State legislative councils of India

Last updated

The State Legislative Council, or Vidhan Parishad, or Saasana Mandali 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.

Contents

Only 6 out of 28 states have a Legislative Council. These are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh. [1] No union territory has a legislative council.

Qualification and tenure

Members of a State Legislative Council (MLC) must be a citizen of India, at least 30 years old, mentally sound, not an insolvent, and must be an enrolled voter of the state. A member may not be a Member of Parliament and Member of the State Legislative Assembly at the same time. A member must not hold any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any state.
The tenure of the MLCs are six years. One-third of the members of State Legislative Council retire after every two years. This arrangement parallels that for the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India. [1]

Composition

The size of the State Legislative Council cannot be more than one third of the membership of the State Legislative Assembly. However, its size cannot be less than 40 members. These members elect the chairman and Deputy Chairman of the State Legislative Council.

MLCs are chosen in the following manner: [1]

Creation, abolition and roles of State Legislative Councils

According to the Article 169 of the Constitution of India, the Parliament of India can create or abolish the State Legislative Council of a state if that state's legislature passes a resolution for that with a special majority. As of 9 January 2024, 6 out of the 28 states have State Legislative Council. [1]

The existence of a State Legislative Council has proven politically controversial. A number of states that have had their Legislative Council abolished have subsequently requested its re-establishment; conversely, proposals for the re-establishment of the Legislative Council for a state have also met with opposition. Proposals for abolition or re-establishment of a state's Legislative Council require confirmation by the Parliament of India.

The Constitution of India gives limited power to the State Legislative Council. The State Legislative Council can neither form or dissolve a state government. The State Legislative Council also have no role in the passing of money bills. But some of the powers it has is that the chairman and Deputy Chairman of the State Legislative Council enjoy the same status of Cabinet Ministers in the state. [1]

Current State Legislative Councils

Legislative CouncilSeat(s)House strength [2] Party with a plurality/majority
ElectedNom.Total
Andhra Pradesh Amaravati 508 58 YSR Congress Party
Bihar Patna 6312 75 Janata Dal (United)
Karnataka Bangalore (summer)
Belgaum (winter)
6411 75 Indian National Congress
Maharashtra Mumbai (summer)
Nagpur (winter)
6612 78 Shiv Sena
Telangana Hyderabad 346 40 Indian National Congress
Uttar Pradesh Lucknow 9010 100 Bharatiya Janata Party
Total36759426

State Legislative Councils by ruling parties

Ruling partyStates
Indian National Congress 2
Bharatiya Janata Party 1
Janata Dal (United) 1
Shiv Sena 1
YSR Congress Party 1

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is in power in 3 legislative councils; the Indian National Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance is in power in 1 legislative councils; 2 legislative councils are ruled by other parties/alliances; and 30 other states/union territories do not have a legislative council.

Former State Legislative Councils

CouncilSeat(s)House strengthYears activeAbolished by
Assam Legislative Council Shillong 421935-1947India (Provincial Legislatures) Order, 1947
Bombay Legislative Council Bombay 781950–1960Bombay State Reorganisation Act, 1960
Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council Srinagar (summer)
Jammu (winter)
361957–2019 Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019
Madhya Pradesh Legislative Council Bhopal 771956–1969Madhya Pradesh Legislative Council (Abolition) Act, 1969
Punjab Legislative Council Chandigarh 391956–1969 Punjab Legislative Council (Abolition) Act, 1969
Tamil Nadu Legislative Council Chennai 781956–1986Tamil Nadu Legislative Council (Abolition) Act, 1986
West Bengal Legislative Council Kolkata 981952–1969West Bengal Legislative Council (Abolition) Act, 1969

Proposed State Legislative Councils

There are currently 4 proposals for creation of Legislative Councils: [3]

Criticism and support

The State Legislative Councils are criticised for being unnecessary. It is considered a burden on the state budget and cause delays in passing legislation. [1] State legislative council helps the defeated leaders to get a seat in the state legislature. This reduces the feeling of democracy, since the leaders are elected indirectly. These are the reasons why most of the states don't prefer legislative councils.

Other states support the establishment of legislative councils, arguing that they represent the local governments and also give voice to people having expertise in various fields (through Gubernatorial nominations).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rajya Sabha</span> Upper house of the Parliament of India

The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. As of 2023, it has a maximum membership of 250, of which 238 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using single transferable votes through open ballots, while the president can appoint 12 members for their contributions to art, literature, science, and social service. The total allowed capacity is 250 according to article 80 of the Indian Constitution. The current potential seating capacity of the Rajya Sabha is 245, after the Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Act, 2019, the seats came down to 245. The maximum seats of 250 members can be filled up at the discretion and requirements of the house of Rajya Sabha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lok Sabha</span> Lower house of the Parliament of India

The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Parliament House, New Delhi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament of India</span> Bicameral national legislature of India

The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The President of India, in their role as head of the legislature, has full powers to summon and prorogue either house of Parliament or to dissolve the Lok Sabha, but they can exercise these powers only upon the advice of the Prime Minister and their Union Council of Ministers.

