STATE
LEGISLATURE
STATE LEGISLATURE
The State Legislature in each State is entrusted
with the responsibility of framing laws of the
State.
UNICAMERAL BICAMERAL
LEGISLATURE LEGISLATURE
In states which have bi-cameral (two houses)
legislature, the upper house is known as the State
Legislative Council i.e. Vidhan Parishad and the
lower house as the State Legislative Assembly.
A uni-cameral (one house) State Legislature has
only the State Legislative Assembly i.e. the Vidhan
Sabha as the powerful house.
STATES WITH BICAMERAL LEGISLATURE
METHOD TO ABOLISH OR CREATE THE
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
The power to establish the Legislative council i.e.
Vidhan Parishad in a state or to abolish an existing
Legislative Council in a state belongs to the Union
Parliament, which can do so by enacting a law to
the desired effect. The Parliament, however, comes
into action when the Legislative Assembly i.e. the
Vidhan Sabha of the concerned state passes a
resolution (either for creation or the abolition of
Legislative Council in the State)and by a majority of
its total membership and by a majority of not less
than 2/3rd of the members of the Legislative
Assembly present and voting.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
(VIDHAN PARISHAD)
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
• It is Upper House of the State Legislature. Article 169
empowers the Union Parliament to abolish or create this
House in a state acting in accordance with the declared will
of the Legislative Assembly of the state.
• At present, this house exists only in six states (Bihar, U.P.,
Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana).
Composition:
The constitution declares that the total members in
the Legislative Council of a State shall not exceed
1/3rd of the total members of the Legislative
Assembly of the state, but in no case shall the
minimum membership in the Legislative Council be
less than 40. But the members of J&K Legislative
Council are fixed at 36.
(1/6th)
Tenure:
These members are elected from various
constituencies for a period of six years, 1/3rd of the
members of the Legislative Council retire after every
two years and in their place, new members are
elected from the Constituencies to which the retiring
members belong. Thus, this a Permanent Chamber.
Method of Election:
The members of the Legislative Council are elected
by secret ballot by means of proportional
representation through a single transferable vote
system.
The members of the State Legislative Council come
from the following five categories.
1. Its 1/3rd members are elected by the Local bodies of
the State like municipalities, District Boards and
other Local bodies specified by the law of the
Parliament,
2. Its 1/3rd members are elected by the Legislative
Assembly amongst persons who are not members
of the Legislative Assembly.
3. Its 1/12th members are elected by the university
graduates of 3 years standing in the state.
4. Its 1/12th members are elected by persons atleast 3
years standing as teachers in the educational
institutions not lower than secondary schools.
5. its 1/6th members are nominated by the Governor
from amongst persons possessing special
knowledge and experience in the field of art,
science, literature and social service.
Qualifications:
1. He must be a citizen of India.
2. He must not be less than 30 years of age.
3. He should not hold office of profit under the Union
or the State Government.
4. He should not be insane or insolvent.
5. He should not have been disqualified from
contesting elections by any Court of Law.
6. He must fill all other qualifications as laid down by
the law of the Parliament.
Quorum: The Quorum is fixed at 1/10th of its total
membership or 10, which ever is more.
Sessions: The governor convenes the sessions of the
Legislative Council but a period of more than six
months must not lapse between two sessions.
Presiding Officers: The Legislative Council elects
one Chairman and one Deputy Chairman from
amongst themselves.
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS
OF LEGISLATIVE COUCIL:
The Legislative Council which is the Upper House of
the State Legislature, is a very weak chamber. It
exercises minor and limited powers. In reality it has
no effective powers at all.
1. Legislative Powers: An ordinary bill or
non-money bill can be introduced in either house of
the State Legislature. It is required to be passed by
both the Houses for becoming a law.
Ordinary Bill introduced in Legislative Assembly
Goes to the Council
Council has four alternatives
a. It may pass the bill
b. It may reject the bill
c. It may amend the bill
d. It may not take any action on it
If council passes the bill, then the bill is sent to the
Governor for his approval. But in case it rejects or amend
the bill or does not take action on it for three months, the
Legislative Assembly considers the bill for the second
time. The Legislative Assembly may or may not accept
the amendments made by the Council and repass the bill,
as it is. Legislative Council can delay the passing of the
ordinary bill for three months in the first instance and in
the second instance for one month. As against this, a bill
passed by the Legislative Council can be rejected by the
Legislative Assembly.
2. Financial Powers: The position of the Legislative
Council is insignificant in the financial field . A money
bill can be introduced in the Legislative Assembly
first. After it is passed by the Legislative Assembly, it
is sent to the Council for consideration. The Council is
required to return it within 14 days. It can make
certain suggestion, but it is for the Assembly to
accept these or not. In other words, the Legislative
Council can simply delay the enactment of a Money
Bill for a maximum period of 14 days only.
3. Executive Powers: The Legislative Council has
little control over the executive and hence we can
say that it has no effective power in the executive
sphere. The State Council of Ministers is responsible
to the Legislative Assembly alone and not to the
Legislative Council.
From the above account, it is clear that the Legislative
Council or Vidhan Parishad has minimum possible
powers. It is devoid of any real authority. That is why
most of the States have preferred to have only a
single chamber of their legislature. Critics are of the
opinion that it is a superfluous house and it is there
to accommodate the defeated politicians. It does not
give representation to the common people. There is a
need to take steps to make it effective in case it is to
be sustained as a part of State Legislature.
THANK YOU
