State Legislature of Punjab, Composition and Punjab's Representation

Table of Contents

Constitutional provision: Articles 168 to 212 (Part VI)
Composition: Governor, Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council (in some states)

Organisation of State Legislature

No uniformity: Unicameral system (most states) + Bicameral system (other states)
Present status: Six states have a bicameral system (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra and Karnataka). Rest 22 states have a unicameral legislature.
Upper house: legislative council (Vidhan Parishad), Lower House: legislative assembly (Vidhan Sabha)
Legislation council: Constitution provides for the abolition or creation of legislative councils under Article-169. It Can be done by Parliament based on resolution passed by the State Legislative assembly (Needs to be passed by Special majority). Parliament needs to approve this by Simple majority (It is not considered as an amendment under Article 368).

Composition of the Houses

Legislative Assembly

Direct election, Based on Universal Adult Franchise.
Maximum strength – 500, Minimum – 60, [ Exception (Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Goa Minimum Number is 30, Mizoram – 40, Nagaland – 46)]. Some members in Sikkim + Nagaland assemblies are elected Indirectly.
Nominated Member: Nomination of Member from Anglo Indian Community was done away by 104th Constitutional amendment.
Territorial constituencies: Division for the purpose of Direct Election + Uniformity is maintained b/w different constituencies + Re adjustment done after every census (in total number of seats in assembly + division of each state into territorial constituencies, done by Delimitation commission).
Seats are reserved for SC’s and ST’s in proportion to their population.

Legislative Council

Indirectly elected
Minimum 40, Maximum one – third of the size of Legislative Assembly (Given in constitution)
Actual strength of the House: Fixed by Parliament

Manner of Election

Indirectly elected (5/6 members) + Nominated by Governor (1/6 members).
Members are nominated from fields of Art, Literature, Cooperative movement, Science and Social Services.
Election on the basis of Proportional representation with Single transferable vote.

Member in Legislative council	Elected by
1/3rd members	Members of Local bodies
1/12th members	By Graduates (residing within states)
1/12th members	By Teachers (3 years + At least secondary school)
1/3rd members	MLAs (Both elected and nominated)
Remaining (1/6th members)	Nominated members

Membership of State Legislature

Aspect

Details

Qualifications

Constitutional requirement:

1. Make and subscribe to oath or affirmation.
2. Citizen of India
3. Age: Legislative council (30 years), Legislative Assembly (25 years).
4. Other qualifications prescribed by Parliament.

Representation of People Act, 1951:

1. Election to Legislative council: Must be registered as an elector for Assembly constituency in the concerned state. The Governor nomination needs to be a resident in the State.
2. Election to Legislative assembly: Must be an elector for assembly constituency in the concerned state.
3. Must be a member of SC/ST community if he wants to contest seats reserved for them.

Disqualifications

Constitutional requirement:

Holds Office of Profit
Unsound mind and stand so declared by court.
Undischarged insolvent
Not a citizen of India
Parliament via legislation (RPA Act, 1951)

Representation of People Act (1951):

Found guilty of certain election offences or corrupt practices in the elections.
Convicted for any offence resulting in imprisonment for two or more years. Not disqualified in case of Preventive Detention.
Failed to lodge an account of his election expenses in time.
Has any interest in Government contracts, Works or services.
Holds office of Profit/Director/Managing agent in a corporation where Govt has 25% stake.
Dismissed from Government service due to corruption or disloyalty.
Convicted for promoting enmity b/w groups or for offence of bribery.
Has been punished for preaching and practicing social crimes like Sati.

Decision of Disqualification: By Governor (based on Election commission opinion)

Grounds of Defection:

Voluntarily gives up party membership
Votes or abstains from voting contrary to given direction
Independently elected member joins any party
Nominated members join any party after expiry of 6 months.

Decision of Disqualification: By Speaker (Legislative Assembly) or Chairman (Legislative council). The decision is subject to Judicial review (Kihota Hollohan vs. Zachilhu Case).

Vacation of Seats

Double Membership	Cannot be a member of both houses of the State Legislature. If elected to both houses his seat in one of the houses becomes vacant according to provisions made by the State Legislature via law.
Disqualification	Based on defection or grounds given in the constitution.
Resignation	To the Presiding officer of the house.
Absent	More than 60 days without permission.
Other cases	Election is declared void + expelled from house + Elected to office of President or Vice President + Appointed to Office of Governor.

