Institutions must function within limitations: Pranab

Says the system has the capacity to avoid any crisis

President Pranab Mukherjee today said institutions in a democracy must function within their limits determined by the Constitution, noting the system has the capacity to avoid any crisis.

"Umpteen number of times I have stated that these institutions must function within its limitations which have been determined by the Constitution," he told reporters on board his special aircraft while returning from his two-nation visit to Belgium and Turkey.

"Every institution derives its authority from the Constitution itself and in a living, dynamic multi-party system, there may be occasions when various institutions act in a particular way but we have the capacity and flexibility in the system to adjust the friction and avoid any crisis," Mukherjee said.

He was replying to a question about "increasing" friction between different institutions of democracy.

The questioner referred to the Supreme Court striking down immunity to convicted lawmakers and the government coming up with an Ordinance to negate it.

The Union Cabinet had on October 2 withdrawn the ordinance that gave protection to convicted MPs and MLAs from facing immediate disqualification.

The ordinance was passed to negate the July 10 order of the Supreme Court which had struck down the provisions in the electoral law that protects a convicted lawmaker from disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal in higher courts.

The President himself had raised certain questions over the ordinance when he called three ministers and discussed the issue with them.