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State Governments of India are the governments ruling over the 28 states and 3 union territories (there 8 union territories but only 3 union territories have Legislative Assembly as well as governments) of India with the head of Council of Ministers in every state being the Chief Minister, who also serves as the head of the government. Power is divided between the Union government (federal government) and the state governments. The federal government appoints a Governor for each state, who serves as the ceremonial head of state, and a Lieutenant Governor (or Administrator) for certain union territories, whose powers vary depending on the specific union territory.
Each state has a legislative assembly. A state legislature that has one house – the State Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) – is a unicameral legislature. A state legislature that has two houses – the State Legislative Assembly and State Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad) – is a bicameral legislature. The Vidhan Sabha is the lower house and corresponds to the Lok Sabha while the Vidhan Parishad is the upper house and corresponds to the Rajya Sabha of the Parliament of India.
While the Union government handles defence, external affairs etc., the state government deals with internal security and other state issues. Income for the Union government is from customs duty, excise tax, income tax etc., while state government income comes from sales tax (VAT), stamp duty etc.; now these have been subsumed under the various components of the Goods and Services Tax.
The Sarkaria Commission was set up to review the balance of power between states' and the Union governments. The Union government can dissolve a state government in favour of President's rule if necessary, subject to certain conditions, as ruled by the Supreme Court of India in S. R. Bommai v. Union of India. It is for 5 years only.
For every state, there is a legislature, which consists of a Governor and either one or two houses. [1]
State/Union Territory | Legislature type | Size | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Lower [2] | Upper [3] | Total | ||
Andhra Pradesh | Bicameral | 175 | 58 | 233 |
Arunachal Pradesh | Unicameral | 60 | — | 60 |
Assam | Unicameral | 126 | — | 126 |
Bihar | Bicameral | 243 | 75 | 318 |
Chhattisgarh | Unicameral | 90 | — | 90 |
Delhi | Unicameral | 70 | — | 70 |
Goa | Unicameral | 40 | — | 40 |
Gujarat | Unicameral | 182 | — | 182 |
Haryana | Unicameral | 90 | — | 90 |
Himachal Pradesh | Unicameral | 68 | — | 68 |
Jammu and Kashmir | Unicameral | 90 | — | 90 |
Jharkhand | Unicameral | 81 | — | 81 |
Karnataka | Bicameral | 224 | 75 | 299 |
Kerala | Unicameral | 140 | — | 140 |
Madhya Pradesh | Unicameral | 230 | — | 230 |
Maharashtra | Bicameral | 288 | 78 | 366 |
Manipur | Unicameral | 60 | — | 60 |
Meghalaya | Unicameral | 60 | — | 60 |
Mizoram | Unicameral | 40 | — | 40 |
Nagaland | Unicameral | 60 | — | 60 |
Odisha | Unicameral | 147 | — | 147 |
Puducherry | Unicameral | 30 [a] | — | 33 |
Punjab | Unicameral | 117 | — | 117 |
Rajasthan | Unicameral | 200 | — | 200 |
Sikkim | Unicameral | 32 | — | 32 |
Tamil Nadu | Unicameral | 234 | — | 234 |
Telangana | Bicameral | 119 | 40 | 159 |
Tripura | Unicameral | 60 | — | 60 |
Uttar Pradesh | Bicameral | 403 | 100 | 503 |
Uttarakhand | Unicameral | 70 | — | 70 |
West Bengal | Unicameral | 294 | — | 294 |
Total | — | 4,123 | 426 | 4,547 |
6 out of 28 states have bicameral legislatures, namely Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh, with the remaining states having a unicameral one. Parliament may, by law, provide for the abolition of an existing Legislative Council or for the creation of one where it does not exist, if the proposal is supported by a resolution of the Legislative Assembly of the state concerned.
The Legislative Council of a state comprises not more than one-third of the total number of members in the legislative assembly of the state and in no case fewer than 40 members. About one-third of members of the Council are elected by members of the legislative assembly from amongst persons who are not its members, one-third by electorates consisting of members of municipalities, district boards and other local authorities in the state, one-twelfth by an electorate consisting of persons who have been, for at least three years, engaged in teaching in educational institutions within the state not lower in standard than secondary school and a further one-twelfth by registered graduates of more than three years' standing. Remaining members are nominated by the Governor from among those who have distinguished themselves in literature, science, art, cooperative movement and social service. Legislative Councils are not subject to dissolution but one-third of their members retire every second year.
