7 June 2024

• Polity: PM-designate Narendra Modi met President Droupadi Murmu and staked his claim to form the government. Oath of the Council of Ministers announced for 9 June 2024.
• Polity: NDA constituent parties meeting at BJP headquarters formalised their coalition arrangement for the 18th Lok Sabha.
• Eco-politics: Coalition arithmetic means Andhra Pradesh (TDP) and Bihar (JD-U) will seek infrastructure, funds and special status commitments.
• History: 40 years since Operation Blue Star (1 to 6 June 1984), the Army's operation at the Golden Temple in Amritsar, continued in national discussion.

GS area: Polity, Governance

Narendra Modi met President Droupadi Murmu on 7 June 2024 to stake his claim to form the government as leader of the NDA coalition that won 292 seats.

• Article 75: the President appoints the Prime Minister. Other ministers are appointed on the PM's advice. The PM is the head of the Council of Ministers.
• Claim of majority: the President is a constitutional head who acts on convention. The convention requires the leader who commands the confidence of the Lok Sabha to be invited. With 292 seats, Modi demonstrably commanded a majority.
• Rajya Sabha at this point: the NDA also controlled a majority in the Rajya Sabha, giving it numerical strength in both houses.
• Oath of office and secrecy: Article 75(4) requires every minister to take an oath of office and secrecy as prescribed in the Third Schedule to the Constitution. The oath is administered by the President.
• Third Schedule: lists the forms of oath and affirmation for various constitutional functionaries including the President, Vice President, ministers, judges, members of Parliament and state legislatures.

Static linkage: polity, Parliament.

GS area: Polity, Governance

With BJP 32 seats short of a majority on its own, TDP (16 seats) and JD-U (12 seats) are essential components. Their demands shape national policy.

• TDP demands: Andhra Pradesh has long sought Special Category Status (SCS) for the state after its bifurcation in 2014, which separated the capital Hyderabad. TDP under Chandrababu Naidu has revived this demand.
• Special Category Status: a classification for states with geographical disadvantages, difficult terrain, low population density or international borders. It provides a higher central share (90 per cent centre, 10 per cent state) for Centrally Sponsored Schemes.
• 14th Finance Commission: it discontinued SCS for most states, converting enhanced central assistance into a higher devolution share instead. Andhra Pradesh's case is pending.
• JD-U demands: Bihar under Nitish Kumar has sought special assistance under the Bihar Development Package and Special Package announced in 2015.
• Anti-defection law and coalition: coalition partners cannot be prevented from withdrawing support by the anti-defection law. The law only binds MPs on floor votes when a party whip is issued. Withdrawal of a coalition partner's support is a political act, not a defection in the legal sense.

Static linkage: polity, federalism, governance.

GS area: History (Modern), Internal Security

The 40th anniversary of Operation Blue Star (conducted 1 to 6 June 1984) was in national discourse. The Khalistan movement retains international relevance especially for India-Canada relations.

• Operation Blue Star: Indian Army operation to remove militants led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale from the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar, Punjab. Conducted 1 to 6 June 1984.
• Bhindranwale: a preacher who became the figurehead of the Khalistan separatist movement. He had fortified the Akal Takht within the Golden Temple complex.
• Aftermath: PM Indira Gandhi was assassinated on 31 October 1984 by her Sikh bodyguards. Anti-Sikh riots in Delhi and elsewhere followed.
• Air India bombing (1985): Flight 182 was bombed over the Atlantic, killing 329 people. Canadian Sikh extremists were convicted. This remains the deadliest aviation terror attack in Canadian history.
• Current relevance: the Khalistan movement retains an organisational base among Sikh diaspora in Canada, the UK and Australia. India-Canada relations deteriorated sharply in 2023 over allegations related to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.
• India's position: India designates the Khalistan movement as a terrorist organisation. Pro-Khalistan groups and their activities abroad are monitored by intelligence agencies.

Static linkage: modern history, internal security, international relations.

GS area: Economy, Federalism

The coalition's formation re-opened the Special Category Status debate, particularly for Andhra Pradesh.

• Origin: SCS was recommended by the Gadgil Committee and adopted from the Fifth Finance Commission. States with geographic disadvantages receive larger central grants.
• Current SCS states: 11 states: Jammu and Kashmir (now a UT), Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, the eight Northeastern states, and Sikkim. These states receive 90 per cent central funding for Centrally Sponsored Schemes against the usual 60:40 split.
• Andhra Pradesh's case: the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 promised to examine Andhra Pradesh's case for SCS. The 14th Finance Commission did not grant it, recommending higher overall devolution instead.
• Finance Commission: a constitutional body under Article 280, set up every five years. It recommends the division of the divisible pool of taxes between Centre and states and the principles for grants-in-aid.
• 15th Finance Commission: recommended 41 per cent devolution of the divisible pool to states for 2021-26, compared to the 14th's 42 per cent (which excluded J&K after it became a UT).

Static linkage: economy, Centre-state relations, federalism.

GS area: Polity

The oath ceremony on 9 June 2024 made the Third Schedule important revision material.

• Third Schedule contents: forms of oath and affirmation for the President, Vice President, Union ministers, members of Parliament, judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, members of state legislatures, and state ministers.
• Oath of office vs. oath of secrecy: ministers take both. The oath of office swears allegiance to the Constitution and faithful discharge of duties. The oath of secrecy commits not to divulge information given to the minister.
• Constitutional amendment to add schedules: the Third Schedule is amended by Parliament by a simple majority. No special majority is required to amend the Schedules (unlike Fundamental Rights provisions which require two-thirds majority plus ratification).
• Non-justiciable content: the forms of oaths are prescribed exactly. Departing from the prescribed form technically vitiates the oath, but such challenges are politically complex.

Static linkage: polity (Constitution).

GS area: International Relations

The 40th anniversary of Blue Star surfaced tensions in India-Canada relations, already strained since 2023.

• Hardeep Singh Nijjar: a Canadian Sikh leader designated as a terrorist by India. He was killed in Surrey, British Columbia in June 2023. Canadian PM Justin Trudeau alleged Indian government involvement in October 2023.
• India's response: India denied the allegations and expelled a Canadian diplomat. Canada expelled an Indian diplomat. Relations deteriorated sharply.
• Diaspora politics: Canada has a large Sikh population. Pro-Khalistan groups hold demonstrations and rallies that India objects to as glorifying terrorism.
• Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961): governs diplomatic immunity and the inviolability of diplomatic missions. Expulsions of diplomats (PNG: persona non grata declarations) are a standard tool in diplomatic disputes.
• India's extradition request: India has made extradition requests to Canada for individuals accused of Khalistan-related offences. Canada's response has been limited.

Static linkage: international relations, internal security.

• Odisha government change: BJP won approximately 78 of 147 assembly seats in Odisha, ending Naveen Patnaik's BJD government which had been in power since 2000. Mohan Charan Majhi was named as the new Chief Minister.
• 18th Lok Sabha Speaker: Om Birla (BJP, Kota-Bundi constituency) was expected to be re-elected as Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha.