In this article you will learn about the essential Elements of State in Political Science.
What is State?
State is the sovereign political institution of the people living in an organised society. Every person lives under the supreme power of the State, enjoys rights and freedoms and performs several duties as a citizen of the State.
In ancient Greek the word ‘Polis’ was used to identify small city-states. However, later on, the term ‘State’ came to be universally used for describing every big and small political unit exercising supreme power over its people. The word ‘State’ has been derived from the Latin word ‘Status’ which means a specific or particular social position. Since, no difference was made between State and Society, the term State came to be used for describing the status of the persons as citizens in the ancient times. Gradually, the term ‘State’ came to be used for the political institution or organisation which exercised supreme power (Sovereignty) over the people living in its territory.
Elements of State
There are four essential elements of the State. The presence of all these four, without exception, constitutes a State : Population, Territory, Government and Sovereignty.
1. Population
State is a community of peoples. It is a human political organisation/institution. There can be no State without a definite population. Population can be more or less in number but it has to be there. There are States like Canada, Switzerland and others with very small populations, and there are States like India, China or some others with very large populations.
The people of a State are the citizens of the State. They enjoy rights and freedoms as citizens as well as perform duties towards the State. When citizens of another State live in the territory of the State, they are called aliens. All the persons, citizens as well as aliens, who are living in the territory of the State are duly bound to obey the policies and laws of the State. The State exercises supreme authority over them through its government.
There is no definite limit for the number of the population needed for a State. However, it is recognised that the population should be neither too big nor extremely small. It has to be within an equitable limit. It should be determined on the basis of the size of the territory of the State, the standard of living, the available resources, expected and needs of defence, production of goods and supplies.
2. Territory
Territory is the second important element of state. State is a territorial unit and entity. Definite territory is its essential component because a state cannot exist in the air or at sea. The size of the territory of a State can be big or small, nevertheless it has to be a definite and well-marked portion of territory.
The whole territory of the state is under sovereignty i.e. the supreme power of the State. All the persons, institutions, organisations, associations and places located within its territory are under the sovereignty jurisdiction of the State. The State can control them in all respects.
Further, it must be noted that the territory of the state includes not only the land but also lakes, rivers, inland, canals, seas if any, a portion of coastal sea territorial waters or maritime belt, mountains, hills, continental shelf and all other land features along with air space above the territory. The territory of the State can also include islands located in its nearby seas. For example, the Andaman and Nicobar islands are a part of India.
3. Government
Government is the political organisation or agency or machinery or magistracy of the State through which the laws of the State are made, implemented, enforced and adjudicated. It is the third essential element of the State. The state uses its sovereign power through its government. It is the working agency or the agent of the State.
Each government has three organs : (1) Legislature - which formulates the will of the State i.e. performs rule-making functions; (2) Executive - which implements and enforces the laws of the State i.e. performs the rule-application functions; and (3) Judiciary - which applies the laws to specific cases and settles the disputes i.e. performs the rule-adjudication functions. The Government as a whole is the instrument through which the sovereign power of the State gets operationalised.
The Legislature formulates laws, the Executive implements and enforces the laws, and the Judiciary adjudicates and settles disputes by interpreting and applying laws. It is also a universally accepted rule that each of the three organs of the government carries out its allocated functions and responsibilities.
Further, Government can be of several different types like Monarchy or Aristocracy or Dictatorship or Democracy in its organisation and working. The government can be either Parliament or Presidential or both, Unitary or Federal or a mixture of the two.
4. Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the most exclusive element of the State and it stands accepted as the the most essential element because the state alone possesses sovereignty. State has the exclusive title and right to exercise sovereignty over its people and territory.
Sovereignty means the supreme power of the State and it has two dimensions : Internal Sovereignty and External Sovereignty.
- Internal Sovereignty : It means the power of the State to order and regulate the activities of all people, institutions and groups which are at work within its territory. These always act in accordance with the laws of the State and the state can punish for the violation of any of its laws.
- External Sovereignty : It means complete independence of the State from external control and the equal freedom of the State to participate in the activities of the community of nations and to have its own foreign policy. It stands for the rights of each state to have an independent foreign policy designed to secure the goals of its national interests in relations with other states.
Sovereignty permanently, exclusively and absolutely belongs to the State and no state can really become a State without sovereignty. End of Sovereignty means end of the State and that's why sovereignty is always identified as the hallmark of the state.
Therefore, these are the four essential features/elements of the state. A state becomes a state only when it has all these elements. The presence of all these four essential elements together vests a State with statehood. However, out of these elements sovereignty stands accepted as the most important and exclusive element of the State.
This article on Elements of State in Political Science is contributed by Dipshikha Anand. If you like LawStudyPoint.com do follow us on our Twitter handle.