Every constitution must first say which land it covers. India's does this in Part I, Articles 1 to 4. Article 1 calls India a Union of States. Articles 2 and 3 let Parliament add new states or redraw old ones. Article 4 says such laws need only a simple majority.
Articles 1 to 4: what India is and who can change the map
A Union that cannot break, with states that can be redrawn.
India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.
The Constitution uses both names, India and Bharat. It also chose the words "Union of States", not "Federation of States". B. R. Ambedkar gave two reasons. First, Indian states did not agree to form India, like states in the USA did. Second, no state has the right to leave (secede) from India.
The Union of India can never be broken up. But the states inside it can be split, joined, enlarged, shrunk or renamed by Parliament. So India is called an indestructible Union of destructible States.
| Article | What it says |
|---|---|
| 1 | India, that is Bharat, is a Union of States; what the territory of India includes. |
| 2 | Parliament may admit or establish new states (land not already in India). |
| 3 | Parliament may form new states and change the area, boundaries or name of existing states. |
| 4 | Laws under Articles 2 and 3 may change the First and Fourth Schedules, but are not amendments under Article 368. |
- President's recommendationThe Bill can be brought in Parliament only on the President's recommendation.
- Views of the stateThe President refers the Bill to the affected state legislature for its views within a fixed time. For a UT, no reference is needed.
- Parliament decidesParliament is not bound by the state's views. The state's consent is not needed.
- Simple majorityThe Bill passes by a simple majority, like an ordinary law (Article 4).
Articles 2 to 4 cover adding and reorganising land. Giving Indian land to another country is not covered. In the Berubari Union case (1960) the Supreme Court said this needs a constitutional amendment under Article 368. The 9th Amendment (1960) did this for Berubari, and the 100th Amendment (2015) allowed the land swap of enclaves with Bangladesh.
How the states were reorganised
From four classes of states in 1950 to language-based states in 1956.
Run by a Governor and an elected legislature. Punjab was a Part A state.
Headed by a Rajpramukh. PEPSU (Patiala and East Punjab States Union) was a Part B state.
Run by the Centre through a Chief Commissioner, for example Delhi.
Run directly by the Centre.
The original First Schedule (1950) sorted the units into four classes. The 7th Amendment (1956) ended this system.
Soon people demanded states based on language. In 1948 the S. K. Dhar Commission and then the Congress JVP Committee (Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Pattabhi Sitaramayya) did not support language as the basis. But in 1952, Potti Sriramulu died after a long fast for a Telugu state. In October 1953, Andhra became the first state formed on the basis of language.
- Died after a long fast unto death in December 1952
- His death led to Andhra State in 1953
- Commission set up in December 1953
- Members: K. M. Panikkar and H. N. Kunzru
The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 and the 7th Amendment (1956) ended the Part A to D classes. From 1 November 1956 India had 14 states and 6 union territories. In this change PEPSU was merged into Punjab.
- 1960Maharashtra and Gujarat
Bombay state split by language.
- 1963Nagaland
Carved out of Assam.
- 1966Haryana
Carved out of Punjab (see the next part).
- 1971Himachal Pradesh
Union territory made a full state.
- 1972Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya
Became full states.
- 1975Sikkim
Became a state (36th Amendment).
- 1987Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa
Became full states.
- 2000Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand
Carved out of MP, UP and Bihar.
- 2014Telangana
Carved out of Andhra Pradesh on 2 June 2014.
- 2019Jammu and Kashmir
State turned into two union territories.
- United Provinces
- Uttar Pradesh (1950)
- Madras State
- Tamil Nadu (1969)
- Mysore State
- Karnataka (1973)
- Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands
- Lakshadweep (1973)
- Uttaranchal
- Uttarakhand (from 1 January 2007)
- Pondicherry
- Puducherry (2006)
- Orissa
- Odisha (2011)
Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh: 1966
The Punjabi Suba movement and the Punjab Reorganisation Act.
After 1956, Punjab had both Punjabi-speaking and Hindi-speaking areas. The Punjabi Suba movement, led by Akali leaders such as Master Tara Singh and Sant Fateh Singh, demanded a Punjabi-speaking state. In 1966 the government accepted the idea, and the Shah Commission (headed by Justice J. C. Shah) suggested the new boundaries.
Passed by Parliament under Article 3. From 1 November 1966: the Punjabi-speaking areas stayed as Punjab; the Hindi-speaking areas became Haryana; the hill areas went to Himachal Pradesh (then a union territory); and Chandigarh became a union territory and the shared capital of Punjab and Haryana.