Oath or Affirmation

- Before the Governor (or person appointed by the Governor).
- Bear true faith and allegiance to the constitution + Uphold sovereignty and integrity of India + Discharge duty on which he is about to enter.
A person cannot vote or participate in the house or becomes eligible for its proceeding without taking oath/affirmation.

Salary and allowances

As determined by State Legislature
Speaker/Deputy Speaker + Chairman/Deputy Chairman: Salary charged on Consolidated Fund of the state.

Presiding officer of State legislature

Legislative Assembly: Speaker + Deputy Speaker + Panel of Chairpersons.
Legislative Council: Chairman + Deputy Chairman + Panel of Vice Chairpersons

Speaker of Assembly

Election: Elected by ‘Legislative Assembly’ from amongst its members
Vacation in office: When Speaker ceases to be a member of the Assembly + Resignation (given to Deputy Speaker) + Removal by a ‘resolution’ (14 days advance notice + Majority of then members of Assembly must support it.)
The Speaker holds office till the new assembly gets elected.

Role, Powers and Function

Primary responsibility is to maintain order and decorum in the House for conduct of business and regulates its proceedings. He has the ‘final power’ in this regard.
Final interpreter of the provisions of (a) the Constitution of India, (b) the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of Legislative Assembly, and (c) Precedents, within the House.
Adjourns the House or suspends the meeting in absence of a quorum.
‘Does not’ vote in the first instance. But he can exercise a casting vote in the case of a tie.
Can allow a ‘secret’ sitting of the House at the request of the Leader of the House.
Final authority to certify a ‘money bill.’ His decision on this question is final.
Disqualify an MLA under defection law. Power is subject to ‘Judicial Review’.
Appoints Chairman of various committees + himself is Chairman Business Advisory Committee, the Rules Committee and the General-Purpose Committee.

Fact

The current Speaker of Punjab Legislative Assembly is S. Kultar Singh Sandhwan. Deputy Speaker of Punjab Legislative Assembly is Jai Krishan Singh.

Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly

Election: Elected from amongst the members of the Legislative Assembly.
Vacation: In case he ceases to be a member + Resignation + Removal.
Removal: He is removed as the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
Resignation: He submits his resignation to the Speaker.

Presiding Officers of Legislative Council

Chairman: Elected by members from among themselves
Deputy Chairman: Elected from its members
Panel of Vice Chairpersons: Nominated by Chairman.
All other points are similar to Speaker (except in case of ‘Money bill’) and Deputy Speaker.

Terms

Details

Summon

Issuing a call to be present
By Governor (At least twice a year). Maximum gap between two sessions cannot be more than six months.

Adjournment

Suspends the work in a ‘sitting’ for a ‘specified’ time, which may be hours, days or weeks.
Done by ‘presiding’ officer.

Adjournment sine die

Terminating a ‘sitting’ of State Legislature for an indefinite period
Declared when the business of the house is finished
Done by ‘presiding’ officer

Quorum

‘Minimum number of members’ (10 members or 1/10th of total members including Presiding officer) required before house can transact any business
No Quorum: ‘Presiding’ officers can either ‘adjourn’ the House or to ‘suspend’ the meeting until Quorum is there.

Prorogation

Usually follows Adjournment Sine die
Terminate sitting’ + ‘session’ of the House

Dissolution

Ends the very existence of the house. Applicable to Legislative assembly.

Dissolution and bills

Bills which Lapse on dissolution	Bills which do not Lapse on dissolution
All pending bills in Assembly (whether originating in Assembly or transmitted by Council). A bill passed by Assembly but pending in the council lapses	Bill pending in Council but not passed by assembly does not lapse. A bill passed by Assembly (unicameral legislature)/ both houses (bicameral legislature) and pending assent with ‘President’/Governor does not lapse. A bill sent for ‘reconsideration’ by president does not lapse

Voting in

House

- Simple majority for majority matters.
- Special majority: Resolution for creation or abolition of Legislative Council
- Effective Majority: Removal of speaker or chairman
Speaker & chairman does not vote in the first instance (exercise a casting vote).

Language in

state

legislature

Official Languages: Hindi + English for transacting business.
The presiding officer can be permitted to address the house in Mother tongue.
The State Legislature is authorised to continue/discontinue English as a floor language (15 years after commencement of the constitution).

