Nature of Monarchy

Britain has a constitutional monarchy which is not incompatible with democracy. This is because essentially the powers of the monarch as head of the state - currently Queen Elizabeth

II - are ceremonial. The most important practical power is the choice of the Member of Parliament to form a government, but invariably the monarch follows the convention that this opportunity is granted to the leader of the political party or coalition, which has majority in the House of Commons.

Despite its lack of real power, the monarchy still has several important roles to play in contemporary Britain. These include:

♤ Representing UK at home and abroad,

♤ Settings standards of citizenship and family life,

♤ Uniting people despite differences,

♤ Allegiance of the armed forces,

♤ Maintaining continuity of British traditions,

♤ Preserving a Christian morality etc. In addition, consider the following:

♤ Parliamentary system requires two heads:

o First head, as head of the state. He represents the nation and provides continuity to the administration.

o Second head is the head of the government. He has real powers because the house has confidence in the Prime Minister. The PM is the leader of the House. He represents the majority of the House.

♤ The institution of kingship is a source of psychological satisfaction. It is said that, “with the King in the Buckingham Palace, the Englishmen sleep peacefully in their houses”.

♤ The King is of great help in critical times. He usually has a very long experience and can give valuable advice in the interest of the country.

♤ According to Bagehot, the King has three rights:

o Right to warn,

o Right to encourage,

o Right to be informed.

♤ Abolishing the kingship will require an elected head. An elected head, with no real powers, will have its own set of problems.

In contrast, no provision of Monarchy exists in case of Indian Constitution. Indeed, holding of titles like King etc. are forbidden as per Article 18 of the Fundamental Rights, thus emphasizing equality of all Indian citizens.