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Vice President of India emphasized on the principle of Separation of Power and stated that in a democracy, governance should be only by executive – the government – which is elected by the people and is accountable to them. 

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• Vice President emphasized that principle of separation of powers necessitates clear demarcation of responsibilities to prevent institutional overreach. 
• He stated that any incursion by the Legislature, Executive, or Judiciary in the domain of the other poses a challenge.

Idea behind the Separation of Powers

• Idea: Separation of Powers means demarcation of authorities and duties into three branches of government – Executive, Legislature and Judiciary. 
  • The executive enforces laws made or enacted by the legislature and is responsible for the administration of the government. 
  • The legislature makes laws, amends and replaces old laws, and controls, supervises, and scrutinises the activities of the executive. 
  • The judiciary is concerned with the administration of justice, interpretation of laws and is the guardian of the Constitution. 
• Origin: Aristotle for the first time classified the functions of the Government into three categories viz., deliberative, magisterial and judicial. 
  • However, French Jurist Montesquieu is considered the modern exponent of the theory of the Separation of Power. 
• Modern Theory: In his book The Spirit of the Laws (1748), Montesquieu enunciated and explained his theory of the Separation of Powers.

Separation of Powers in India

• Delicate Balance: The Indian Constitution is based on a delicate principle of limited separation of powers with sufficiently differentiated functions of different organs and checks and balances so that one organ cannot usurp the function of another. 
  • Legislature is responsible for making the laws, the Executive is responsible for enforcing the law and the Judiciary is responsible for interpreting laws and resolving disputes.
• Functional Overlap: The Indian Constitution does not expressly vest the three kinds of power in three different organs, and the organs have some overlapping domains. For Instance, 
  • The President, being the executive head, is also empowered to exercise legislative powers as in promulgating ordinances.
  • Legislature exercises judicial function in the removal of the President and Judges, breach of its privilege, etc. 
  • The judiciary exercises legislative and executive power in issuing guidelines to executives and making certain legislative amendments. 
• Part of Basic Structure: The Supreme Court held that the doctrine of separation of powers is part of the basic structure of the Constitution. 
• Conflicts among Organs: 
  • Judicial Interventions: The Supreme Court, through its judgments, encroaches on the legislative domain. 
    • For instance, the Supreme Court ruled that the President must decide on State Bills, reserved by the Governor for Presidential assent, within three months. 
  • Legislative encroachment: The Legislature enact laws encroaching on other domains like the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act, which included the Union Law Minister and two eminent persons in committee recommending judges. 
  • Executive overreach: Many tribunals have a majority of executive members, negating the concept of separation of powers. Also, frequent promulgation of ordinances bypasses the legislature for law-making. 

Conclusion

Separation of Powers aims to prevent the concentration of power in one hand so that the freedom and liberty of individuals remain safeguarded. However, organs of government cannot function in watertight compartments, and they operate in mutual cooperation and respect so that one does not usurp the functions of the other. Thus, a broad separation of power with some functional overlap and adequate checks and balances furthers the goal of democracy.