Previous Year Question
A Parliamentary system of government is one in which:
all political parties in the Parliament are represented in the government.
the government is responsible to the Parliament and can be removed by it.
the government is elected by the people and can be removed by them.
the government is chosen by the Parliament but cannot be removed by it before completion of a fixed term.
Correct Answer: B
Detailed Solution
The defining feature of a parliamentary system is that the real executive—the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers—is responsible to the legislature and remains in office only while it enjoys the confidence of the Lok Sabha.
In the Indian context, the more precise constitutional meaning of “Parliament” in option (b) is the Lok Sabha, because Article 75(3) makes the Council of Ministers collectively responsible to the House of the People.
Collective responsibility
Under Article 75(3), the Union Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha.
This means:
All ministers are collectively responsible for decisions of the Council of Ministers.
A minister is expected to support Cabinet decisions publicly.
A minister who disagrees is ordinarily expected to resign.
If a no-confidence motion is passed in the Lok Sabha, the entire Council of Ministers must resign.
Relationship between the executive and legislature
A parliamentary system establishes a close relationship between the executive and legislature:
The Prime Minister is ordinarily the leader of the party or coalition commanding a majority in the Lok Sabha.
Ministers may belong to either House of Parliament.
Under Article 75(5), a minister who is not a member of either House for six consecutive months cannot continue as a minister.
The Council of Ministers remains accountable to Parliament for policy, finance and administration.
Question Hour, debates, adjournment motions, censure motions, budgetary control and no-confidence motions are mechanisms of accountability.
Basis for remaining in office
Article 75(2) states that ministers hold office during the pleasure of the President. Under the parliamentary system, this effectively means that the Council of Ministers remains in office while it has the Prime Minister’s leadership and the confidence of the Lok Sabha.
Other options
Option (a): Representation of every political party in government is not compulsory. The party or coalition enjoying majority support forms the government.
Option (c): The people do not directly elect or remove the government. They elect Lok Sabha members, and the government depends on the confidence of the House.
Option (d): A parliamentary government may be removed before the completion of its term through a no-confidence motion or by losing majority support.