What can be the minimum strength of Council of Ministers including Chief Minister in the States?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — B, 12. Article 164(1A) of the Constitution provides that 'the total number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in the Council of Ministers in a State shall not be less than twelve.' This floor was inserted by the 91st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003 (the same clause also caps the Council at 15% of the total members of the Legislative Assembly). So even a small State cannot have fewer than 12 ministers including the Chief Minister — making 12 the minimum.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) Wrong — the constitutional floor is twelve, not ten; Article 164(1A) fixes the minimum at 12.  (c) Wrong — 13 is above the prescribed minimum. The Constitution sets the floor at 12, not 13.  (d) Wrong — 14 exceeds the minimum. The 91st Amendment fixed the lower limit at 12.

Concept: The 91st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003 added Article 164(1A) for States (and Article 75(1A) for the Union) to control 'jumbo' ministries and defection-driven reward-giving. For States it set both a ceiling and a floor: the Council of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, must not exceed 15% of the total strength of the Legislative Assembly, and must not be fewer than 12. The 12-minister floor protects small States/UTs whose 15% ceiling would otherwise be tiny.

State PCS 2020 Q118 — Polity & Governance PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2020 Q118 — Polity & Governance PYQ with Answer