State Government: Governor, Chief Minister, State Legislature and Union Territories

1. The state executive and the office of Governor

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• Parallel structure (Class 8, The Parliamentary System). Each state has a nominal head, the Governor. The real executive is the Chief Minister and council of ministers, who are collectively responsible to the Vidhan Sabha. Class 11, Executive notes three differences from the Union: the head is appointed, not elected; the legislature may have one House or two; and the Governor has more discretion than the President.
• Office. Art. 153 gives each state a Governor. Since the 7th Amendment (1956), one person may serve two or more states. Art. 154 places the state's executive power in the Governor. Under Art. 155, the President appoints the Governor by warrant, in practice on the Union's advice. The Constituent Assembly rejected a directly elected Governor so that there would be no rival to the CM.
• Qualifications of the Governor (Arts. 157-158): an Indian citizen, at least 35 years old, not a legislator, and holding no office of profit. Emoluments are charged on the state's Consolidated Fund (Art. 202(3)). Oath before the High Court Chief Justice (Art. 159). Personal immunity under Art. 361. By convention, the Governor is an outsider to the state and the CM is consulted (Sarkaria).
• Hargovind Pant v. Raghukul Tilak (1979): the Governor holds an independent constitutional office and is not an employee of the Union government.
• Tenure. Under Art. 156, the Governor holds office during the President's pleasure. The term is five years, and the Governor stays until a successor takes over. (Class 8 gives a flat "5 years"; in fact removal is possible at any time.)
• B.P. Singhal case (2010, five judges): pleasure is not unfettered. A Governor cannot be removed arbitrarily, for differing with the Union's policies, or just because the government has changed. Removal is open to limited judicial review. In practice, Governors were still changed wholesale after the changes of government in 2004 and 2014.

2. The Governor's constitutional powers

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• Executive. The Governor appoints:
• the CM, and other ministers on the CM's advice (Art. 164);
• the Advocate General (Art. 165);
• State PSC members (Art. 316; only the President can remove them);
• the State Election Commissioner (Art. 243K);
• district judges, in consultation with the High Court (Art. 233).

The Governor also makes business rules (Art. 166) and constitutes the State Finance Commission (Art. 243I). Some states give the Governor special responsibilities under Art. 371. On non-defection disqualification of MLAs, the Governor decides on the Election Commission's binding opinion (Art. 192).

• Legislative. The Governor summons, prorogues and dissolves the assembly, with no more than six months between sessions (Art. 174). The Governor addresses the House (Art. 176) and nominates one-sixth of the Council (Art. 171(5)). Nomination of an Anglo-Indian MLA ended with the 104th Amendment (2020).
• Governor's ordinance-making power (Art. 213): the Governor can issue an ordinance only when the legislature is not in session and immediate action is needed. It lapses six weeks after the legislature reassembles. It needs the President's instructions where the same bill would need presidential sanction or reservation. D.C. Wadhwa (1986) exposed Bihar's habit of re-issuing ordinances. Krishna Kumar Singh (2017, seven judges) held re-promulgation a "fraud on the Constitution" and said ordinances are open to judicial review.
• Financial. The budget (Art. 202) and money bills (Art. 207) need the Governor's recommendation. The state Contingency Fund is at the Governor's disposal (Art. 267(2)).
• Governor's pardoning power (Art. 161): covers offences against laws within the state's executive power. Unlike the President, the Governor has no power over court-martial sentences. Textbooks say the Governor cannot fully pardon a death sentence; State of Haryana v. Raj Kumar (2021) may read Art. 161 more widely (verify). A.G. Perarivalan (2022) held the Governor bound by cabinet advice under Art. 161.

