State Executive — Governor & State Legislature

GS Paper: GS Paper II | Subject: Polity | Last updated: 2026-06-04

Prelims

(Key facts, data, schemes, laws, organizations — MCQ-ready points)

The SC issued notice on a plea challenging the second-term appointment of a Bihar Minister (Deepak Prakash, RLM) who is not a member of either House of the State legislature
Art. 164(4): a non-legislator may be a Minister for a maximum of 6 consecutive months; he must get elected to the legislature within that period or cease to hold office — and the SC has held the 6-month window cannot be repeatedly reused to keep a non-legislator in office without an electoral mandate (Union parallel: Art. 75(5))

(Analysis, dimensions, significance, critique, policy angles — for 10/15 mark answers)

The provision balances flexibility (inducting talent/representation) against democratic accountability (a Minister must seek a mandate); repeated reappointment of a non-elected Minister is the abuse the courts have curbed — relevant to debates on technocrat ministers and the dignity of legislatures
UPSC angle: Art. 164 (Council of Ministers, Governor), Art. 75(5) (Union), representative government, judicial limits on executive discretion