26th Constitutional Amendment Act 1971
Also called: 26th Amendment, Twenty-sixth Amendment · Topic: Challenges to and Restoration of the Congress System · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 5 "Challenges to and Restoration of the Congress System"
Meaning
The 26th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1971 abolished privy purses and ended official recognition of the former princely rulers. A privy purse was a yearly, tax-free payment promised to rulers when their states joined India. The Act removed Article 291 (privy purses paid from the Consolidated Fund) and Article 362 (rulers' rights and privileges). It added Article 363A and amended Article 366(22), which defines "Ruler". It applied the idea of equality by ending a hereditary privilege.
Example
In September 1970, an amendment bill passed the Lok Sabha but fell short of a two-thirds majority in the Rajya Sabha. The President then derecognised the rulers by an order, but the Supreme Court struck it down in December 1970. After her 1971 election win, Indira Gandhi's government passed the 26th Amendment. The Supreme Court upheld it in Raghunathrao Ganpatrao v. Union of India (1993).
Don't confuse with
- 25th Amendment, 1971: it dealt with property rights after the bank nationalisation case. It replaced "compensation" with "amount" and added Article 31C. It did not deal with the princes.