3. The Chief Minister and the state council of ministers

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• Art. 163: a council headed by the CM aids and advises the Governor, except where the Governor acts in discretion. Courts cannot inquire into the advice given (Art. 163(3)).
• Chief Minister (Art. 164): the Governor appoints as CM the leader who commands a majority in the assembly. Ministers hold office at the Governor's pleasure but are collectively responsible to the assembly. A non-member must win a seat within six months. S.R. Chaudhuri (2001) barred reappointing a non-member in the same term without election. A CM may come from the Council (UP, Bihar, Maharashtra).
• 91st Amendment (2003): the council cannot exceed 15% of the assembly's strength, with a minimum of 12. Class 11, Executive says the cap was meant to stop ministerial posts being used to buy support.
• Tribal welfare minister (Art. 164(1) proviso): required in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. The 94th Amendment (2006) replaced Bihar with Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
• Art. 167: the CM must tell the Governor of cabinet decisions and give information the Governor asks for.
• Roles. The CM leads the cabinet and the House and is the link to the Governor. The CM sits on the NITI Aayog Governing Council, the Inter-State Council and a zonal council. Coalition partners limit the CM's choice of ministers (Class 11, Executive cartoon).
• Deputy Chief Minister: not in the Constitution. The Supreme Court (2024) upheld the post because the holder is only a minister.
• Parliamentary secretary: an MLA who assists a minister. Bimolangshu Roy (2017) held that states lack the legislative competence to create the post. It also raises office-of-profit issues.

4. The state legislature: the Legislative Assembly

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• Composition. The state legislature is the Governor plus one or two Houses (Art. 168). The assembly has 60-500 directly elected members (Art. 170), with exceptions for small states (Sikkim 32; Goa and Mizoram 40). SC/ST seats are reserved (Art. 332). Women's reservation (Art. 332A, 106th Amendment, 2023) applies after the next delimitation.
• Term: five years. During a national emergency, Parliament can extend it one year at a time (Art. 172). Minimum age 25 (Art. 173).
• Speaker (Arts. 178-187): elected by the House. The Speaker certifies money bills (Art. 199).
• Powers:
• laws on State and Concurrent List subjects (Class 8);
• control of the executive through questions, motions and no-confidence;
• money bills only in the assembly (Arts. 202-207);
• election of Rajya Sabha members and votes in the presidential election;
• ratification of federal amendments (Art. 368(2));
• the Art. 169 resolution on Councils.

Privileges (Art. 194) and the bar on courts inquiring into proceedings (Art. 212) mirror Parliament's.

• Limits:
• territorial reach only (Art. 245);
• Parliament's power over the State List (Arts. 249-253) and repugnancy (Art. 254);
• reservation of bills;
• prior presidential sanction for trade restrictions (Art. 304(b));

• suspension under Art. 356.

• Functioning. Class 8 notes disruption and low productivity. PRS finds about 20 sitting days a year, bills passed within a day and little committee scrutiny (verify current).

5. The Legislative Council: creation, composition and position

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• Creation and abolition of Legislative Councils (Art. 169): 1. The assembly passes a resolution by a majority of its total membership and two-thirds of those present and voting. 2. Parliament passes an ordinary law. It is not an Art. 368 amendment.

• States with Councils: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana and UP (six; verify current).

• History: West Bengal abolished its Council in 1969, Punjab in 1970 and Tamil Nadu in 1986. Andhra Pradesh abolished it in 1985 and revived it in 2007. It voted to abolish it again in 2020, then withdrew the resolution in 2021. J&K's Council ended in 2019. Bills for Assam and Rajasthan are pending (verify).
• Composition (Art. 171): at most one-third of the assembly's strength, and at least 40. Minimum age 30. It is a permanent House: members serve six years and one-third retire every two years.

Share	Chosen by
1/3	Local bodies
1/12	Graduates of 3 years' standing
1/12	Teachers (3 years' service, secondary level or above)
1/3	MLAs (from among non-members)
1/6	Nominated by the Governor (literature, science, art, cooperation, social service)

• Graduates' and teachers' constituencies: the special electorates in rows 2 and 3 of the table.
• Position of the Legislative Council (Arts. 196-198):
• It can only delay an ordinary bill: three months at first and one month after re-passage, four months in all.
• It gets 14 days on a money bill and can only recommend changes.
• There is no joint sitting, no vote on grants and no power to remove the ministry.
• A bill that starts in the Council and is rejected by the assembly dies.

It is far weaker than the Rajya Sabha. Supporters call it a revising chamber; critics call it a costly shelter for defeated politicians.

