The Cabinet and Council of Ministers

The Cabinet and Council of Ministers
The article contains a brief description of the council and cabinet of ministers in
India, along with the differences between the two.
TABLE OF CONTENT
• Council of Ministers
• Cabinet of Ministers
• Difference between the Council and Cabinet of Ministers
India is a country with the largest constitution and democracy in the world. The constitution, a
living document, has given every person equal rights and responsibilities. All these steps lead to
one basic motive, the growth and upliftment of all the people of India. But every person can’t be
wise enough or have the time to focus on its overall development irrespective of their rights and
responsibilities. This is why people elect their representatives who look after the different aspects
of the country’s growth.
The people who represent the country in different fields in the parliament are the council of
ministers. The council of ministers has various parts, but the core is the cabinet of ministers. The
meaning of both is discussed below, as it is important to know the basics before knowing the
differences between the two.
Council of Ministers
The group of representatives at the national level who contribute to the country’s development
and take decisions on behalf of the people in the council of ministers. In India, it is the
legislature’s core and has the most crucial responsibility of running the country.
The head of the legislature is the Prime minister, who is appointed by the ruling party by the
president and advises him on all the decisions. The prime minister also chooses the people to
represent the various portfolios and assigns them their responsibilities. The salaries and perks of
all the ministers are also decided in the parliament itself. The strength of the council of ministers
will remain less than 15% of the total strength of the lower house and fluctuates depending upon
the choice of the prime ministers. The council of ministers is known to take all the decisions on
behalf of the president, but the core advisors are the cabinet of ministers. The president is a
nominal head in the country and most of the functions are carried out by the prime minister and
his council.
Cabinet of Ministers
The council of ministers consists of many organs and the most important of all is the cabinet of
ministers. The cabinet consists of all the senior ministers or the ministers who control the key
sectors in the parliament. It consists of the home minister, defence minister, finance minister, and
railway minister. One should always keep in mind that the country’s prime minister heads both
the council and the cabinet of ministers because the council of ministers includes the cabinet as
well and is not a different body.
The key to the country’s development lies in the hands of the cabinet ministers who are few in
number, as much as 15 to 20, but most of the work is done by them. The cabinet runs its own
portfolios and participates in all the activities regarding the decisions for the country taken by the
prime minister. Therefore, the prime minister is dependent on the cabinet for the effective and
smooth functioning of the country.
Difference between the Council and

Cabinet of Ministers
Although most of the decisions lie with the cabinet and the council as the whole body of the
ministers, they are different in many aspects, some of which are discussed below.
• Constitutional significance
The council of ministers has always been acknowledged by the constitution of India, but the
cabinet was not privileged with the same since its inception. It was more like a formal body
created for convenience. But as the significance of this body increased, it was acknowledged as
a constitutional body in 1978. As of today, both bodies are a part of the constitution.
• Number of Members
The council of ministers is large and has as many as 55 to 60 members because it consists of
many organs, including the cabinet of ministers. On the other hand, the cabinet of ministers is
smaller in size as much as 15 to 20 members because it has the key ministers of the parliament
who have sectors such as defence, finance and home ministry.
• Powers
The council of ministers represents a whole legislative body, but it does not exercise any actual
powers as significant as the cabinet of ministers. It is more like a little body. On the other hand,
the cabinet of ministers is the most significant and powerful organ of the council of ministers and
has all the actual powers.
• Decisions
The council of ministers does not participate in decision-making and is an implementing
authority in the parliament because the cabinet of ministers takes all the key decisions.
• Physical position
Although the cabinet of ministers takes most of the key decisions, it is an organ of the council of
ministers and is smaller than it. The council of ministers has various organs, including the cabinet
but has nominal powers.
Conclusion
This article can understand that the council of ministers is the body of ministers in the parliament,
which has many organs and the cabinet is one of these organs. The cabinet is the council’s core
but is much smaller in number. To sum up, the council of ministers is the nominal decision-
making body that is larger in size. The cabinet is the actual decision-making body that is smaller
in size but holds the key portfolios.

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