Legislative Assembly and Council of Ministers for Union Territories (Article 239A)

A UT legislative assembly is the elected (or partly nominated) law-making body Parliament may set up for a Union Territory under Article 239A, usually alongside a Council of Ministers that advises the territory's Administrator. Unlike States, which are constitutionally guaranteed a Legislature under Article 168, a Union Territory gets an elected assembly only where Parliament chooses to create one by ordinary law. This article explains that framework, why it differs for Puducherry and Delhi, and how a UT's Council of Ministers is composed and held accountable.

The Default: Administrator Rule Under Articles 239 and 240

Article 239 lays down the baseline: every Union Territory is administered by the President through an Administrator, appointed by the President with whatever designation the President specifies. The President may even appoint a neighbouring State's Governor as Administrator of an adjoining Union Territory; the Governor then acts independently of that State's own Council of Ministers, not as head of an elected UT government.

Article 240 adds a presidential regulation-making power for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Puducherry. Once a Legislature is created for Puducherry under Article 239A, this power stops applying to Puducherry from the date fixed for that Legislature's first meeting, and administration shifts to laws made by the elected body itself.

Article 239A: Creating a Legislature or Council of Ministers

Article 239A lets Parliament create, by ordinary law, for the Union Territory of Puducherry either a body — elected, or partly nominated and partly elected — to function as its Legislature, or a Council of Ministers, or both. The constitution, powers, and functions of such a body are left entirely to the enacting law. A law made under Article 239A is not treated as a constitutional amendment under Article 368 even where its effect amends the Constitution, so Parliament can use its ordinary law-making process rather than the special amendment procedure.

The provision was introduced in 1962 and amended by the 37th Amendment in 1975. Parliament used this power to pass the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, which originally extended a Legislative Assembly and Council of Ministers to several Union Territories. Most of those territories later attained statehood and left this framework; Puducherry remains the principal Union Territory still governed under the Article 239A model, with its own Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers advising the Administrator.

Delhi: A Distinct Framework Under Article 239AA

Delhi's arrangement bypasses Article 239A entirely. The 69th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1991 redesignated Delhi as the National Capital Territory (NCT) and inserted Articles 239AA and 239AB directly into the Constitution, giving it a 70-member directly elected Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers headed by a Chief Minister, effective 1 February 1992. Parliament supplemented this through the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, 1991.

Under Article 239AA, the Delhi Assembly can legislate on the State and Concurrent Lists, except public order, police, and land; a conflicting Parliamentary law prevails. The Chief Minister is appointed by the President, other Ministers by the President on the Chief Minister's advice, and all hold office at the President's pleasure. The Council is collectively responsible to the Assembly.

A key numerical distinction from States: Delhi's Council of Ministers cannot exceed ten per cent of Assembly strength, against fifteen per cent for States under the 91st Amendment (below). Article 239AA(8) also extends Article 239B's ordinance-making power to the NCT, its Lieutenant Governor, and its Assembly, as it applies to Puducherry.

The Lieutenant Governor's Discretion

The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi is ordinarily bound by the "aid and advice" of the Council of Ministers. In Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, (2018) 8 SCC 501, the Supreme Court held this binding effect holds unless the Lieutenant Governor exercises the discretion under the proviso to Article 239AA(4) — confined to matters outside the Assembly's powers that the President has delegated to the Lieutenant Governor, and matters where a law requires discretionary or judicial/quasi-judicial action. On a difference of opinion, the matter goes to the President, and pending that the Lieutenant Governor may take urgent action if needed. The Court revisited this in Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, (2023) 9 SCC 1, while K Lakshminarayanan v Union of India, (2020) 14 SCC 664 held no convention required Puducherry Assembly nominations to originate from, or be concurred in by, the Chief Minister. The GNCTD (Amendment) Act, 2021 later clarified that "Government", in Delhi Assembly laws, means the Lieutenant Governor.

