Question

Which one of the following is the best example of the ‘federation with a unitary bias’?
A. United States of America
B. Britain
C. Spain
D. India

Answer 1

Hint: Federation with a unitary bias means that both the state and the central government will derive authority from the Constitution of a country. There will be separate constitutions for States and union.

Complete answer:
Option A) United States of America: The United States of America is a federal government as its constitution has the characteristics of a federal government. The federal government is divided into three branches; they are Legislative, Executive, and Judicial.

Option B) Britain: Britain has an unwritten constitution and does not have a codified constitution. Including Magna Carta’s place within it, Professor Robert Blackburn explains the system.

Option C) Spain: The constitution of Spain is of a parliamentary monarchy and is based on the indissoluble unity of Spain.

Option D) India: India has a constitution in a federal form and unitary in spirit because of the unitary features possessed by our constitution.

The Unitary features are as follows:
1. Centre is Strong: As the Union government has 97 subjects under it while the State government has only 67 items. Thus, the Union government is more powerful than the State government.

2. A single Constitution: In India, most of the provisions of the Constitution may be amended by Parliament single-handedly, either by a simple majority or by a two-thirds majority.

3. Citizenship: Indian constitution provides single citizenship, common to all.

4. Representation in Rajya Sabha: On the basis of the population, the Indian Constitution accords representation to the different states in the Rajya Sabha.

Therefore, the correct answer is D


Note:
1. The constitution of India has administrative units.
2. The administrative units are called Union Territories, and these territories are governed directly by the Central government.