Veto

noun (countable); also verb (transitive)

/ˈviːtəʊ/

The power to unilaterally stop or block a legislative measure from taking effect. In India, the President has three veto options on ordinary bills under Article 111: absolute veto (withhold assent — rarely used), suspensive veto (return the bill for reconsideration — which Parliament can override by passing it again, with or without amendments), and pocket veto (taking no action, which has no time limit under Article 111). There is no formal veto over money bills or constitutional amendment bills. Governors have analogous powers under Article 200, including the controversial power to reserve a bill for Presidential consideration.

✍️ Usage in a UPSC answer

The President's exercise of a pocket veto on the Postal Bill of 1986 — allowing it to lapse by taking no action during an inter-session gap — highlighted the constitutional gap in Article 111, which sets no time limit within which the President must act on a bill.

Synonyms

prohibitionrejectionblockdisapprovaldenial of assent

Antonyms

assentapprovalratificationenactmentsanction

🌱 Word Family

veto (noun/verb), vetoed (adjective), vetoer (noun), veto power (compound noun), pocket veto (compound noun)

🔡 Root

Latin veto (I forbid) ← vetare (to forbid, to prohibit) ← first-person singular present indicative

📜 Etymology

Directly from Latin veto (I forbid), a Roman tribune's formula for blocking Senate resolutions by invoking the tribunicia potestas (tribunician power). The word entered English constitutional vocabulary in the 17th century; its use in the US Constitution (President's veto of Congressional bills) made it a standard political term worldwide.

🧠 Memory Hook

VETO = 'I FORBID' in Latin — the Roman tribune literally said 'VETO!' to block a measure. The word IS its own definition. When a US President (or Indian President) VETOs a bill, they are saying, in Latin, 'I FORBID it.'

⚖️ Polity & Constitution 📖 Seen in: Preamble of the Indian Constitution

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