{"id":59987,"date":"2025-08-19T11:12:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T05:42:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=59987"},"modified":"2025-08-19T11:12:01","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T05:42:01","slug":"union-territory-assemblies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/union-territory-assemblies\/","title":{"rendered":"Nominations to Union Territory Assemblies"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Union Territory Assemblies Latest News<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Union Home Ministry informed the J&amp;K High Court that the Lieutenant Governor can nominate five members to the Assembly without ministerial advice, reviving the debate on nominations to Union Territory legislatures.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Introduction<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The process of nominating members to Union Territory (UT) Assemblies has sparked a renewed debate after the Union Home Ministry submitted an affidavit before the Jammu &amp; Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It stated that the <\/span><b>Lieutenant Governor (LG) of Jammu &amp; Kashmir can nominate five members to the Legislative Assembly without the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This position has revived discussions about the scope of executive power, constitutional principles, and the balance between the Union government and UT administrations.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Constitutional Provisions on Nominations<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Indian Constitution envisages nominated members in both Parliament and State legislatures.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the <\/span><b>provision for Anglo-Indian representation in legislatures was abolished in 2020<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the Rajya Sabha continues to have 12 nominated members appointed by the President on the advice of the Union Cabinet.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similarly, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/state-legislative-council\/\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Legislative Councils<\/b><\/a><b> in six States have one-sixth of their members nominated by the Governor based on ministerial advice<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the context of UTs, nominations are guided by specific Parliamentary statutes.<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Delhi<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: The Government of NCT of Delhi Act, 1991 provides for 70 elected members, with no nominated MLAs.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Puducherry<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: The Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 allows the Union government to nominate up to three members to the Assembly.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Jammu &amp; Kashmir<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/jammu-and-kashmir-reorganisation-act-2019\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>J&amp;K Reorganisation Act, 2019<\/strong><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (amended in 2023) provides 90 elected seats and authorises the LG to nominate five members, including women, Kashmiri migrants, and displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Judicial Precedents<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The nomination process has been tested before the courts multiple times.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Puducherry Case (2018)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: In <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">K. Lakshminarayanan vs Union of India<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the Madras High Court upheld the Union government\u2019s power to nominate three members without ministerial advice.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, it recommended statutory clarity to avoid ambiguity. The Supreme Court later set aside these recommendations while upholding the nominations.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><b>Delhi Services Case (2023)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: In <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Government of NCT of Delhi vs Union of India<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the Supreme Court elaborated on the principle of the \u201ctriple chain of command,\u201d ensuring accountability of civil servants to ministers, ministers to legislatures, and legislatures to the electorate.\u00a0<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While not directly related to nominations, this reasoning strengthens the argument for requiring LGs to act on ministerial advice in matters of Assembly composition.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Implications for Democracy<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The issue assumes importance because UTs with Assemblies have elected governments that are accountable to the people.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the ruling party at the Centre differs from that in the UT, nominations made unilaterally by the LG or Union government could alter the political balance, potentially converting a majority into a minority government.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is particularly significant in smaller legislatures like J&amp;K (90 seats) and Puducherry (30 seats), where nominated members could influence the stability of elected governments.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Jammu &amp; Kashmir &#8211; A Special Case<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">J&amp;K stands apart due to its history of statehood and greater autonomy prior to its reorganisation into a UT in 2019.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although the Supreme Court upheld this transition, the Union government has assured restoration of statehood in due course.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Given this background, democratic principles suggest that the LG\u2019s power to nominate should ideally be exercised on the advice of the elected Council of Ministers, rather than independently.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Way Forward<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To avoid constitutional ambiguity and political friction, the following measures are necessary:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Statutory Clarity<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Parliament should amend relevant laws to define the procedure and authority for nominations unambiguously.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Democratic Safeguards<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Nominations should not undermine electoral mandates or alter Assembly majorities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Advisory Role of Council of Ministers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; LGs should generally act on ministerial advice to preserve representative democracy.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\"><b>Case-Specific Adaptations<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; J&amp;K\u2019s unique political context requires sensitive handling to ensure legitimacy and fairness in nominations.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Source:<\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/who-decides-nominations-to-ut-assemblies-explained\/article69948834.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TH<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The issue of who decides nominations to Union Territory Assemblies has resurfaced after the Union Home Ministry&#8217;s recent clarification.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":59993,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[60,2250,22,59],"class_list":{"0":"post-59987","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"tag-mains-articles","9":"tag-union-territory-assemblies","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-mains-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59987"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59987\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}