Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad): Role, Structure, and Relevance

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Key takeaways

Currently, only 6 Indian states maintain a Legislative Council: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.
Under Article 169, Parliament can create or abolish a Legislative Council by a simple majority if the state assembly passes a resolution with a 2/3rd majority of members present and voting.
As per Article 171, a Legislative Council's strength must not exceed 1/3rd of total Assembly seats and cannot drop below 40 members.
The Governor nominates 1/6th of MLCs, while 1/3rd are chosen by local bodies, 1/3rd by MLAs, 1/12th by graduates, and 1/12th by teachers.
Unlike the Rajya Sabha, a Legislative Council cannot veto ordinary bills and can delay them for a maximum duration of 4 months.

Recent elections for the Member of Legislative Council (MLC) in several states have restarted public debate on bicameral legislatures.
These elections highlight why only a few states maintain a Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad) and what exact role it plays in state government.

At the national level, India uses a bicameral framework made up of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 introduced a two-house legislature at the Centre, while the Government of India Act of 1935 established it in selected provinces.
India's very first provincial Legislative Council started its work in Bengal back in 1937.
The Constitution allows each state to decide whether it wants a single house or two houses in its legislature.
In states with two houses, the lower house is the Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha), which represents the public directly through general elections based on universal adult suffrage.
The upper house is the Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad), which serves as a revising body and operates as a permanent house that cannot be dissolved.
Every member of the Vidhan Parishad serves a 6-year term, with 1/3rd of its members retiring every 2 years.
To become an MLC, a candidate must be at least 30 years old, whereas Legislative Assembly candidates need to be only 25 years old.
At present, only 6 states have a Vidhan Parishad: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.
Jammu and Kashmir also had a Legislative Council until Parliament passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act of 2019.

Article 168 defines how state legislatures are structured across different states.
Article 169 allows Parliament to create or remove a Legislative Council by a simple majority, provided the state assembly first passes a resolution requesting it.
The state assembly must pass this resolution by a special majority, meaning a majority of total membership and a 2/3rd majority of members present and voting.
Article 171 sets the maximum size of a Vidhan Parishad at 1/3rd of the state assembly's total seats, with a minimum size fixed at 40 members.
MLCs are chosen through indirect elections using proportional representation with a single transferable vote.
Local bodies like municipalities, Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samitis, and Zila Parishads elect 1/3rd of the total MLC seats.
Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) elect another 1/3rd of the MLCs from people who are not current assembly members.
State residents who have been university graduates for at least three years elect 1/12th of the total members.
Teachers who have taught for at least three years in secondary schools or higher institutions elect another 1/12th of the members.
The Governor nominates the remaining 1/6th of members from fields like literature, science, art, the cooperative movement, and social service.

The house prevents rushed decision-making by carefully reviewing bills passed in haste or under political pressure by the lower house.
It gives dedicated legislative representation to key groups like teachers, university graduates, and local local body representatives.
The Governor's nomination quota brings non-political experts and subject matter specialists directly into the lawmaking process.
The upper house reduces the heavy legislative load of the assembly by introducing non-financial bills.

Running a second house creates a large financial burden due to salaries, office spaces, and perks, which smaller states cannot easily afford.
Critics often view the house as a political backup plan to offer posts to leaders who lost general elections or to political allies.
The Vidhan Parishad holds far less authority than the Rajya Sabha in national lawmaking.
Under Article 197, the upper house cannot reject ordinary bills outright and can only delay them for up to 4 months in total.
The upper house cannot reject or amend Money Bills, and it has only 14 days to give recommendations that the lower house can freely ignore.
Unlike Parliament, state legislatures have no constitutional rule for holding a joint sitting to resolve disagreements between houses.
Opponents argue the house acts mostly as a delay mechanism that slows down urgent policy decisions.
The upper house does not protect state-level federalism, because it represents specific interest groups rather than distinct political units.

Article 80 sets rules for the Rajya Sabha, while Article 169 and Article 171 govern the creation, removal, and structure of the Vidhan Parishad.
The Rajya Sabha is a permanent central body that cannot be removed, whereas Parliament can remove a Vidhan Parishad completely.
The Rajya Sabha can have up to 250 members, while a Vidhan Parishad is capped at 1/3rd of assembly seats with a minimum limit of 40 members.
The President nominates 12 members to the Rajya Sabha, but the Governor nominates 1/6th of all members in a Vidhan Parishad.
The Vice-President of India serves as the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, while Vidhan Parishad members elect their own Chairman from within the house.
The President can call a Joint Sitting under Article 108 for Parliament, but state legislatures have no provision for joint sittings.
Rajya Sabha members vote in presidential and vice-presidential elections, but MLCs do not participate in either election.