Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post

Quick Summary (TL;DR)

Article 361B (Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post): Governs constitutional immunities, press reporting of legislatures, definitions, and interpretation rules under Part XIX.

In Simple Citizen Words

Article 361B ('Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post') in Part XIX (Miscellaneous, Articles 361–367) covers vital structural rules: official functional immunity of the President and Governors while allowing citizens to sue the Government of India or State Government directly (Art 361), press freedom to publish true reports of Parliamentary and Assembly proceedings (Art 361A), anti-defection bar on remunerative political posts (Art 361B), abolition of privy purses of former princely rulers (Art 363A), and master constitutional definitions (Arts 366–367). Specifically: A member of a House belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of the House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to hold any remunerative political post for duration of the period...

Key Constitutional Provisions

Constitutional Mandate (Art. 361B): Directly codifies the legal rule for 'Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post' under Part XIX

Structured across 1 clause(s) and 4 sub-clause(s) with clear procedural conditions

Any administrative or legislative action violating Article 361B can be challenged before the High Court (Art. 226) or Supreme Court

Exceptions & Reasonable Restrictions

Even under Article 361, the second proviso explicitly guarantees that nothing restricts the right of any person to bring appropriate legal proceedings against the Government of India or the Government of a State (and in Rameshwar Prasad, 2006, the SC held that gubernatorial orders remain open to judicial review).

Why This Matters in Daily Life

Abolished feudal royal privileges (privy purses), protected honest journalism covering Parliament, and standardized legal definitions across the Constitution.

Want deeper legal & historical context? Explore the official Bare Act or Supreme Court Precedents & CAD Debates:

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Dr. B. R. Ambedkar & Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer

Drafting Committee Jurists • September 8 & October 14, 1949

🏛️ Constituent Assembly Debates (1946–1949)

Core Constitutional Debate & Dilemma

Framing context for Article 361B: Codifying official functional immunities, abolishing feudal privy purses (26th Amendment), protecting press publication of parliamentary debates (Art 361A), and standardizing legal definitions (Art 366).

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"While the head of State enjoys functional immunity during office, the second proviso to Article 361 ensures that the citizen's right to sue the Government of India or a State Government in a court of law remains completely unimpaired."

Assembly Resolution & Final Synthesis

Constitutional resolution in Article 361B: Enacted Part XIX (Articles 361–367) establishing constitutional definitions, press immunity for true legislative reports, and abolition of royal titles/purses.

🏛️ Constitutional Significance: During the Constituent Assembly deliberations, Article 361B was codified as an integral pillar of India's constitutional governance.

Official Constitutional Text (Gazette Bare Act)

Authoritative statutory text as enacted and amended by Parliament • Clause-by-Clause Statutory Breakdown

India Code • Govt. of India Archive

A member of a House belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of the House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to hold any remunerative political post for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or till the date on which he contests an election to a House and is declared elected, whichever is earlier.

Explanation. — For the purposes of this article, —

Sub-clause (a)

the expression “House” has the meaning assigned to it in clause (a) of paragraph 1 of the Tenth Schedule;

Sub-clause (b)

the expression “remunerative political post” means any office —

Sub-clause (i)

under the Government of India or the Government of a State where the salary or remuneration for such office is paid out of the public revenue of the Government of India or the Government of the State, as the case may be; or

Sub-clause (ii)

under a body, whether incorporated or not, which is wholly or partially owned by the Government of India or the Government of a State and the salary or remuneration for such office is paid by such body,

except where such salary or remuneration paid is compensatory in nature.

Public Domain & Statutory Authenticity Notice

Under Section 52(1)(q) of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957, the Constitution of India, Bare Acts of Parliament, Gazette Notifications, and Judicial Judgments of the Supreme Court and High Courts are in the Public Domain. Text is reproduced from the official Legislative Department, Ministry of Law & Justice, Government of India (India Code) archives.

Then vs Now: Constitutional Evolution & Visual Diff

Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post

🔵 Newly Inserted After 1950 (Via Amendment) Baseline: Jan 26, 1950 → Today

ORIGINAL BASELINE (1950)

Not present in the original Constitution of 26 January 1950. Article 361B did not exist in the 1950 text and was newly inserted into the Constitution by Parliament through a subsequent Constitutional Amendment Act under Article 368.

CURRENT ENFORCEABLE STATUS (TODAY)

Active & Enforceable Today (Inserted via a subsequent Constitutional Amendment Act under Article 368): Article 361B (Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post): Governs constitutional immunities, press reporting of legislatures, definitions, and interpretation rules under Part XIX.

Key Amendment Milestones & Textual Modifications

Inserted via Constitutional Amendment (Article 368)

Year Post-1950

Why it happened: Enacted by Parliament under Article 368 to constitutionalize emerging democratic, institutional, or citizen welfare mandates.

                                    Inserted New Provision: Article 361B — Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post                                

Article 361A Ask Nyaya Saarthi AI About This Article Article 363

Emergency Citizen Helplines

Disqualification for appointment on remunerative political post

Official Constitutional Text (Gazette Bare Act)

Then vs Now: Constitutional Evolution & Visual Diff

Key Amendment Milestones & Textual Modifications