Legislative Procedure for Bills in a Bicameral State Legislature

Bicameral bill procedure for a State Legislature is set out in Article 197, which restricts how much a Legislative Council can hold up a bill other than a Money Bill. The Council can delay such a bill through two time-bound rounds, but it cannot ultimately stop it — the Legislative Assembly's will prevails in the end.

What Makes a State Legislature Bicameral

Under Articles 168 to 172, a State Legislature consists of the Governor and a Legislative Assembly alone (unicameral), or the Governor together with a Legislative Assembly and a Legislative Council (bicameral). Where a Legislative Council exists, its strength is capped at one-third of the Assembly's strength, with a floor of 40 members. Only six States currently have a bicameral Legislature: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council was abolished by the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. This limited spread of bicameralism is precisely why Article 197's restriction on Council power matters — it governs the relationship between the two Houses in every State that chooses to retain a Council.

The Suspensive Veto Under Article 197

Article 197 applies once a bill (other than a Money Bill) has been passed by the Legislative Assembly and transmitted to the Legislative Council. If the Council rejects the bill, or lets it lie without passing it for a period of three months, or passes it with amendments to which the Assembly does not agree, the Assembly may pass the bill again — in the same form, or incorporating such Council suggestions as it chooses — and transmit it to the Council once more. At this second stage, the Council gets a shorter window: if it again rejects the bill, or fails to pass it within one month, or passes it with amendments the Assembly still does not accept, the bill is deemed to have been passed by both Houses of the Legislature in the form in which the Assembly passed it the second time, together with only those amendments, if any, that the Council made or suggested and the Assembly agreed to.

First Passage vs Second Passage

Money Bills Are Outside This Article

Article 197 explicitly does not apply to Money Bills. Money Bills follow the separate procedure in Article 198, under which they cannot even be introduced in a Legislative Council and the Council gets only fourteen days to return the bill with recommendations that the Assembly may accept or reject. The two-round, three-month/one-month mechanism of Article 197 is therefore a feature of ordinary and other non-Money legislation, where the Council has a genuine, if time-limited, role in scrutinising and proposing changes.

Why the Assembly's Will Prevails

The structure of Article 197 means a Legislative Council can scrutinise, debate, and propose amendments to a bill, and can delay its final passage by a combined period of up to four months across the two rounds, but it cannot permanently block a bill the Assembly is determined to pass. This design keeps the Council as a revising chamber rather than a coordinate chamber with an equal, absolute say, reflecting its more limited composition and its partly nominated, partly indirectly elected membership compared with the directly elected Assembly.

UPSC Relevance

Prelims: Remember the exact figures in Article 197 — three months for the Council to act on first transmission, one month on the second — and that Article 197 does not apply to Money Bills. Also recall that only six States currently have a Legislative Council, and that its strength is capped at one-third of the Assembly with a minimum of 40 members.

Mains: Analyse how Article 197's suspensive veto reflects the same design logic as the corresponding relationship between the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha on ordinary legislation, and discuss what this implies for the Legislative Council's role as a revising rather than a co-equal chamber.

FAQ

Q1. What does Article 197 of the Constitution deal with? A. It restricts the power of a State Legislative Council over Bills other than Money Bills, giving it only a time-bound suspensive veto.

Q2. How long does the Council have to act on first transmission of a bill? A. Up to three months from receipt, after which, if it has not passed the bill, the Assembly may pass it again and send it back.

Q3. How long does the Council have on the second transmission? A. Up to one month; if it still does not pass the bill (or disagrees, or delays), the bill is deemed passed as the Assembly passed it the second time.

Q4. Does Article 197 apply to Money Bills? A. No. Clause (3) of Article 197 expressly excludes Money Bills, which are governed instead by the separate procedure in Article 198.

Q5. How many States currently have a bicameral Legislature? A. Six — Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.

Quick Revision

• Article 197 = restriction on Legislative Council's power over non-Money Bills.
• First round: Council has three months to pass/reject/amend a transmitted bill.
• Second round (after Assembly re-passes): Council has one month.
• If Council still disagrees or delays, bill deemed passed as re-passed by the Assembly.
• Article 197 does NOT apply to Money Bills (separate Article 198 procedure).
• Six States have a Legislative Council: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka.
• Legislative Council strength: maximum one-third of Assembly strength, minimum 40 members.
• Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council abolished by the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019.

Sources

• Constitution of India, Article 197 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
• Constitution of India, Article 198 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/
• Constitution of India, Articles 168-172 — https://www.indiacode.nic.in/

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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