Concept of Sovereignty: Characteristics and Types of Sovereignty
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- It is primarily a legal concept
- The basic idea of Sovereignty is to be able to declare law, issue commands and take political decisions
- Sovereignty grants States Authority in both Internal and External Spheres
- Sovereignty is absolute, unlimited and perpetual power
Characteristics of Sovereignty
Absoluteness
- The will of the Sovereign reigns supreme in the State
- The most important characteristic as Sovereignty is not limited
Permanence
- Sovereignty belongs to State not to a government
- Permanence of Sovereignty is the corollary of its absoluteness
Universality
- Sovereignty is a universal, all-pervasive and all-comprehensive
- Organisation within the territory of states are subject to its Sovereign
Inalienability
Sovereignty cannot be transferred without destroying the state itself
Indivisibility
- Sovereignty cannot be divided
- The principle of Federalism is exceptional characteristic of Sovereignty
Types of Sovereignty
- De Jure And De Jure Sovereignty
- Titular Sovereignty
- Legal Sovereignty
- Political Sovereignty
Chief Exponents of Theory of Sovereignty
Jean Bodin
- Sovereignty as absolute and perpetual power
- Sovereign above Law and Source of Law
Imposed two restrictions on Sovereign:
- Not abrogate fundamental laws
- Not Tax private property
Hugo Grotius
- States Sovereignty in international sphere
- Introduced the idea of external sovereignty
Thomas Hobbes
- Sovereignty is the attribute of the State
- Authority of Sovereign beyond challenge
- Added legitimacy to Authority of Sovereign
John Locke
- Did not uphold absolute sovereignty
- Supreme Power is with the people
Jean Jacques Rousseau
- Added doctrine of popular sovereignty
- Sovereignty is represented in the form of General Will
- Sovereignty is absolute and unlimited because General Will is accepted unconditionally
- Man can be forced to be free
John Austin
- Contributed to the legal notion of Sovereignty
- Will of Sovereign not bound by any other law
- Defined law as the command of Sovereign
- The subjects could have no legal rights against the state
- Exponent of Absolute and Unlimited sovereignty from legal point of view
- Sovereignty is an essential element of State
- Sovereignty denotes Authority of State
- Existence of State depends on Sovereignty
- International recognition is not a condition for existence of State it is Sovereignty that is must for the same.
✍ Mayank