Abstract
India and Pakistan are parliamentary democracies. The governments of both have a lawmaking feature at odds with parliamentary norms: presidential legislation. The President, acting through the Council of Ministers, is authorized to enact legislation in the form of “ordinances” without input from Parliament. In a sense, ordinances are constitutional fiat, or legislation without legislature. This article will explore this anomalous feature in India and Pakistan, arguing that use of ordinances violates fundamental tenets of parliamentary democracy. As the judiciaries of the two nations address challenges to ordinances by interpreting the constitutional provisions mustered in their support, they must consider the interaction between ordinances and the principles on which the parliamentary system of government is founded.