The State Legislature

Articles 168 to 212 in Part VI of the Constitution deal with the state legislature. The Legislature of every state consists of the governor and one or two houses. At present, the legislatures of Six states—

Uttar Pradesh,
Bihar,
Maharashtra,
Karnataka, and 
Andhra Pradesh,
Telangana — is bicameral, i.e.

They have both a Legislative Council and a Legislative Assembly. Other states have unicameral legislatures, which means they only have one legislative assembly.

State Legislative Assembly

The Vidhan Sabha is another name for the legislative assembly.
The Legislative Assembly is the most well-liked chamber in the state legislature, and its members are chosen by public vote.
If the governor feels that the Anglo-Indian community is not sufficiently represented, he or she may propose one member from this group.
Assembly’s term is typically 5 years, however, the governor has the authority to dissolve the house earlier.
The Legislative Assembly’s membership could not be less than 60 or greater than 500. The Goa and Sikkim Legislative Assembly’s strength is less than 60, however, the President has the authority to change this number.
The sessions of the state legislature and its office as well as their functions are almost similar to those at the union level.

State Legislative Council

The legislative Assembly is also called the Vidhan Parishad. In a unicameral state legislature, the legislative council is the upper house and second chamber of the State Legislature.
As per Constitution the strength of the Legislative Council is not to exceed 1/3^rd of the total strength of the Legislative Assembly of that state and it shall not be less than 40 either.
Strength = 40 – 1/3^rd Legislative Assembly.

Manner Of Election To The Legislative Council

• 1/3 members are elected by the members of the Legislative Assembly.
• 1/3 of the members are elected by the members of local bodies in the state.
• 1/12 members elected by Graduates of the state having 3 years of residency in the state after graduation.
• 1/12 members elected by teachers of the state having 3 years of experience in a recognized institution of primary and above level.
• 1/6 members are not elected but nominated by the governor from among the persons having wide experience or special knowledge of Arts, Literature, and Social Service.

Qualification For Legislative Council

• He must be a citizen of India.
• He must have completed 30 years of age.
• He must be a registered voter or ordinary resident of the state from where he is intended to be elected.
• He must not hold any office of profit.

Creation And Abolition Of Legislative Council

• Just like Rajya Sabha at the center, the Legislative Council of a state is never dissolved.
• It is a permanent house.
• The members are elected for a term of six years and 1/3^rd of its members retire every two years.
• According to Article 169, the Parliament is empowered to create and abolish a legislative council in a state.
• For this, a resolution must be passed by the concerned state legislative assembly by a 2/3^rd majority.
• Then it goes to the parliament where only a simple majority is required.

Legislative Procedure

Every bill in a Unicameral Legislature begins in the Legislative Assembly, is officially passed by it, and is then sent to the governor for his approval before becoming law.
The process is different in a bicameral legislature, with the exception of Money Bills, which are handled similarly to how they are in Parliament.
In comparison to the legislative assembly, the legislative council does not have the same authority. There are three outcomes if a bill is approved by the Legislative Assembly and sent to the Legislative Council:

• The Bill is rejected by the Legislative Council.
• More than 3 months elapse from the date on which the Bill is led before the Council.
• The Bill is passed by the Legislative Council with amendments.

The Legislative Assembly will then review the Bill again and decide whether or not to accept any recommendations. if after a Bill has been approved by the Legislative Assembly twice. It is again transmitted to Legislative Council and:

• The Bill is again rejected by the Council.
• More than one-month -elapse
• The Bill is passed by the Council with Amendments to which Legislative Assembly doesn’t agree.

The Bill will be regarded as having been approved by both chambers if it was approved by the Legislative Assembly a second time in that form. Since the Legislative Assembly holds the upper hand, there is no mechanism for a joint session of the state legislature to break the impasse over enacting the Bill. If the law is approved by the Legislative Council before being sent to the Legislative Assembly, and the latter rejects the bill, the bill expires or dies.

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