| USA |
EU |
India |
| States cannot unilaterally secede from the Union. |
Any member state may choose to leave the single market at any time. For this, usually, a withdrawal agreement has to be negotiated, and there may be a transition period. |
Territorial integrity is not part of the basic structure of the Constitution. The territory is ceded to Bangladesh under the 9th and 100th constitutional amendment act. According to articles one to four of the Constitution of India, no State can secede from the Union. |
| Merging or splitting of States is not allowed except with the consent of the U.S. Congress and the affected States. |
Merging or splitting of member states is only possible with the consent of the citizens of the respective member state. |
Article Three of the Indian Constitution provides for the merging or splitting of States. Such power is exclusively vested in the Government of India. |
| The President of the United States is elected by the citizens of the United States via the Electoral College. The US is a presidential republic. |
The power of the EU is exercised collectively by the European Council, a collegiate body that defines the overall priorities and political directions of the European Union. It comprises the heads of state or government of the EU member states, the President of the European Council, and the President of the European Commission (the latter two have no voting power). |
The President of India is indirectly elected. The Prime Minister is usually a leader of either the majority party or the largest party in the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and can either be directly elected by the citizens of a particular Lok Sabha constituency or be indirectly elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha. |
| The citizens of the individual States directly elect their Governor. |
The election of the head of state varies from member state to member state. |
The President appoints the Governors of the States with the advice of the Union government. The Chief Ministers (heads of the State governments) are usually leaders of the majority party or the largest party in the State Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha) who are either directly elected by the citizens from a particular Legislative Assembly constituency or indirectly elected as the member of the State legislative councils (Vidhan Parishad). |
| Free movement of labor and goods is permitted between the States. |
The main purpose of the EU is the free movement of labor and goods between member states. |
Free movement of labour and goods is permitted between the States per Articles 301 and 303 of the Constitution of India. The interests of migrant workers are protected by the Interstate Migrant Workmen Act 1979. |
| There is a single currency, foreign policy, and armed forces under the control of a federal government. |
There is a single currency for all EU member states who are part of the eurozone; foreign policy and the armed forces are the responsibility of the individual member states. |
There is a single currency, foreign policy, and armed forces under the control of the Government of India. |
| Every State has the constitutional right to impose taxes and raise debt. |
The EU by itself has no power to raise taxes and raise debt, but the European Central Bank can indirectly influence fiscal policy. |
Every State has the constitutional right to impose certain taxes and raise debt. Part of Union government revenue is devolved to the States for public purposes. |
| In general, people speak one language and follow one religion under a secular constitution. |
Generally, multilingual people follow one religion under secular constitutions. |
Multilingual people follow multiple religions under a secular constitution. |
| A highly developed democratic country. |
A union of highly developed democratic countries. |
One of the largest developing democratic countries. |
