'Deputy Chief Minister' Non-Constitutional Post's Oath Taking Ceremony
In 2012, National Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar was sworn in as the Deputy Chief minister. However, on the first day of the Maharashtra assembly’s winter session, the opposition led by the BJP and the Shiv Sena objected Pawar’s swearing-in as the deputy CM as it was not regarded as a constitutional post.
Similarly, after the formation Andhra Pradesh government, several media houses reported that Pawan Kalyan was sworn in as the deputy chief minister a day before the revealing the portfolios of the ministers in the cabinet.
Read also: Chandrababu Naidu Allots 24 Portfolios To Ministers; Pawan Kalyan To Be Deputy CM
In Pawan’s case, the Jana Sena leader was given the post officially on Friday and he had taken the oath as the cabinet minister administered by the governor.
What is a swearing-in ceremony?
It is a formal taking of office, where the person set to occupy the office swears to be loyal to the Constitution and to discharge their duties faithfully.
Oaths will be administered by different people according to the level of the government. At the state level, the Governor administers the oath. For the Prime minister and cabinet minister, the President administers the oath.
The words of the oath for each post are mentioned in the constitution of India. The President’s oath of office is mentioned in Article 60 of the Constitution. The Third Schedule of the Constitution gives the details of the oaths for other offices.
Deputy Chief Minister- post with a history
Though the Deputy Chief ministerial post is not mentioned in the Constitution, it is yet a post with a long history.
Very recently, the Rajasthan High Court had dismissed a PIL challenging the “swearing-in” of Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa as deputy chief ministers by claiming that the Constitution does not recognize the post.
Several such instances could be tracked in Indian political history.
The controversy circulating this post arose in 1989 when Devi Lal took oath as deputy Prime Minister in the V P Singh government. He audaciously altered the oath for Cabinet minister which was administered by then President R Venkataraman.
As per the record of Venkataraman in the book ‘Commissions and Omissions of Indian Presidents’, the incident was narrated as follows, “I asked my secretary to convey to V P Singh that Devi Lal could be sworn in as a minister and designated later as deputy PM. But before anything could be finalised, the swear swearing-in ceremony commenced and V P Singh was sworn in as PM. Then Devi Lal was presented and when I administered oath as ‘mantri’, he insisted on reading it as ‘upa pradhan mantri’. I corrected him saying ‘mantri’ again but the second time too he read it as ‘upa Pradhan mantri’. It was fully displayed in the live telecast of the proceedings. I did not want to create an ugly scene and therefore allowed Devi Lal to proceed as he wished”.
Read also: N Chandrababu Naidu Takes Oath As Andhra Chief Minister
In 1989, the oath was later challenged in the apex court stating that the Haryana leader had not taken the oath as prescribed in the Third Schedule of the Constitution.
A similar instance took place in 2017 when Nitin Patel took oath as Gujarat’s deputy chief minister. As per the Court ruling in Devi Lal’s case, the post will not confer any powers of PM on him. So even though Nitin Patel took oath as deputy CM, he will function only as a minister.
Appointment of Deputy Chief Minister
As per the Supreme Court verdict in 2024, the Chief Justice opined that the appointment of Deputy Chief ministers does not violate the Constitution and they are fundamentally Members of Legislative Assemblies (MLAs).
When addressing the concerns of preferential treatment, the Court clarified that the Deputy CM does not receive a higher salary compared to other ministers.
The post of Deputy chief minister in India is not a constitutional one, but a political arrangement to appease allies or factions within the party. Thus they will not enjoy any special financial or administrative powers. And will always have to resort to CM to seek his or her approval for any decision related to his portfolio to be taken.
