Prime Minister’s Duties to the President: Information and Communication
Official heading: “Duties of Prime Minister as respects the furnishing of information to the President, etc.”
- Source edition
- The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
- Source locator
- Part V, Article 78, printed page 36
- Last human source-link check
- Not yet checked
- Last human legal review
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1. In One Sentence
Article 78 defines the constitutional duty of the Prime Minister to communicate all cabinet decisions to the President, furnish information requested by the President, and submit individual ministerial decisions for cabinet review.
2. What It Means in Everyday Language
Article 78 forms the constitutional bridge between the Council of Ministers (who wield political power) and the President (who holds constitutional sovereignty). It mirrors the British constitutional convention granting the monarch the right to be informed, to encourage, and to warn.
Under clause (a), the Prime Minister has a positive duty to communicate to the President all decisions of the Council of Ministers relating to the administration of the Union and proposals for legislation.
Under clause (b), the President possesses the constitutional right to call for information regarding any matter of administration or proposed law, and the Prime Minister is obligated to furnish it. Under clause (c), if a single Minister takes an administrative decision, the President may require the Prime Minister to submit that matter for the collective consideration of the full Cabinet.
3. Practical Illustrative Example
The President requests a detailed briefing from the Prime Minister regarding internal security developments or an upcoming bill.
4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions
Article 78 establishes institutional communication and collective oversight between the PM and the Head of State.
- Mandatory duty on the Prime Minister to keep the constitutional Head of State informed.
- Right of the President to call for information on administration and legislative proposals.
- Check against individual ministerial action: President can demand full cabinet scrutiny under clause (c).
- Preserves the constitutional balance between the titular head and the political leadership.
5. Operative Constitutional Text
6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations
Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.
- •Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part V, Article 78, printed page 36 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.