Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Mangal Singh Negi, chairman of the Front said he had sent a memorandum to the President demanding setting up of an expert committee to prepare a draft for the amendment in Constitu.

Negi said under Article 174 (2) of the Constitution, the governor need not send his recommendations to the President for the imposition of President's rule, when no single party or combination commanded the confidence in the legislature. Front chief said Art 356 should be invoked as a last resort only after non-compliance of the directives of the Centre issued under Articles 256, 257 and 365 and the inability of the governors to exercise his power under 174(2) of the Constitution.

The Front has also demanded the Article 356 (3) (4) should be amended so that duration of governor's tenure in the state was not extended beyond six months and proposed Presidential rule to one year enforcing upon the Election Commission to hold elections within this specified period.

Negi said the propriety of invoking the powers under Article 356 to frequently had been deprecated and criticised. Such an aberration had alienated the people and jeopardised representative democracy and virtually eroded the federal polity as enshrined in the Constitution. He said even Dr Ambedkar, the father of the Constitution had said that Article 356 should remain a dead letter and be used as the last resort.