to 2002 |
| Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Never (he was Speaker of the Lok Sabha) | 1977 to 1982Q CDS 2026 (I): of Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain and Sanjiva Reddy, two had been Vice-President. |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2021 · CDS (I) 2021 — General Knowledge · Q79Moderate
Example 3 · Government Structure — Parliament, Judiciary and Constitutional Bodies · The President and Vice-President
Which one of the following statements about the Vice-President of India is not correct ?
Two different electoral colleges
The President's college has elected MPs and elected MLAs. The Vice-President's college has all MPs, nominated ones included, and no MLAs. Do not carry one rule over to the other.
Sanjiva Reddy came from the Speaker's chair
Neelam Sanjiva Reddy became President after being Speaker of the Lok Sabha. He was never Vice-President, unlike Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain, V. V. Giri, R. Venkataraman, Shankar Dayal Sharma and K. R. Narayanan.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (3)
Electing the President5 rows
| Member | Votes for the President? |
|---|---|
| Elected member of the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha | Yes |
| Nominated member of the Rajya Sabha | No |
| Elected member of a State Legislative Assembly | Yes |
| Member of a State Legislative Council | NoQ CDS 2022 (I): an electoral college of all MPs and all State legislators is the wrong statement. Only elected MPs and MLAs vote. |
| Elected member of the Delhi or Puducherry Assembly | Yes, since the 70th Amendment (1992) |
Term, resignation, removal and immunity5 rows
| Office | Resigns by writing to | Removed by |
|---|---|---|
| President | The Vice-President | Impeachment by Parliament for violating the ConstitutionQ CDS 2020 (II): resigning by writing to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha is the false statement. |
| Vice-President | The President | A Rajya Sabha resolution agreed to by the Lok Sabha |
| Judge of the Supreme Court | The President | The President, after an address by both Houses passed by a special majorityQ CDS 2019 (II): a Supreme Court judge resigns to the President, not to the Chief Justice of India. |
| Comptroller and Auditor General | The President | In the same way as a Supreme Court judge |
| Speaker of the Lok Sabha | The Deputy Speaker | A Lok Sabha resolution passed by a majority of all its then members |
The Vice-President7 rows
| Person | Vice-President | President |
|---|---|---|
| Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | 1952 to 1962 (two terms) | 1962 to 1967 |
| Zakir Husain | 1962 to 1967 | 1967 to 1969 |
| V. V. Giri | 1967 to 1969 | 1969 to 1974 |
| R. Venkataraman | 1984 to 1987 | 1987 to 1992 |
| Shankar Dayal Sharma | 1987 to 1992 | 1992 to 1997 |
| K. R. Narayanan | 1992 to 1997 | 1997 to 2002 |
| Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Never (he was Speaker of the Lok Sabha) | 1977 to 1982Q CDS 2026 (I): of Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain and Sanjiva Reddy, two had been Vice-President. |
Watch out for (6)
- Elected members only→ Electing the President
- A Minister may stand→ Electing the President
- The CAG is removed like a judge→ Term, resignation, removal and immunity
- Governors outrank former Presidents→ Term, resignation, removal and immunity
- Two different electoral colleges→ The Vice-President
- Sanjiva Reddy came from the Speaker's chair→ The Vice-President
Test yourself on Government Structure — Parliament, Judiciary and Constitutional Bodies
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.