The Chief Minister and the state council of ministers

Detail

1. Who really runs the state: the Governor and the Chief Minister

• The Governor is the de jure head of the state. This means the Governor is the head on paper, and all executive action is taken in the Governor's name.
• The Chief Minister (CM) is the de facto executive. This means the CM is the one who actually holds power. (NCERT Class 8: the CM selects the council, and the council answers to the Vidhan Sabha, the state Legislative Assembly.)
• Art. 163(1): a council of ministers headed by the CM aids and advises the Governor. This means the Governor must act on its advice. The one exception is where the Constitution lets the Governor act in discretion, which means acting on the Governor's own judgement.
• Art. 163(3): no court can ask what advice the ministers gave the Governor. The advice is protected from judicial review, which is the power of courts to examine government action.

2. Appointment and tenure (Art. 164)

• Art. 164(1): the Governor appoints the CM. The Governor then appoints the other ministers on the CM's advice [3].
• By convention, the Governor appoints the leader who commands a majority in the Legislative Assembly.

• In NCERT Class 11's words, "in the same manner" as the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers choose their own ministers.

• Pleasure doctrine: ministers hold office "during the pleasure of the Governor" [3]. In practice, this pleasure is used only on the CM's advice.

• Art. 164(2): the council is collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly [3]. Collective responsibility means all ministers stand or fall together. If the House passes a no-confidence motion, the whole council must go.
• Art. 164(3): before taking office, every minister takes the oath of office and secrecy before the Governor. The form of the oath is set out in the Third Schedule [3].
• Art. 164(5): the state legislature fixes ministers' salaries by law. Until it does, the Second Schedule applies [3].
• Constituent Assembly: Art. 164 (draft Art. 144) was debated on 1 June 1949 and 14 October 1949 [3].
• Some members wanted only sitting legislators to become ministers. Some wanted the need for the House's confidence written more strongly into the text.
• These amendments failed, and the article was adopted largely unchanged [3].

3. The six-month rule and S.R. Chaudhuri

• Art. 164(4): a minister who is not a member of the Legislature of the State for six consecutive months stops being a minister at the end of that period [3].
• The word is "Legislature", not "Assembly". So a seat in the Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad, the upper House in states that have one) also meets the rule.

• This is why a CM can come from the Council. Examples from 2020: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra.

• S.R. Chaudhuri v. State of Punjab (2001): the Supreme Court held that a non-member cannot be reappointed minister in the same term without first winning an election.

• Reason: repeated six-month appointments would defeat the purpose of Art. 164(4) and of representative democracy.

4. Size limit and the anti-defection link: 91st Amendment (2003)

Clause	What it says	Inserted by
Art. 164(1A)	The council, including the CM, cannot be bigger than 15% of the total strength of the Legislative Assembly. The minimum is 12 ministers.	91st Amendment, 2003 [2][3]
Art. 164(1B)	A member disqualified for defection under the Tenth Schedule cannot be appointed minister while the disqualification lasts.	91st Amendment, 2003 [3]
Transitional rule	States whose councils were already too large had to cut them down within six months of a date notified by the President.	91st Amendment, 2003 [2]

• The Tenth Schedule is the anti-defection law. Under it, a legislator who leaves their party, or defies its whip, can lose their seat.
• Why the cap? The amendment's Statement of Objects and Reasons said governments were forming abnormally large councils of ministers. It said this practice had to be stopped by law [2].

• NCERT Class 11 explains the political reason: ministerial posts were being used to buy support from legislators.

• The same amendment placed a 15% cap on the Union council of ministers, measured against the strength of the Lok Sabha (Art. 75(1A)) [2].

• Minimum of 12: this protects small states. In Goa, Sikkim or Mizoram, 15% of a small assembly would give fewer than 12 ministers.
• Applying 164(1B): in the 2023 Maharashtra case, the Supreme Court held that Eknath Shinde's appointment was not barred by Art. 164(1B). He had not been disqualified.
• Shinde was sworn in as CM and Devendra Fadnavis as Deputy CM on 30 June 2022 [6].

5. Tribal welfare minister (Art. 164(1) proviso)

• Tribal welfare minister: a minister who must be appointed in certain states to look after the welfare of Scheduled Tribes.
• The post is required in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha [3].
• The same minister may also handle the welfare of Scheduled Castes and backward classes, or any other work [3].
• 94th Amendment (2006): this removed Bihar from the list and added Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

• Reason: after the states were divided in 2000, most of Bihar's tribal areas went to Jharkhand.

• Trap: the list contains four states, and Bihar is no longer one of them.

6. The CM's duty to the Governor (Art. 167)

The CM is the main channel between the council and the Governor. Under Art. 167, the CM must do three things [4]:

1. (a) Tell the Governor of all council decisions on the state's administration and all proposals for legislation.
2. (b) Give the Governor any information the Governor asks for on these matters.
3. (c) If the Governor asks, place before the whole council any decision that a single minister took on their own but the council did not consider.

• Why it matters: Art. 167 lets the Governor stay informed and give advice. It does not let the Governor run the government.

