Whether India is truly a Federal Country?

Answer 1

Indian Constitution is a combination of federal and unitary system. Power is clearly divided between the central and the state government. The central government is more powerful as it has more subjects and cream subjects and in some special cases the the central government can also deal with the subjects mentioned in the state list.

Answer 2

In one word, Indian Constitution has a Federal structure with a very strong Unitary bias. This is in fact one of the BASIC FEATURES of the Constitution of India. India is divided into many states and union territories; all these states are free to Legislate over different issues as specified in the STATE LIST of the Indian Constitution. The Union Government of India Legislates over another specified list, the UNION LIST. there is also another list, CONCURRENT LIST, over which both the Union Government and the various State Government can legislate. But in case of any conflict between the STATE and the UNION Laws, obviously the latter prevails over the former.

Again, the structure of the Constitution of India is such that it is possible for the Union Govt. to take out any entry from the State List or Concurrent List and place it in the exclusive Union List, by way of making an amendment in the Constitution. Moreover, under the EMERGENCY Provisions of the Constitution, the Central/Union Government can assume absolute powers, without the States having any say.

Therefore, it is accurate to say that the system or structure prevailing in India is a Federal structure with a strong unitary bias.