Question

The Chief Minister of a state, at the time of his/her appointment:
1. need not necessarily be a member of one of the Houses of  the State Legislature but must become a member of one of the Houses within six months.
2. need not necessarily be a member of one of the Houses of the State Legislature but must become a member of the State Legislative Assembly within six months.
3. must be a member of one of the Houses of the State Legislature.
4. must be a member of the State Legislature.

Answer 1

Correct Answer - Option 1 : need not necessarily be a member of one of the Houses of  the State Legislature but must become a member of one of the Houses within six months.

The correct answer is need not necessarily be a member of one of the Houses of the State Legislature but must become a member of one of the Houses within six months.

• The Constitution does not contain any specific procedure for the selection and appointment of the Chief Minister.
  • Article 164 only says that the Chief Minister shall be appointed by the governor.
  • However, this does not imply that the governor is free to appoint anyone as the Chief Minister.
  • In accordance with the convections of the parliamentary system of government, the governor has to appoint the leader of the majority party in the state legislative assembly as the Chief Minister.
  • But, when no party has a clear majority in the assembly, then the governor may exercise his personal discretion in the selection and appointment of the Chief Minister.
  • In such a situation, the governor usually appoints the leader of the largest party or coalition in the assembly as the Chief Minister and ask him to seek a vote of confidence in the House within a month.
  • The Constitution does not require that a person must prove his majority in the legislative assembly before he is appointed as the Chief Minister.
  • The governor may first appoint him as the Chief Minister and then ask him to prove his majority in the legislative assembly within a reasonable period.

• A person who is not a member of the state legislature can be appointed as Chief Minister for six months, within which time, he should be elected to the state legislature, failing which he ceases to be the Chief Minister. Hence, option 1 is correct.
• According to the Constitution, the Chief Minister may be a member of any of the two Houses of a state legislature.
• Usually, Chief Ministers have been selected from the Lower House (legislative assembly), but, on a number of occasions, a member of the Upper House (legislative council) has also been appointed as Chief Minister.