7. Roles of the Chief Minister

• Leader of the council: the CM decides who becomes a minister and gives out portfolios. A portfolio is the department a minister is in charge of. The CM can also ask a minister to resign or advise the Governor to dismiss them. The CM chairs cabinet meetings.
• Leader of the House: the CM leads government business in the assembly. The CM can advise the Governor to summon or prorogue the House, or to dissolve the assembly. To prorogue means to end a session without dissolving the House.
• Link to the Governor: the CM keeps the Governor informed under Art. 167 and advises on key appointments.
• Planning and development: the CM chairs the state's planning and development bodies.
• Voice of the state in national bodies:
• NITI Aayog Governing Council: every CM is a member.
• Inter-State Council (set up under Art. 263): CMs are members.

• Zonal councils (set up under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956): CMs of the zone take turns as vice-chair. The Union Home Minister is the chair.

• Coalition politics:

• In a coalition government, partner parties limit the CM's choice of ministers, portfolios and policies.
• NCERT Class 11's cartoon shows a CM who looks unhappy even after winning a confidence vote, which is a vote showing that the House supports the government. Survival depends on keeping the partners happy.
• Strong regional CMs have also shaped national coalitions.

8. Grey areas

Deputy Chief Minister

• The post is not mentioned in the Constitution. A Deputy CM takes the oath only as a minister.
• Supreme Court (2024): the Court upheld the post. It said the holder is only a minister and gets no extra constitutional power. The title alone does not breach Art. 164.
• Its uses are political: balancing coalition partners, regions or castes.

Parliamentary secretary

• A parliamentary secretary is an MLA who is appointed to help a minister and often gets a minister-like rank and perks.
• Bimolangshu Roy v. State of Assam (2017): the Supreme Court struck down Assam's law on parliamentary secretaries. It held that states have no legislative competence to create the post. Legislative competence means the power to make a law on a subject.
• Office of profit: under Art. 191(1)(a), a legislator can lose their seat for holding an office of profit. This means a paid government post that is not exempted by law.
• The post therefore also creates a disqualification risk.

• Example: the Delhi AAP MLAs' case (2018), in which MLAs appointed as parliamentary secretaries faced disqualification.

• The posts are also a way to get around the 15% cap, because they create minister-like positions outside the council.

Holding office while in custody

• Arvind Kejriwal stayed Delhi CM while in custody in 2024. No rule required him to resign.
• Constitution (130th Amendment) Bill, 2025: introduced in the Lok Sabha on 20 August 2025 [5][7].
• Who it covers: the Prime Minister, any Chief Minister (including Delhi's) and any Union or state minister [5].
• When it applies: the person is accused of an offence punishable with 5 years or more in prison and is held in custody for 30 consecutive days [5].
• What happens: a minister is removed by the President or Governor on the PM's or CM's advice. Otherwise, the minister leaves office automatically. A PM or CM must resign by the 31st consecutive day of custody, or stops holding office the day after [5].
• Status: the Bill was sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee chaired by Aparajita Sarangi on 20 August 2025. PRS lists its report as not yet available (verify current) [5].

• The debate: critics say it may clash with the basic structure by weakening parliamentary democracy, separation of powers, federalism and the rule of law. Basic structure means the core features of the Constitution that even an amendment cannot destroy [5].

• Collective vs individual responsibility of ministers is covered in union-executive.

Prelims Hooks

• Art. 163(3): courts cannot ask what advice the ministers gave the Governor.
• 91st Amendment (2003): inserted Art. 164(1A), which caps the council, including the CM, at 15% of the Legislative Assembly with a minimum of 12. It also inserted Art. 164(1B), which bars defectors disqualified under the Tenth Schedule from becoming ministers.
• Tribal welfare minister is required in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. The 94th Amendment (2006) dropped Bihar. Trap: Bihar is not on the list.
• Art. 164(4): a minister must join the "Legislature of the State" within six months. A Legislative Council seat counts, so a CM can be an MLC.
• S.R. Chaudhuri (2001): a non-member cannot be reappointed minister in the same term without being elected.
• Art. 167(c): at the Governor's request, the CM must place a single minister's decision before the whole council.
• Deputy CM: not in the Constitution. The Supreme Court (2024) held it valid because the holder is only a minister. Bimolangshu Roy (2017): states cannot create parliamentary secretaries.
• Oath of ministers: Third Schedule. Salaries until the state makes a law: Second Schedule.
• 130th Amendment Bill (2025): removal after 30 consecutive days in custody for an offence carrying 5+ years in prison. Sent to a JPC.

Mains Points

• Cap on the council's size:
• The 15% cap (2003) cut down jumbo cabinets, which ministers' posts had been used to buy support for.
• But states get around it through parliamentary secretaries, Deputy CMs, and cabinet rank for heads of boards and corporations.

• Bimolangshu Roy (2017) closes only one of these routes. A wider office-of-profit law is needed.

• Pleasure vs responsibility:

• Ministers formally serve at the Governor's pleasure but in practice answer to the House (Art. 164(2)).

• The Governor's real choice appears only in a hung assembly, where no party has a majority. This links to the Sarkaria and Punchhi advice that majority must be tested on the floor of the House.

• The CM in a federal system:

• The CM is the state's voice in the NITI Aayog Governing Council, the Inter-State Council and the zonal councils.

• In the coalition era, strong regional CMs increased the states' bargaining power. But coalition partners also limit the CM's control over the council.

• 130th Amendment Bill (2025):

• For: it ensures integrity in public office, so no one governs from jail.
• Against: it acts on arrest, not conviction, which goes against the presumption of innocence. It could be misused by agencies against opposition-ruled states. There is a basic-structure concern [5].
• Middle path: apply removal only after charges are framed by a court, or after the court has looked at the case.