9 Difference Between Cabinet and Council of Ministers

The cabinet and council of the ministers are the two terms that play an important role in the smooth operation of the government. President and prime ministers are responsible persons who lead the nation. The Prime minister is the chief advisor of the president, and the prime minister also headed the council of the minister and decides the members of the council. The Council of the misters is divided into four different categories.

Many peoples get confused in Cabinet and council of ministers mostly people interchanges cabinet and council of ministers. The difference between the cabinet and council of ministers lies in the Functions, powers, size, numbers of the members, and many others.

Cabinet Vs Council of Ministers

Parameters	Cabinet	Council Of Ministers
Definition	A cabinet is a small group of experienced and most efficient ministers these ministers are responsible for the major decisions and policies of the government.	council of the minister is the big group of ministers which consist of four parts. The main work of this council is to assist or advise the president and prime minister in the running government.
constitution	The cabinet is introduced after the change in article 352 after the 44th amendment act in 1978.	The Council of ministers is described in detail in articles 74 and 75 of the Indian constitution.
Size	A cabinet is a small group with 15 to 18 most senior and efficient ministers.	Council of the minister is a group of 40 to 60 members
Part	The cabinet is a subpart of the Council of the minister.	It is divided into four parts which are Cabinet, Ministers of the states, Deputy Ministers, Parliamentary Secretaries
Meetings	Every week	Rarely held
Policy and decisions	Performed	Not performed
Functions	Performed many functions.	Advice the president.
Responsibilities	Cabinet ministers are assigned to different portfolios and ranks.	No such ranks and portfolio.

Cabinet

The cabinet is the main pillar of the Council of ministers.  It is a group of members who are the most senior ministers. Cabinet consists of 15-18 members. Cabinet was not mentioned in the original constitution of India. This word is added after the 44 constitution amendment. This is introduced by the change in article 352. The change was if there is a situation of emergency in that case prime minister will impose the emergency after the written advice of the cabinet.

The Prime minister is also involved in the cabinet decisions. All the key portfolios like Home, Defence, External Affairs, petroleum, and atomic energy are handled by the cabinet ministers. The cabinet is the main group of the council of the ministers who make policies, give advice to the prime minister. Cabinet ministers directly report to the prime minister.

Cabinet ministers organize a meeting every week and make decisions about the government works. Most of the decisions are passed by mutual concern. Cabinet makes the decision and these decisions are applied to all other ministers. The Cabinet is the main decision-making authority so the prime minister chooses them with much care. The Council of ministers does not advise the president but the cabinet does.

Council of ministers

President appoints the prime minister from the majority party in the Lok sabha. After that, it is the responsibility of the prime minister to decide the Council of the ministers. The Council of ministers has Four parts Cabinet, Ministers of State, Deputy Ministers, and Parliamentary Secretaries. The head of the council of the ministers is its self-prime minister. The Prime minister determines the composition and the size of the council of ministers. Ministry and the portfolio were also handed over by the prime minister with very care.

The maximum number of members is not fixed but it couldn’t exceed 15% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha. After that other benefits like allowances and salaries are determined by the ministers. Council of ministers is mentioned in article 74. This article mentioned that the president will work with the aid and advice of the council of ministers. Article 75 mentioned how to appoint the ministers. The Council of ministers is a constitutional body. Meeting between the ministers of the council is very rare. It consists of 60 to 80 members.

All The members of the council of the ministers are appointed as per the recommendation of the prime minister. So all the responsibility is dependent on the unity of the members of the council of the ministers. If a single vote of no confidence is to arise against a member of COM then a possibility arises to resign from the complete council. So the majority support is very important for the council of ministers. Likewise, if a single member denies the decisions or policy in that case a particular member has two choices which are to accept the decision or resign from the post.

Parts Of Council Of Minster

1. Cabinet Ministers: Small group of senior and most efficient ministers with total strength 15 to 20 members. It is the heart of the council of the ministers.
2. Ministers of the states: Ministers of states have two categories 1. Independent charge. 2. Attached Office. After the invitation, they attend the cabinet meeting. The attached ministers give advice and assist the cabinet minister in their work.
3. Deputy Ministers: These ministers are not independent or attached to the cabinet.
4. Parliamentary Secretaries

The key difference between cabinet and council of ministers

1. A cabinet is a small group of experienced and most efficient ministers these ministers are responsible for the major decisions and policies of the government. While a council of the minister is the big group of ministers which consist of four parts. The main work of this council is to assist or advise the president and prime minister in the running government.
2. The Council of ministers is described in detail in articles 74 and 75 of the Indian constitution. And the term Cabinet is introduced after the change in article 352 after the 44th amendment act in 1978.
3. A cabinet is a small group with 15 to 18 most senior and efficient ministers. On the other hand Council of the minister is a group of 40 to 60 members.
4. The cabinet is the internal core part of the council of ministers. While a council of ministers consists of four internal parts.
5. Cabinet has to perform many tasks and functions while the council of members does not perform such functions.
6. In the cabinet, meetings are held every week. The Council of ministers rarely held the meeting.
7. The Council of minister does not make the policies. The main work of the cabinet is to make decisions and policies.
8. Cabinet makes the decisions and the council of ministers implements the decision by the cabinet.
9. In the cabinet, each minister is assigned a portfolio or rank. But in the council of ministers, no such ranks or designation are given to the ministers.

Conclusion

The Prime minister is the head and chief authority of both these bodies. The Council of the minister advises the president but in reality, it is the cabinet that gives advice. Both of these bodies are very important to help the government for smooth working. The cabinet is the main body that makes the decision and policies. Many people stay confused between both terms.

There are many differences between the functions and powers of the cabinet and council of ministers. In general most of the ministers known by us are cabinet ministers because they make important decisions. When they make the decisions sometimes opposition doesn’t like that decision in that case with the debates on news channels they become famous among normal people.

This is all about the difference between the Cabinet and Council of ministers. We hope you understand the concept of cabinet and council of ministers very well. If you want to read more interesting and valuable differences please visit our websites.