6. The Governor's discretion: government formation, floor tests and Art. 356 reports

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• Discretionary powers of the Governor: under Art. 163(1), the Governor can act "in his discretion". Under Art. 163(2), the Governor's own view on whether a matter is discretionary is final. Examples: choosing a CM in a hung assembly, dismissing a ministry that has lost its majority, Art. 356 reports, reserving bills, and Sixth Schedule and Art. 371 duties. These powers are often criticised as partisan.
• Samsher Singh (1974, seven judges): Governors act on advice, except in a few well-known exceptional situations.
• Nabam Rebia case (2016, five judges): discretion covers only what the Constitution clearly allows. The Arunachal Governor could not advance the assembly session or fix its agenda without the CM's advice. The ousted government was restored.
• M.P. Special Police Establishment (2004): the Governor may sanction prosecution of a minister against cabinet advice if that advice is biased.

• Hung assembly order (Sarkaria, endorsed by Punchhi): 1. a pre-poll alliance; 2. the largest party with others' support; 3. a post-poll coalition that joins the government; 4. a coalition supported from outside.

• Floor test: a vote in the House on whether the CM has majority support. After Bommai (1994), the floor, not the Governor's opinion, decides. Key cases:

• Karnataka (2018) and Shiv Sena (2019): early floor tests, the 2019 one with live telecast;
• Shivraj Singh Chouhan (2020): the Governor may call a floor test if a sitting government seems to have lost its majority;

• Subhash Desai (2023): the Maharashtra Governor's 2022 floor-test call lacked objective material.

• Art. 356 reports. Class 11, Federalism records dismissals despite a majority (Kerala, 1959). Rameshwar Prasad (2006) held the 2005 dissolution of the Bihar assembly mala fide (done in bad faith). Bommai standards are covered in emergency-provisions.

7. Assent to state bills and reservation for the President (Arts. 200-201)

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• Governor's assent to bills (Art. 200). The Governor has three choices: 1. give assent; 2. withhold assent and return a non-money bill with comments; if the House re-passes it, assent is due; 3. reserve the bill for the President.

The Constitution says only "as soon as possible", with no fixed time limit.

• Reservation of bills for President's consideration:
• It is compulsory for a bill that endangers the High Court's position.
• It is also used to get protection under Art. 254(2), Art. 31A/31C, Art. 304(b) and Art. 288, and during a financial emergency (Art. 360).

• Under Art. 201, the President may assent, withhold assent, or return a non-money bill for reconsideration within six months. The President need not assent even after re-passage.

• Class 11, Federalism says reservation lets the Union delay or veto state laws. Indefinite delay works like a pocket veto (keeping a bill pending with no decision). The Union parallel in Class 11, Executive is Zail Singh's handling of the 1986 Post Office Bill.

• State of Punjab v. Governor of Punjab (10 November 2023):
• A Governor who withholds assent must return the bill to the legislature and cannot keep it pending indefinitely.
• The June 2023 sittings of the adjourned (not prorogued) House were valid.

• An unelected head cannot stall an elected legislature.

• Parallel standoffs: Kerala reserved seven bills in 2023, and the President withheld assent to several in 2024 (verify). Telangana (2023) and Tamil Nadu (Section 8) saw similar disputes.

8. Tamil Nadu v. Governor (2025) and the Presidential reference opinion

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• State of Tamil Nadu v. Governor of Tamil Nadu (8 April 2025; Pardiwala and Mahadevan JJ):
• Facts: the Governor withheld assent to ten bills, many on vice-chancellor appointments. The assembly re-passed them on 18 November 2023. He then reserved them for the President.
• Held: reservation after re-passage was illegal, and there is no absolute or pocket veto.
• Timelines: one month to withhold or reserve on advice; three months to act against advice; one month for re-passed bills; three months for the President.

• Remedy: the ten bills were deemed assented under Art. 142. They became the first state laws in force without assent.

• Presidential reference on assent to bills (Special Reference No. 1 of 2025). The President referred 14 questions under Art. 143 on 13 May 2025. A five-judge bench led by CJI Gavai gave its opinion on 20 November 2025:

• The Governor has three options and cannot withhold assent without returning the bill.
• The Governor has discretion in choosing among them.
• The choice cannot be reviewed on merits. But for "prolonged, unexplained and indefinite" inaction, a court can issue a limited mandamus (an order to decide within a reasonable time).
• Courts cannot set timelines for Governors or the President.
• There is no "deemed assent", and Art. 142 cannot replace the Governor's or President's action.

• Bills cannot be judged in court before they become law.

• Open questions: the status of Tamil Nadu's ten Acts, and whether an advisory opinion can displace a two-judge judgment (verify current). Another question is whether Parliament should amend Art. 200 to add a time limit, as the commissions suggested (verify each commission's limit).