Rights of

ministers &

Advocate

General

Ministers can speak + participate in the proceedings of the House where he is not a member (without right to vote).
Minister (who isn’t a member of either house) can participate in the proceeding of both houses (without right to vote)
Advocate General can speak + participate in the proceeding of both Houses (without Right to vote).

Punjab Legislature

Punjab’s Legislative Council: Established after the Government of India Act 1919.
Punjab Legislative Assembly: Established under the Government of India Act 1935, with a membership of 175. On April 1, 1937, it was summoned for the first time.
In 1947, the Punjab Province was divided into West Punjab and East Punjab, and the East Punjab Legislative Assembly, which consisted of 79 members, was established.
Following India’s independence, on 15 July 1948, eight princely kingdoms of East Punjab merged to establish the Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU).
In April 1952, the Punjab State Legislature consisted of two houses: the Vidhan Sabha (lower house) and the Vidhan Parishad (upper house). The size of the VidhanParishad of the new State of Punjab was extended from 40 seats to 46 seats in 1956, then to 51 seats in 1957. Punjab was trifurcated in
1966: Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab. The Vidhan Parishad was decreased to 40 seats, while the Vidhan Sabha has changed over time. Upon this reorganization, the MLAs were reduced from 154 to 87 which rose to 104 after the General elections of 1967. However, the Assembly presently consists of 117 Members.
Thus, the Punjab Legislature currently consists of the Governor and Legislative Assembly. The next elections for the Legislative Assembly are due in 2027.

Punjab’s Representation in the Parliament

The Members of LokSabha and RajyaSabha are collectively known as Members of Parliament (MPs). There are presently 13 constituencies of LokSabha in Punjab, i.e. 13 MPs of LokSabha’ in Punjab. The current Members of Parliament representing Punjab in LokSabhaare:

Lok Sabha Members from Punjab (as of 10/04/2024)
S.No.	Constituency	Name	Since	Party
1	Gurdaspur	Sunny Deol	May-19	BJP
2	Amritsar	Gurjeet Singh Aujla	Mar-17	INC
3	Khadoor Sahib	Jasbir Singh Gill	May-19	INC
4	Jalandhar	Sushil Kumar Rinku (Incumbent)	May-23	—
5	Hoshiarpur	SomPrakash	May-19	BJP
6	Anandpur Sahib	Manish Tiwari	May-19	INC
7	Ludhiana	Ravneet Singh Bittu	May-14	INC
8	Fatehgarh Sahib	Amar Singh	May-19	INC
9	Faridkot	Muhammad Sadiq	May-19	INC
10	Ferozepur	Sukhbir Singh Badal	May-19	SAD
11	Bathinda	HarsimratKaurBadal	May-09	SAD
12	Sangrur	Simranjit Singh Mann	July, 2022	SAD (Mann)
13	Patiala	PreneetKaur	May-19	INC

The MPs in Rajya Sabha represent the states of the Union of India. Thus, MLAs of Punjab elect 7 Rajya Sabha’ members from the state. The current Members of Parliament representing Punjab in Rajya Sabha are:

Rajya Sabha Members (as of 15/03/2023)
S No	Name	Party	Term Start	Term End
1	Ashok Kumar Mittal	AAP	10 April 2022	9 April 2028
2	Harbhajan Singh	AAP	10 April 2022	9 April 2028
3	RaghavChadha	AAP	10 April 2022	9 April 2028
4	SandeepPathak	AAP	10 April 2022	9 April 2028
5	SanjeevArora	AAP	10 April 2022	9 April 2028
6	Vikramjit Singh Sahney	AAP	05 July 2022	04 July 2028
7	Balbir Singh Seechewal	AAP	05 July 2022	04 July 2028

Leader of the House

The leaders of Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly) are contiguous to Parliament.
Thus, as a member of the ruling party in the Lok Sabha is the leader of the Lok Sabha, likewise, a member of the ruling party in the State assembly is the leader of the Legislative Assembly.
Generally, the Prime minister is the leader of the house in Lok Sabha while the Chief Minister is the leader of the house in Vidhan Sabha.
The present leader of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha is S.Bhagwant Mann.

Leader of Opposition

The Leader of Opposition is the leader of the largest party that has not less than one-tenth of the total strength of the house.
It is a statutory post defined in the Salaries and Allowances of Leaders of Opposition in Parliament Act, 1977.
The leader of Opposition in Punjab is Pratap Singh Bajwa (Indian National Congress), since 9April 2022. The post of Deputy Leader of Opposition is vacant yet.