. Meaning of Federalism Federalism refers to a political system that possess Constitutionally provided and guaranteed distribution of powers between a national government and several regional governments. The fundamental attribute of a federal Constitution is the Constitutionally created and protected State or regional governments. If regions in a country are distinct in terms of ethnicity, language, religion etc., the ideal form of government will be the federal system.
Democratic federalism is the best instrument to ensure ‘Unity in diversity’. The constituent States retain and safeguard their distinct linguistic, religious or cultural identity, without compromising the unity of the federated nation. The federal system is based on distribution of powers between the federal or central or Union Government and the constituent States. This distribution is determined by the Constitution, in clear written terms.
Hence in any federal system, the Constitution becomes the supreme authority. Meaning of Federalism Constitution (Parent) States (Sibling) Centre (Sibling)