9. Reforming the office: controversies, chancellorship and commission recommendations

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• Governor as chancellor of universities. The role comes from state university laws, not the Constitution. It has caused fights over vice-chancellor appointments:
• Kerala: the Governor asked nine VCs to resign (2022); the Supreme Court quashed the Kannur VC's reappointment (2023).
• West Bengal: the Supreme Court set up a search panel under former CJI Lalit (2024).

Gambhirdan Gadhvi (2022) and Sreejith (2022) held that UGC rules bind VC appointments. Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Punjab passed bills to remove the Governor as chancellor. Punchhi advised against giving Governors such statutory posts. The UGC's 2025 draft rules drew opposition (verify).

• Other flashpoints:
• departing from or walking out of the address to the House (Tamil Nadu, Kerala);
• "withdrawing pleasure" from individual ministers;
• delayed swearing-in;

• sitting on Election Commission opinions under Art. 192.

• Class 11, Federalism explains why: the Governor is unelected and centrally appointed, so conflict peaks when different parties rule the centre and the state.

Commission	Key recommendations
Sarkaria (1988)	An eminent outsider not recently active in politics; consult the CM; no early removal except for compelling reasons; no other office after tenure except VP or President; use reservation sparingly
NCRWC (2002)	Consult the CM; security of tenure (verify details)
Punchhi (2010)	Selection panel of PM, Home Minister, Lok Sabha Speaker and the state CM; fixed five-year term; removal by state legislature resolution; drop "pleasure" from Art. 156; no chancellorships; time limit on bills (verify)

10. Union territories: Arts. 239-241 and their administration

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• Union territory: an area the Union governs through an Administrator appointed by the President. Part C and D states became UTs under the 7th Amendment (1956). Many later became states: Himachal Pradesh (1971), Manipur and Tripura (1972), and Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Goa (1987).
• Eight UTs: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (merged 26 January 2020), Delhi, J&K, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry. Three have legislatures: Delhi, Puducherry and J&K.
• Administrator of a Union territory (Art. 239): the President runs each UT through an Administrator, with a title the President chooses. A Governor of a neighbouring state can be appointed and then acts without advice from his own council of ministers. For example, the Punjab Governor administers Chandigarh.
• Lieutenant Governor: the Administrator's title in Delhi, Puducherry, J&K, Ladakh and the Andamans.
• Union territory legislature (Art. 239A, 14th Amendment, 1962): Parliament can create a legislature and ministry. The Government of UTs Act 1963 did this for Puducherry (30 elected and 3 nominated members). J&K got one under the 2019 Reorganisation Act.
• Art. 239B (27th Amendment, 1971): the Administrator can issue ordinances. Art. 240: the President can make regulations for the islands, DNH&DD and Puducherry (without a legislature), and these were used for Ladakh in 2025 (verify). Art. 241: High Courts for UTs.
• J&K: 90 elected seats after the 2022 delimitation. Business-rule changes in 2024 widened the LG's control. The first UT assembly election was held in 2024. Statehood is pending (verify). Ladakh: demands Sixth Schedule status and statehood, with violence in Leh in September 2025 (verify).

11. Delhi's special status: Art. 239AA and the LG-government contest

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• Special status of Delhi. The Balakrishnan Committee (1987-89) recommended a legislature but not statehood. The 69th Amendment (1991) inserted Arts. 239AA and 239AB. The GNCTD Act 1991 created a 70-member assembly, with ministers capped at 10% of the House.
• The assembly covers State and Concurrent List subjects except public order, police and land.
• Parliament can legislate on any matter for Delhi.
• The LG may refer differences with ministers to the President (Art. 239AA(4) proviso).

• NDMC v. State of Punjab (1996): Delhi is a UT, not a state.

• GNCTD v. Union of India (2018, five judges):

• The LG is bound by the ministers' advice except on the excluded subjects.

• "Any matter" does not mean "every matter", so references to the President must be exceptional.

• GNCTD (Amendment) Act 2021:

• "Government" in Delhi's laws means the LG.
• The LG's opinion is needed before specified executive action.

• Assembly committees cannot examine day-to-day administration.

• 2023 ruling (11 May, five judges): the elected government controls services, except those linked to public order, police and land. The reasoning was the "triple chain of accountability": officials answer to ministers, ministers to the House, and the House to voters.

