Puducherry Legislative Assembly

Puducherry Legislative Assembly
Puducherry Legislative Assembly
16th Puducherry Assembly
Type
Type	Unicameral
Term limits	5 years
Leadership
Lieutenant Governor	K. Kailashnathan ; since 7 August 2024
Speaker	Vacant
Deputy Speaker	Vacant
Chief Minister ; (Leader of the House)	Vacant
Leader of the Opposition	Vacant
Structure
Seats	33
Political groups	Government (19); NDA (19) AINRC (12); BJP (4); AIADMK (1); LJK (1); IND (1); Official Opposition (5) DMK (5); Other Opposition (6); TVK+ (4) TVK (2); INC (1); NMK (1); IND (2)
Elections
Voting system	30 seats elected via First past the post; 3 seats nominated by the Lieutenant Governor;
First election	11 August 1959
Last election	9 April 2026
Next election	2031
Meeting place
	Chief Secretariat of Puducherry, Puducherry, Puducherry
Website
	www.py.gov.in

The Puducherry Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian union territory (UT) of Puducherry, which comprises four districts: Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahé and Yanam. Out of eight union territories of India, only three have legislatures and they are Delhi^{[note 1]}, Puducherry^{[note 2]} and Jammu and Kashmir^{[note 3]}. After delimitation shortly after its formation, the Puducherry legislative assembly has 33 seats, of which 3 members are nominated by the Government of India and 30 members are elected directly by the people based on universal adult franchise . The nominated members enjoy the same powers as elected members of the assembly. 5 seats out of 30 directly contested seats are reserved for candidates from scheduled castes.

Geographically, the area under the Puducherry UT consists of three disjointed regions, with Puducherry and Karaikal districts surrounded by districts of Tamil Nadu, Yanam district an enclave of East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, and Mahé district bordered by districts of Kerala. The four districts were ruled by the French before they were integrated into India in 1962. For ease of administration, during French rule, the area under these four districts was divided into 39 assembly constituencies. After becoming a UT of India, Puducherry was divided into 30 assembly constituencies, which were restructured in 2005 by the Delimitation Commission of India.

History

Assembly during French rule

In 1946, French India (Inde française) became Overseas territory (Territoire d'outre-mer) of France. Then a Representative Assembly (Assemblée représentative) was created. Thus, in 1946, on 25 October, the representative assembly of 44 members has replaced the general council (conseil général).^[3] The Representative Assembly had 44 seats until merger of Chandernagore in 1951. Later, it reduced to 39 seats.

Merger and formation of Union Territory

The French government transferred the four enclaves to the Indian Union under a de facto treaty on 1 November 1954.^[4] Later the territory was merged with India on 16 August 1962.

On 10 May 1963, the Indian Parliament enacted the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 that came into force on 1 July 1963. This introduced the same pattern of government that prevailed in the rest of the country, but subject to certain limitations.^[5] Under Article 239 of the Indian Constitution, the President of India appoints an Administrator LG with such designation as he may specify to head the administration of the territory. The President also appoints the Chief Minister. The President, on the advice of the Chief Minister, appoints the other Ministers. The Union Territories Act, 1963 limits the number of elected members of the assembly to 30 and allows the central government to appoint not more than 3 nominated MLAs. The same act ensures that seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes in the legislative assembly.

The Representative Assembly was converted into the Legislative Assembly of Pondicherry on 1 July 1963 as per Section 54(3) of The Union Territories Act, 1963^[5] and its members were deemed to have been elected to the Assembly.^[6]^: 966 Thus, the First Legislative Assembly was formed without an election. Elections for the assembly have been held since 1964.

Languages

Puducherry has five official names, owing to its linguistic diversity, past French heritage, and the legacy of British India.^[7] The legislative assembly is referred to as follows:

English: Puducherry Legislative Assembly
French: Assemblée législative de Poudouchéry
Tamil: புதுச்சேரி சட்டப் பேரவை, romanized: Puduccēri Caṭṭap Pēravai
Telugu: పుదుచ్చేరి శాసనసభ, romanized: Puduccēri Śāsanasabha
Malayalam: പുതുച്ചേരി നിയമസഭ, romanized: Puduccēri Niyamasabha

