Article 239A
Constitutional Basis for Puducherry's Legislature
Article 239A of the Constitution was inserted by the 14th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1962. It empowers Parliament to create a Legislative Assembly and Council of Ministers for certain Union Territories (UTs), including Puducherry. The legislature was actually established through the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, not by the Constitutional provision directly — Article 239A merely authorises Parliament to legislate for this purpose.
- Puducherry has a unicameral Legislative Assembly with 30 elected seats and up to 3 nominated members.
- Under Article 239A, Puducherry's legislature can legislate on most subjects in the State List and Concurrent List, unlike typical UTs administered directly under Article 239.
- The Lieutenant Governor (LG) acts as Administrator; under the framework, the LG generally acts on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.
- Parliament retains overriding legislative power over all Union Territories — any UT law can be superseded by a Parliament law.
- Unlike Delhi (governed under Article 239AA, inserted by the 69th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1991), Puducherry does not have special provisions for law and order, police, and land — these remain under the Administrator's domain.
● Tracked since February 11, 2026 · last seen April 09, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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