A successful government depends on a harmonious system. There are different groups responsible for creating rules, enforcing them, and interpreting them. This promotes a sense of unity and equality among all parties involved.
Branches of Government
There are three branches of government or organs of the state which are discussed bellow;
Legislative
The chief function of the legislature is to formulate laws (either social legislation or any other legislation). Legislature passes new laws and amends or repeals old ones. A law is first presented before the legislature (parliament) as a bill or legislature proposal. It goes through several stages of debate and deliberation in the legislature called the legislative process. The legislature (parliament) includes the National Assembly and Senate.
In case it is accepted by the majority of its members at every stage, it is considered as passed by it. Then, it is placed before the head of the State for his signature, and it becomes an act or law. In all democratic states today, the legislature has control over national finance; it has the power to grant money to the government, which cannot collect taxes without its previous approval. The reason is that the legislature, as representatives of the people, is the custodian of their interest and public money.
It supervises the revenue and expenditure of the government and reviews them by discussing and passing the national budget, presented in the legislature, before the beginning of a new financial year. The cabinet is responsible to the legislature. In any case, the legislature keeps a check on the work and policy of the cabinet of the government.
Executive
The executive includes all officials of the State from the highest to the lowest, from the president down to a policeman or a Patwari who executes or enforces the law and administers the country. In a narrow sense, it denotes the heads of executive departments who determine the policy of the government, that is, the president and minister or the cabinet. The executive performs the political function of formulation of law, while the administrators perform the administrative function of enforcing it.
The executive sees that the laws are properly enforced, but their actual enforcement in daily administration is the primary duty of public services. The essential function of the executive is to maintain law and order. The executive also has a duty to defend the State against foreign aggression or internal revolt in order to preserve its integrity and security. The executive directly and actively participates in lawmaking.
The executive plays a vital role in the implementation of the law. All the social legislation that was passed in the past, as well as in the present, was implemented by the executive. For example, the offender of the law is arrested by the police officers who bring the offender to the magistrate, who makes a decision according to the situation. Thus, the police department and magistrate, who is the executive, play their role in shaping “Social legislation”.
Judiciary
The judiciary is the 3rd branch of the government. It interprets the law in specific situations. It protects the rights and liberties of the citizens. Judges and lawyers play a great role in social legislation. For example, a child committed a crime at the age of 12 years. According to the Bombay Children Act 1948, the offender is called a “Juvenile offender.” He was arrested by police and was kept in a separate prison specified for juveniles. There are separate courts for these procedures. The lawyers try to give proof in favor of the offender. Finally, judges decide according to the situation.
When a case is brought before a court, its duty is first to find the facts, then to discover the law applicable to the case, and pass a judgement according to it. Thus, the judiciary applies the laws, ascertains and decides rights, punishes crimes, administers justice, and protects the innocent from injury and usurpation.
Sometimes, the law needs to be clarified, either because the lawmakers did not foresee the circumstances of the case, the wording of the statute is ambiguous, or because two or more laws applicable to the case conflict. In deciding such cases, the judges have some discretion in interpreting laws and deciding the case in the light of principles of justice, equity, and commonsense. In this way, he not merely applies a law but even makes it. Such decisions become precedents for other judges who have to decide similar cases later on.
