Previous Year Question
With reference to the composition of the Legislative Council in a state of India, which of the following statement/s is/are correct?
(1) In the Legislative Council there may not be more than one-third members of the total membership of the Legislative Assembly of that state.
(2) The Legislative Council of a state must have at least forty members in it.
Select the correct answer from the code given below –
Code –
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2
Only 2
Only 1
Correct Answer: A
Detailed Solution
This question is directly based on Article 171(1) of the Constitution, which prescribes the strength of a State Legislative Council.
Statement 1 is correct. The total number of members in the Legislative Council of a State cannot exceed one-third of the total number of members in the Legislative Assembly of that State. Thus, if a Legislative Assembly has 300 members, the normal constitutional ceiling for the Legislative Council would be 100 members.
Statement 2 is also correct. Article 171(1) further provides that the total number of members in a State Legislative Council shall in no case be less than 40. Thus, the Constitution provides a maximum limit of one-third of the Assembly strength and a minimum limit of 40 members for a Legislative Council.
The institutional distinction between the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council is also important. The Assembly is the directly elected House of the State Legislature, whereas the Legislative Council consists of members chosen through different electoral categories along with members nominated by the Governor; its detailed composition is provided in Article 171(3).
A related important provision is Article 169. For the abolition of an existing Legislative Council or creation of a new one, the concerned Legislative Assembly must pass a resolution by a majority of its total membership and by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting. Parliament may thereafter enact a law providing for its creation or abolition.
Thus, the useful distinction is—Article 169 = creation/abolition of Legislative Council; Article 171 = composition of Legislative Council.