Ruling party | States/UTs | |
---|---|---|
NDA (4) [4] | ||
Bharatiya Janata Party | 2 | |
Telugu Desam Party | 1 | |
Janata Dal (United) | 1 | |
INDIA (2) [5] | ||
Indian National Congress | 2 |
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is in power in 4 legislative councils; the Indian National Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is in power in 2 legislative councils; and 30 other states/union territories do not have a legislative council.
The Legislative Assembly of a state consists of not more than 500 and not fewer than 60 members (Legislative Assembly of Sikkim has 32 members, while Puducherry has 33, Goa and Mizoram have 40 seats each vide Article 371F of the Constitution) chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies in the state. Demarcation of territorial constituencies is to be done in such a manner that the ratio between population of each constituency and number of seats allotted to it, as far as practicable, is the same throughout the state. The term of an assembly is five years unless it is dissolved earlier.
This article needs to be updated.(December 2024) |
This article needs to be updated.(December 2024) |
The Bharatiya Janata Party led National Democratic Alliance is in power in 20 legislative assemblies; the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is in power in 10 legislative assemblies; 1 legislative assemblies are ruled by other parties/alliances; and 5 union territories do not have a legislative assembly.
State legislature has exclusive powers over subjects enumerated in the State List (List II of the Seventh Schedule) of the Constitution and concurrent powers over those enumerated in sub List III. Financial powers of legislature include authorization of all expenditure, taxation and borrowing by the state government. The Legislative Assembly alone has the power to originate money bills. The Legislative Council can only make recommendations in respect of changes it considers necessary within a period of fourteen days of the receipt of money bills from the Legislative Assembly, which can accept or reject these recommendations.
The Governor of a state may reserve any Bill for the consideration of the President. Bills relating to subjects like the compulsory acquisition of property, measures affecting powers and position of High Courts, and the imposition of taxes on storage, distribution, and sale of water or electricity in Inter-state River or river valley development projects should necessarily be so reserved. No Bills seeking to impose restrictions on inter-state trade can be introduced in a state legislature without the previous sanction of the President.
State legislatures, apart from exercising the usual power of financial control, use all normal parliamentary devices like questions, discussions, debates, adjournments, and no-confidence motions and resolutions to keep a watch over the day-to-day work of the executive. They also have their own committees on estimates and public accounts to ensure that grants sanctioned by the legislature are properly utilized.
There are, overall, 4,121 legislative assembly seats in states and Union territories of India. [8] [9] [10] Andhra Pradesh abolished its Legislative Council in 1984, but set up a new Legislative Council following elections in 2007. [11]
The state executive [12] consists of a Governor and the State Council of Ministers, with the Chief Minister as its head.
The Governor of a state is appointed by the President of India for a term of five years and holds office during their pleasure. Only Indian citizens above 35 years of age are eligible for appointment to this office.
Executive power of the state is vested in the Governor. All Governors are obligated to discharge their constitutional functions such as the appointment of the Chief Minister of a state, sending a report to the President on the failure of the Constitutional machinery in a state or in respect of matters relating to assent to passing a bill in the state assembly.
Similarly, in respect of Arunachal Pradesh, its Governor has special responsibility under Article 371H of the Constitution with respect to law and order and in discharge of his functions in relation thereto. The Governor exercises his individual judgement as to the action to be taken after consulting the Council of Ministers. These are, however, temporary provisions. If the President of India, on receipt of a report from Governor or otherwise is satisfied that it is no longer necessary for the Governor to have special responsibilities with respect to law and order, he may so direct by an order.
Likewise, in the Sixth Schedule which applies to tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram as specified in para 20 of that Schedule, discretionary powers are given to the Governor in matters relating to sharing of royalties between the district councils and the state government. The Sixth Schedule vests additional discretionary powers in the Governors of Mizoram and Tripura in almost all their functions (except approving regulations for levy of taxes and money lending by non-tribal district councils) since December 1998. In Sikkim, the Governor has been given special responsibility for peace and social and economic advancement of different sections of population.
The Chief Minister is appointed by the Governor, who also appoints other ministers on the advice of the Chief Minister. The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly of the state.
The Council of Ministers with the Chief Minister as its head aids and advises the Governor in exercise of his functions except in so far as he is by or under the Constitution required to exercise his functions or any of them at his discretion. In respect of Nagaland, its Governor has special responsibility under Article 371 A of the Constitution with respect to law and order and even though it is necessary for him to consult Council of Ministers in matters relating to law and order, he can exercise his individual judgement as to the action to be taken.
