Q.How would PM select Council of Ministers (5 options: experts / party loyalists / personally loyal / government supporters / weigh political clout of aspirants)?
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →In real practice, as this chapter describes it, the Prime Minister's selection of the Council of Ministers is shaped mainly by (e) — weighing the political clout of various aspirants — especially in the coalition era, though elements of (b), (c), and (d) are also genuinely at play; (a), choosing purely on expertise, is the least accurate description of how the process actually works in India, even though it may be the most desirable in principle.
The chapter states plainly that the Prime Minister allocates ranks and portfolios to the ministers, with these decisions made depending upon the seniority and political importance of the individuals concerned — this is a political criterion, not a purely technical or expertise-based one. Since 1989, with the rise of coalition governments, the chapter is explicit that this has become more political, not less: the PM now faces restrictions on various prerogatives, like choosing the ministers and deciding their ranks and portfolios, because coalition partners negotiate for ministerial berths as part of the price of their support. This matches option (e) closely — the PM has to take into account the political weight of the various aspirants, since a coalition ally's bargaining power (how many seats they bring, how essential their support is to the majority) directly shapes who gets which post.
Options (b) 'party loyalists' and (d) 'supporters of the government' are also genuinely part of the real picture — a PM does need ministers who will back government policy and not defect, especially in a fragile coalition, so loyalty to the party or the coalition matters. Option (c), 'personally loyal and dependable' individuals, likewise reflects a real, human dimension of any PM's choices — a leader naturally wants ministers they can trust to carry out difficult decisions faithfully. But the chapter frames these more as secondary factors within an overall process that is fundamentally about political bargaining and accommodation, not primarily about personal loyalty. …
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