India's constitutional amendment framework under Article 368 establishes a tiered procedure, where certain provisions affecting federal balance require ratification by at least half the State Legislatures before Presidential assent.
Article 368(2) mandates state ratification for amendments touching the federal structure. This safeguard ensures that the Union cannot unilaterally alter provisions that directly govern Centre-State relations, protecting cooperative federalism's foundational architecture.
The categories requiring state ratification include: election of the President, extent of executive power of the Union and States, the Supreme Court and High Courts, distribution of legislative powers (including the Union List in the Seventh Schedule), and representation of States in Parliament. The Governor's office conditions do not fall within this category.
Amendments to the Union List (List I, Seventh Schedule) and the extent of a State's executive power directly affect federal distribution of authority. Any alteration without state consent could destabilise the constitutional compact between the Union and constituent units.
Conditions governing the Governor's office are amendable by Parliament's special majority alone, without state ratification. Since the Governor is a Union appointee, this provision is treated as part of the Union's administrative architecture rather than a federal compact element.
The ratification requirement is a constitutional brake against centralisation, ensuring federal units co-author changes to shared governance structures. Strengthening this mechanism's practical enforceability remains essential to sustaining India's cooperative federal design.
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