State High courts have jurisdiction over the whole state, but report to the Supreme Court of India, which may override the high court's judgments and rulings.
Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic in which the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the Prime Minister of India is the head of government. It is based on the federal structure of government, although the word is not used in the Constitution itself. India follows the dual polity system, i.e. federal in nature, that consists of the central authority at the centre and states at the periphery. The Constitution defines the organizational powers and limitations of both central and state governments; it is well recognised, fluid and considered supreme, i.e. the laws of the nation must conform to it. India is officially declared a secular and socialist state as per the Constitution.
The National Democratic Alliance is an Indian big tent multi-party political alliance, led by the country's biggest political party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It was founded on 15 May 1998. It currently has a majority in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, and controls the Government of India as well as the governments of 20 out of 31 Indian states.
The State Legislative Assembly, or Vidhana Sabha, or Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in each of the states and certain union territories of India. In 28 states and 8 union territories, there is a unicameral legislature which is the sole legislative body. In 6 states, the legislative assembly is the lower house of their bicameral legislature with the upper house being the State Legislative Council. 5 union territories are governed directly by the Union Government of India and have no legislative body.
A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district (constituency) to the legislature of State government in the Indian system of government. From each constituency, the people elect one representative who then becomes a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). Each state has between seven and nine MLAs for every Member of Parliament (MP) that it has in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of India's bicameral parliament. There are also members in three unicameral legislatures in Union Territories: the Delhi Legislative Assembly, Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly and the Puducherry Legislative Assembly. Only a Member of the Legislative Assembly can work as a minister for more than 6 months. If a non-Member of the Legislative Assembly becomes a Chief Minister or a minister, he must become an MLA within 6 months to continue in the job. Only a Member of the Legislative Assembly can become the Speaker of the Legislature.
The State Legislative Council, or Vidhan Parishad is the upper house in those states of India that have a bicameral state legislature; the lower house being the State Legislative Assembly. Its establishment is defined in Article 169 of the Constitution of India.
The Government of Himachal Pradesh also known as the State Government of Himachal Pradesh, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It consists of an executive branch, led by the Governor of Himachal Pradesh, a judiciary and a legislative branch.
The Government of Kerala, also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision-making committee, known as the cabinet.
The Government of Uttar Pradesh is the subnational government of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh with the governor as its appointed constitutional head of the state by the President of India. The Governor of Uttar Pradesh is appointed for a period of five years and appoints the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and their council of ministers, who are vested with the executive powers of the state. The governor remains a ceremonial head of the state, while the chief minister and their council are responsible for day-to-day government functions.
Bihar Government is the state government of the Indian state of Bihar and its nine divisions which consist of districts. It consists of an executive, led by the Governor of Bihar, a judiciary and legislative branches.
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The Maharashtra Legislature is the supreme legislative body of the state of Maharashtra. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Governor of Maharashtra and two houses, The Maharashtra Legislative Council and The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. The governor in his role as head of the legislature has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of legislature or to dissolve the Legislative Assembly.
The 2009 Odisha Legislative Assembly election took place in April 2009, concurrently with the general election. The elections were held in the state in two phases. The results were declared on 16 May. Despite having recently separated from the Bharatiya Janata Party after an eleven-year partnership, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) retained power in the Odisha State Assembly with a more convincing majority. Party chief Naveen Patnaik was formally re-elected as the BJD Legislature party leader on 19 May, thus paving the way for his third consecutive term as the Chief Minister of Odisha.
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Elections in the state of Bihar, India are conducted in accordance with the Constitution of India. The Assembly of Bihar creates laws regarding the conduct of local body elections unilaterally while any changes by the state legislature to the conduct of state level elections need to be approved by the Parliament of India.
Elections for the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly in Uttarakhand state, India are conducted in accordance with the Constitution of India. The legislative assembly of Uttarakhand creates laws regarding the conduct of local body elections unilaterally while any changes by the state legislature to the conduct of state level elections need to be approved by the Parliament of India. In addition, the state legislature may be dismissed by the Parliament according to Article 356 of the Indian Constitution and President's rule may be imposed.
Government of Puducherry is the union territorial government for the union territory of Puducherry, India. It is headed by the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry. Its capital is located at Pondicherry.
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