Impeachment

Defining Impeachment

Impeachment is a process by which a government official gets charges pressed by a legislative body. However, impeachment doesn’t remove the official from the office. It is, by and large, similar to an indictment in the criminal law; thus, it is basically a statement of charges that are pressed against the official.

In certain countries, the impeached official gets removed provisionally; while in other countries, they remain on-duty during the trial. An impeached official has to face the conviction possibility, along with a judgment that makes the official convict on the Basis of impeachment articles, which results in the permanent removal from the office.

Considering that impeachment and conviction comprise the overturning of standard constitutional processes by which people achieve high office, and since it needs a supermajority, they are basically reserved for the ones who are deemed to have committed serious crimes in respect to their office.

In several countries across the world, impeachment exists under constitutional law, such as the United States, South Korea, Russia, Philippines, Ireland, India, France, and Brazil.

History of Impeachment

The word impeachment is said to be derived from empeechier, which is a French word and impedire, which is a Latin word. It expresses the notion of ensnaring or catching by the foot. This process was first used by the good parliament of English, in the second half of the 14th century, against Baron Latimer.

After this, the constitution of Virginia in 1776 and the constitution of Massachusetts in 1780 along with other states, adopted this mechanism. However, they limited the punishment only to the removal from the office.

Impeachment in India

In India, the parliament can impeach the judges and president, including the chief justice of the high and supreme courts before the expiry of their term for violating the constitution. Besides impeachment, there is no other penalty, under Article 361, that would be given to the president for violating the constitution.

As long as the president is sitting in the office, there could be no impeachment tested. For that to happen, the president will have to step down. However, in case the president has completed the term or has been removed, then they can be punished for the already proven unlawful actions.

So far, in the country, no president has been impeached. Thus, the impeachment provision hasn’t been tested yet.