What can be the minimum strength of Rajasthan’s Council of Ministers ?
- (1)12
- (2)10
- (3)08
- (4)05
Answer
Why
Correct — option (1), 12.
Article 164(1A) of the Constitution sets both a ceiling and a floor for a State's Council of Ministers. The ceiling: the total number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, "shall not exceed fifteen per cent. of the total number of members of the Legislative Assembly of that State".
The floor is in the first proviso: "the number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister in a State shall not be less than twelve".
Rajasthan's Legislative Assembly has 200 members, and fifteen per cent of 200 is 30. Rajasthan's Council of Ministers can therefore have at most 30 members and at least 12, counting the Chief Minister in both.
Clause (1A) was inserted by the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003, with effect from 1 January 2004.
Minimum twelve, maximum fifteen per cent of the Assembly — and both counts include the Chief Minister.
Why the others are wrong
- (2)10 — Ten is below the floor. The first proviso to Article 164(1A) says the number of Ministers shall not be less than twelve, in every State.
Leaving the Chief Minister out does not help: the proviso counts the Chief Minister within the twelve.
- (3)08 — Eight is also below the floor of twelve. Fifteen per cent of a small Assembly can fall below twelve — in a 60-member House it is 9 — but the proviso still requires at least twelve Ministers.
For Rajasthan's 200-member Assembly the question does not arise: its ceiling is 30.
- (4)05 — Five has no basis in the Article. Article 164(1A) sets two limits: the 15 per cent ceiling and the floor of twelve.
Nor does the Union's rule supply a smaller floor: Article 75(1A) caps the Union Council of Ministers at 15 per cent of the Lok Sabha and sets no minimum at all.
Concept
Under Article 164(1) the Governor appoints the Chief Minister, and appoints the other Ministers on the Chief Minister's advice. Under Article 164(2) the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly.
The Ninety-first Amendment, 2003 capped the size of ministries. For a State, Article 164(1A) limits the council to 15 per cent of the Assembly's total strength with a minimum of twelve; for the Union, Article 75(1A) sets a 15 per cent cap against the Lok Sabha with no minimum.
The same amendment added Article 164(1B): a member disqualified for defection under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule cannot be appointed a Minister for the rest of that term, or until re-elected.
Under Article 164(4), a Minister who is not a member of the State Legislature for six consecutive months ceases to be a Minister.
RPSC's syllabus lists Rajasthan's State Political System as "Governor, Chief Minister and Council of Ministers, Legislative Assembly, High Court."
The size of Rajasthan's council follows from the size of its Assembly. The Assembly has had 200 seats since the Sixth Assembly was constituted in 1977, so the ceiling works out to 30.
The floor matters most for small Assemblies, where 15 per cent can come to less than twelve. For Rajasthan the ceiling is well above the floor.
Both limits apply to the whole Council of Ministers, whatever the rank — Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of State and any Deputy Ministers — and both include the Chief Minister.
Key facts
- Article 164(1A): a State's Council of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, cannot exceed 15% of the Legislative Assembly's total membership.
- First proviso to Article 164(1A): the number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, shall not be less than twelve.
- Article 164(1A) was inserted by the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003, with effect from 1 January 2004.
- Rajasthan's Legislative Assembly has 200 members, so its Council of Ministers can have between 12 and 30 members.
- Article 75(1A) caps the Union Council of Ministers at 15% of the Lok Sabha and sets no minimum.
Both clauses were inserted by the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003.
Study next
Common traps
- Leaving the Chief Minister out of the count. Both the ceiling and the floor in Article 164(1A) include the Chief Minister.
- Applying the Union rule to a State. Article 75(1A) has no minimum; the floor of twelve is in Article 164(1A).
- Computing fifteen per cent and stopping there. For Rajasthan that gives the maximum, 30; the stem asks for the minimum, 12.
A question can ask for the minimum or maximum size of a State's Council of Ministers, as here.
A question can also ask which Amendment set these limits, or give an Assembly's strength and ask for the largest council it allows.
Related PYQs
As of the end of the November 2024, how many women were there in the Rajasthan Council of Ministers ?
- (1) Only 1
- (2) Only 2
- (3) Only 3
- (4) Only 5
Answer(2)
Same body, a different fact: the number of women in the Rajasthan Council of Ministers at the end of November 2024 (RPSC key: option (2), only 2). This question asks for the constitutional minimum size of the council.
Practice
- practice — not a real PYQ
Under Article 164(1A), what is the maximum number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in Rajasthan's Council of Ministers?
- (a)12
- (b)20
- (c)30
- (d)40
Answer(3) — fifteen per cent of the Assembly's 200 members is 30. 12 (1) is the minimum under the first proviso. 20 (2) would be 10 per cent and 40 (4) 20 per cent of the Assembly, and neither figure appears in the Article. - practice — not a real PYQ
Which Constitutional Amendment Act limited the total number of Ministers in a State's Council of Ministers to fifteen per cent of the Legislative Assembly's strength?
- (a)Forty-second Amendment Act, 1976
- (b)Seventy-third Amendment Act, 1992
- (c)Ninety-first Amendment Act, 2003
- (d)Ninety-seventh Amendment Act, 2011
Answer(3) — the Ninety-first Amendment inserted Article 164(1A). The Forty-second Amendment (1) added provisions such as Articles 39A and 48A. The Seventy-third Amendment (2) inserted Part IX on Panchayats. The Ninety-seventh Amendment (4) inserted Article 43B on co-operative societies.