• GNCTD (Amendment) Act 2023 (assent 11 August 2023) reversed the ruling:
• It created the National Capital Civil Service Authority: the CM, the Chief Secretary and the Principal Home Secretary.
• The Authority decides by majority, so the two officials can outvote the CM.
• The LG has the final say.

A challenge is pending before a Constitution Bench (verify).

• 2024: the LG can nominate MCD aldermen without advice, because the power comes from a statute. Friction eased after the February 2025 election (verify).

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Exam angles

Prelims — high-yield facts and traps

• Articles:
• 153: Governor; one person for two or more states since 1956
• 155: appointment
• 156: pleasure, five-year term
• 157-158: qualifications (35 years, no office of profit)
• 161: pardon
• 163(2): Governor's view on discretion is final
• 164: CM, 15% cap, tribal welfare minister
• 169: Councils
• 171: Council composition
• 174: six-month gap between sessions
• 200-201: assent and reservation
• 213: ordinance
• 239, 239A, 239AA, 239AB, 239B, 240, 241: Union territories and Delhi

• 361: immunity

• Governor vs President:

• The Governor is appointed, not elected, and there is no impeachment.
• Oath before the High Court Chief Justice.
• No court-martial pardons.

• Reservation of a bill affecting the High Court is compulsory, which has no Union equivalent.

• "The Governor has a fixed five-year term" is FALSE: the Governor holds office at the President's pleasure.

• "Creating a Legislative Council needs an Art. 368 amendment" is FALSE: it needs an ordinary law after an Art. 169 resolution.
• Council: 1/3 local bodies, 1/12 graduates, 1/12 teachers, 1/3 MLAs, 1/6 nominated. Size: at most 1/3 of the assembly and at least 40. Delay: four months in all, 14 days for money bills. No joint sitting. Six states have Councils.
• Tribal welfare minister: Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, MP and Odisha. "Bihar" is FALSE since the 94th Amendment (2006).
• Delhi: 69th Amendment (1991); excluded subjects are public order, police and land; NCCSA is the CM, Chief Secretary and Principal Home Secretary, deciding by majority, with the LG having the final say; ministers at most 10% of the House.
• Cases:
• Samsher Singh: acts on advice
• Hargovind Pant: not a Union employee
• B.P. Singhal: no arbitrary removal
• Nabam Rebia: no session advancement without advice
• Rameshwar Prasad: Bihar dissolution mala fide
• S.R. Chaudhuri: non-member minister
• Shivraj Singh Chouhan: floor test
• Perarivalan: Art. 161 on advice
• Punjab (2023): withholding means returning the bill

• Tamil Nadu (2025): timelines and deemed assent, both later rejected by the 2025 Reference

• UTs: eight UTs; three have legislatures; DNH&DD merged in 2020; J&K and Ladakh became UTs on 31 October 2019.

Mains — GS-II themes

1. Is the Governor a constitutional head or the Union's agent? Cover appointment, B.P. Singhal, discretion, and the Sarkaria and Punchhi reforms.
2. Assent after the 2025 Reference: court timelines vs constitutional dialogue, limited mandamus, and whether Art. 200 needs amending.
3. Hung assemblies and floor tests: from Raj Bhavan head-counts to the floor of the House.
4. Governors as chancellors: academic autonomy, UGC rules and federal friction.
5. Legislative Councils: revising chamber or redundant? The Art. 169 procedure and the case for a national policy.
6. Delhi: the triple chain of accountability vs the needs of a national capital, and the 2023 Act and basic structure.
7. UTs and democratic deficit: J&K statehood, Ladakh's demands, administrator rule in the islands.
8. State legislatures: few sitting days, weak scrutiny, partisan Speakers.

Current-affairs hooks

• Governor-state standoffs over pending bills, addresses to the House, VC appointments and sanctions to prosecute CMs, and lawsuits using the Reference's limited mandamus (verify current).
• Supreme Court hearing on the GNCTD (Amendment) Act 2023; LG powers in Delhi, Puducherry and J&K.
• J&K statehood; Ladakh talks and protests; Art. 240 regulations.
• Council resolutions and bills (Rajasthan, Assam, Odisha, West Bengal).
• Governor reshuffles; the 130th Amendment Bill (2025) on removing arrested CMs and ministers (verify current).