Union territories today, and Jammu and Kashmir
Areas run by the Centre: eight of them since 2020.
A union territory (UT) is run directly by the Centre. The President governs it through an Administrator, often called the Lieutenant Governor. UTs are covered in Part VIII, Articles 239 to 241. Three UTs have their own elected legislature: Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir.
| Union territory | Since | High Court |
|---|---|---|
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 1956 | Calcutta |
| Lakshadweep | 1956 | Kerala |
| Delhi (National Capital Territory) | 1956 | Delhi |
| Puducherry | 1962 | Madras |
| Chandigarh | 1966 | Punjab and Haryana |
| Jammu and Kashmir | 2019 | J&K and Ladakh |
| Ladakh | 2019 | J&K and Ladakh |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | 2020 | Bombay |
On 5 August 2019 a Presidential order applied the whole Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir, so the special provisions under Article 370 stopped working. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 split the state into two UTs from 31 October 2019: Jammu and Kashmir (with a legislature) and Ladakh (without one). The Supreme Court upheld this in December 2023.
Delhi and the special provisions (also asked)Tap to open
The 69th Amendment (1991) added Article 239AA. It made Delhi the National Capital Territory, with an elected Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers under a Chief Minister. But public order, police and land stay with the Centre. Article 239AB deals with failure of the constitutional machinery in Delhi.
| Article | Special provisions for |
|---|---|
| 371 | Maharashtra and Gujarat (development boards) |
| 371A | Nagaland |
| 371B | Assam |
| 371C | Manipur |
| 371D, 371E | Andhra Pradesh and Telangana |
| 371F | Sikkim |
| 371G | Mizoram |
| 371H | Arunachal Pradesh |
| 371I | Goa |
| 371J | Karnataka (Hyderabad-Karnataka region) |
Everything on one look
Articles, dates, Punjab facts and the traps.
- Part I: Articles 1 to 4
- 28 states, 8 union territories
- 4 classes of states in 1950 (A, B, C, D)
- 14 states and 6 UTs after 1956
- UTs: Part VIII, Articles 239 to 241
- 3 UTs with legislatures: Delhi, Puducherry, J&K
- 1953: Andhra, first language-based state
- 1953: Fazl Ali Commission set up
- 1956: States Reorganisation Act; 7th Amendment; PEPSU into Punjab
- 1 Nov 1966: Haryana formed; Chandigarh a UT
- 1975: Sikkim a state (36th Amendment)
- 2014: Telangana
- 31 Oct 2019: J&K and Ladakh UTs
- Article 2 is for land from outside India; Article 3 is for land inside India.
- Under Article 3 a state's views are taken, but its consent is not needed.
- Laws under Articles 2 and 3 are not constitutional amendments (Article 4); a simple majority is enough.
- Territory of India (states + UTs + acquired land) is wider than the Union of India (states only).
- Giving land to another country needs an Article 368 amendment (Berubari, 1960).
- Andhra (1953) was the first language-based state, before the 1956 Act.
- The 7th Amendment (1956) ended the Part A, B, C, D classes.
- Haryana and the UT of Chandigarh date from 1966, not 1956.
- Ladakh is a UT without a legislature; J&K is a UT with one.
- Article 1: India, that is Bharat, a Union of States
- Article 2: admit or establish new states
- Article 3: form new states, change boundaries and names
- Article 4: such laws are not Article 368 amendments
- First Schedule: names and areas of states and UTs
- Fourth Schedule: Rajya Sabha seats of states
- First language-based state: Andhra, 1953
- States Reorganisation Commission: Fazl Ali, 1953
- Members: K. M. Panikkar, H. N. Kunzru
- Punjab–Haryana boundary: Shah Commission, 1966
- Haryana formed: 1 November 1966
- Chandigarh: UT since 1966; Punjab Governor is Administrator
- Sikkim: 36th Amendment, 1975
- Delhi as NCT: 69th Amendment, Article 239AA
- J&K split into two UTs: 31 October 2019
- UT High Courts: Parliament decides (Article 241)
A new state is to be carved out of an existing state, but that state's assembly votes against it. Can Parliament still create the new state? What majority does it need?
Show answer
Yes. Under Article 3, the President must send the Bill to the state legislature for its views, but Parliament is not bound by them. Because of Article 4, the law is not a constitutional amendment, so a simple majority in Parliament is enough.