Council of Ministers: UT Assemblies Compared With States

The 15% Ceiling and State Legislatures, for Context

The Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003 inserted Article 164(1A), capping a State's Council of Ministers at fifteen per cent of Assembly strength with a floor of twelve, checking the earlier practice of expanding ministries indefinitely for political support. Under Article 164, the Governor appoints the Chief Minister and, on the Chief Minister's advice, other Ministers; the Council answers collectively to the Assembly.

Briefly, Article 168 makes a State's Legislature the Governor plus one or two Houses; Article 172 gives an Assembly a five-year term, with a Legislative Council a continuing body from which about one-third retire every two years; Article 169 lets Parliament create or abolish a Council on the Assembly's special-majority resolution; Article 171 fixes Council strength between 40 members and one-third of Assembly strength; and Article 198 bars Money Bills from originating in the Council, which gets fourteen days to return one with recommendations.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims

• Article 239A applies specifically to Puducherry; Delhi's Assembly is instead created directly under Article 239AA.
• Council of Ministers ceilings differ: 10% of Assembly strength in Delhi versus 15% (minimum 12) in States under Article 164(1A).
• Article 240's regulation-making power for Puducherry lapses once its Article 239A Legislature holds its first meeting.
• Delhi's Assembly cannot legislate on public order, police, or land — these remain with Parliament.

Mains

• Analyse how Article 239A and Article 239AA create two distinct constitutional models of Union Territory governance.
• Discuss the Lieutenant Governor's discretionary power in Delhi in light of Supreme Court rulings on Article 239AA(4).

FAQ

Q1. Which Union Territory currently has a Legislative Assembly under Article 239A? Puducherry — other territories once covered by the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 have since become full States.

Q2. Is Delhi's Legislative Assembly created under Article 239A? No. It was established directly through Article 239AA, inserted by the 69th Amendment, 1991, which also redesignated Delhi as the National Capital Territory.

Q3. What is the maximum size of the Council of Ministers in Delhi? Not more than ten per cent of the Delhi Assembly's total membership, with the Chief Minister at its head, under Article 239AA(4).

Q4. Can the Delhi Assembly make laws on police and land? No. Article 239AA excludes public order, police, and land from its competence over the State and Concurrent Lists.

Q5. When does the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi act on personal discretion rather than ministerial advice? Only on matters outside the Assembly's powers that the President has delegated to the Lieutenant Governor, or where a law requires discretionary or judicial/quasi-judicial action, per Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, (2018) 8 SCC 501.

Quick Revision

• Article 239: default UT administration via a President-appointed Administrator.
• Article 239A: Parliament may create a Legislature and/or Council of Ministers for Puducherry by ordinary law.
• Article 240: President's UT regulations for Puducherry lapse once its Article 239A Legislature first meets.
• Article 239AA: Delhi's NCT status, Assembly, and 10% Council of Ministers ceiling, from the 69th Amendment, 1991.
• Article 164(1A): State Council of Ministers capped at 15% of Assembly strength, minimum 12, from the 91st Amendment, 2003.
• Delhi Assembly cannot legislate on public order, police, or land.
• Lieutenant Governor's discretion is limited; disagreement with Ministers goes to the President for decision.

Sources

• The Constitution of India, Government of India (Ministry of Law and Justice)
• Constitution (Sixty-Ninth Amendment) Act, 1991 — legislative.gov.in
• Constitution (Ninety-First Amendment) Act, 2003 — legislative.gov.in
• Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, (2018) 8 SCC 501 — Supreme Court of India
• Government of NCT of Delhi v Union of India, (2023) 9 SCC 1 — Supreme Court of India
• K Lakshminarayanan v Union of India, (2020) 14 SCC 664 — Supreme Court of India

Further Reference

For deeper reading on this topic and the wider polity syllabus, these standard works are recommended:

• M. Laxmikanth, Indian Polity (McGraw Hill) — the standard UPSC handbook.
• D.D. Basu, Introduction to the Constitution of India (LexisNexis) — authoritative constitutional-law treatment.
• The Constitution of India — Bare Act — the official text.

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