The State Legislative Assembly, or Vidhan Sabha, also called Vidhana Sabha, or Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in each of the states and certain union territories of India. In 22 states and 3 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Member of the Legislative Assembly (India)</span> Member of a State Legislature in India

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

Although India is a parliamentary democracy, the country's politics has become dynastic or with high level of nepotism, possibly due to the absence of party organizations, independent civil-society associations which mobilize support for a party, or centralized financing of elections. The dynastic phenomenon is present at the national, state, regional, and district level. The Nehru–Gandhi family has produced three Indian prime ministers, and family members have largely led the Congress party since 1978. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also has several dynastic leaders. In addition to the major national parties, other national and regional parties such as Shiromani Akali Dal, Shiv Sena, Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Janata Dal Secular, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Kerala Congress, Jammu & Kashmir National Conference, Indian Union Muslim League, AIMIM, and the Nationalist Congress Party are all dominated by families, mostly those of the party founders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government of Odisha</span> Indian State Government

The government of the Indian state of Odisha and its 30 districts consists of an executive, led by the Governor of Odisha, a judiciary, and a legislative branch.

State governments in India are the governments ruling over 28 states and 8 union territories of India and the head of the Council of Ministers in a state is the Chief Minister. Power is divided between the Union government and state governments. 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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assam Legislative Assembly</span> Unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Assam

The Assam Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Assam. It is housed in Dispur, the capital city of Assam, geographically situated in present Western Assam region. The Legislative Assembly comprises 126 Members of Legislative Assembly, directly elected from single-seat constituencies. Its term is five years, unless sooner dissolved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council</span> Upper house of the Andhra Pradesh Legislature

The Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council or Āndhra Pradēś Śāsana Maṇḍali is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the Indian state, Andhra Pradesh.

Officially known as The Constitution Act, 2016, this amendment introduced a national Goods and Services Tax (GST) in India from 1 July 2017. It was introduced as the One Hundred and Twenty Second Amendment Bill of the Constitution of India,

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elections in Bihar</span> Overview of the procedure of elections in the Indian state of Bihar

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twenty-second Amendment of the Constitution of India</span>

The Twenty-second Amendment of the Constitution of India, officially known as The Constitution Act, 1969, inserted new article 244A in the Constitution to empower Parliament to enact a law for constituting an autonomous State within the State of Assam and also to provide the autonomous State with Legislature or a Council of Ministers or both with such powers and functions as may be defined by that law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Rajya Sabha elections</span>

Elections were held in India on 21 July and 8 August 2017 as nomination contests by state legislators routinely for ten members of the Rajya Sabha across three states, replacing those who retired in July and August 2017. The State Legislatures which contribute in this six-year minor elections/nomination cycle are Goa, Gujarat and West Bengal. The mechanism is the single transferable vote (STV) among legislators, meaning nominations may be unopposed contests. The open ballot is used rather than secret ballot, allowing public scrutiny.

Elections in the Republic of India in 2018 included by-elections to the Lok Sabha, elections to the Rajya Sabha, elections to of eight states and numerous other by-elections to state legislative assemblies, councils and local bodies.

The elections held in India in 2019 includes the general election, by-elections to the Lok Sabha, elections to seven state legislative assemblies and numerous other by-elections to state legislative assemblies, councils and local bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assam Legislature</span>

The Assam Legislature is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Assam. The Legislature is composed of the Assam Legislative Assembly and the state's governor.

Elections in India in 2023 were held in the Rajya Sabha, state legislative assemblies of nine states and several local bodies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "WHAT IS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  2. "List of State Legislative Councils of India". Jagranjosh.com. 25 May 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  3. "Proposals of four states for creating legislative councils under examination: Govt". The Times of India. 17 March 2023. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  4. "After 9-years, Rajasthan govt again pushes for a legislative council". Hindustan Times. 8 July 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  5. "West Bengal Assembly gives nod to revive Vidhan Parishad after 52 yrs". Firstpost. 6 July 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  6. "Legislative Council: Odisha locks horns with central government". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  7. "Centre has sought clarifications on proposal to create Odisha legislative council: Speaker". The Economic Times. 6 March 2022. ISSN   0013-0389 . Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  8. "State government mulls creation of Legislative Council of Assam Legislative Assembly - Sentinelassam". www.sentinelassam.com. 19 February 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2023.