List of the assemblies

Assembly (Election)	Ruling Party	Chief Minister	Speaker	Deputy Speaker	Leader of the House	Leader of the Opposition
1st (1959)	Indian National Congress	Edouard Goubert	A. S. Gangeyan	Kamisetty Parasuram Naidu	Edouard Goubert	V. Subbiah
2nd (1964)	Indian National Congress	V. Venkatasubba Reddiar M. O. H. Farook V. Venkatasubba Reddiar	M. O. H. Farook P. Shanmugam S. Manicka Vasagam	V. N. Purushothaman	V. Venkatasubba Reddiar M. O. H. Farook V. Venkatasubba Reddiar	V. Subbiah
3rd (1969)	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	M. O. H. Farook	S. Perumal M. L. Selvaradjou	M. L. Selvaradjou Kamisetty Parasuram Naidu	M. O. H. Farook	P. Shanmugam
4th (1974)	All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	S. Ramassamy	S. Pakkiam	Vacant	S. Ramassamy	Dana Kantharaj
5th (1977)	All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	S. Ramassamy	K. Kanthi	S. Pazhaninathan	S. Ramassamy	P. Ansari Doraisamy
6th (1980)	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	M. D. R. Ramachandran	M. O. H. Farook	L. Joseph Mariadoss	M. D. R. Ramachandran	P. Uthiravelu
7th (1985)	Indian National Congress	M. O. H. Farook	Kamisetty Parasuram Naidu M. Chandirakasu	M. Chandirakasu P. K. Sathianandan	M. O. H. Farook	P. K. Loganathan
8th (1990)	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	M. D. R. Ramachandran	G. Palaniraja	A. Bhakthavatsalam	M. D. R. Ramachandran	M. O. H. Farook
9th (1991)	Indian National Congress	V. Vaithilingam	P. Kannan	A. V. Subramanian	V. Vaithilingam	V. M. C. V. Ganapathy
10th (1996)	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	R. V. Janakiraman	V. M. C. Sivakumar M. Kandasamy	V. Nagarathinam M. Kandasamy	R. V. Janakiraman	V. Vaithilingam
10th (1996)	Indian National Congress	P. Shanmugam	A. V. Subramanian	K. Rajasekaran	P. Shanmugam	R. V. Janakiraman
11th (2001)	Indian National Congress	P. Shanmugam N. Rangasamy	M. D. R. Ramachandran	M. Chandirakasu A. V. Subramanian	P. Shanmugam N. Rangasamy	R. V. Janakiraman
12th (2006)	Indian National Congress	N. Rangasamy V. Vaithilingam	R. Radhakrishnan	A. V. Sreedharan	N. Rangasamy V. Vaithilingam	A. M. H. Nazeem
13th (2011)	All India N.R. Congress	N. Rangasamy	V. Sabapathy	T. P. R. Selvame	N. Rangasamy	V. Vaithilingam
14th (2016)	Indian National Congress	V. Narayanasamy	V. Vaithilingam V. P. Sivakolundhu	V. P. Sivakolundhu M. N. R. Balan	V. Narayanasamy	N. Rangasamy
15th (2021)	All India N.R. Congress	N. Rangasamy	Embalam R. Selvam	P. Rajavelu	N. Rangasamy	R. Siva
16th (2026)	All India N.R. Congress	N. Rangasamy	TBA	TBA	N. Rangasamy	A. M. H. Nazeem

Members of the Legislative Assembly

AINRC (11) DMK (5) BJP (4) IND (3) TVK (2) AIADMK (1) INC (1) LJK (1) NMK (1) Vacant (1)
District	Constituency			Elected member	Political party	Alliance	Remarks
District	No.	Name	Reservation	Elected member	Political party	Alliance	Remarks
Puducherry	1	Mannadipet	General	A. Namassivayam	BJP	NDA
	2	Thirubhuvanai	SC	A. K. Sai J. Saravanan Kumar	TVK	INDIA
	3	Oussudu	SC	P. Karthikeyan	INC	INDIA
	4	Mangalam	General	N. Rangasamy	AINRC	NDA	Chief Minister
	5	Villianur	General	B. Ravicoumar	AINRC	NDA
	6	Ozhukarai	General	K. Narayanasamy Alias Nithyanandam	AINRC	NDA
	7	Kadirgamam	General	Azhagu Alias Azhaganantham	IND	None
	8	Indira Nagar	General	P. V. Aroumougame Alias AKD	AINRC	NDA
	9	Thattanchavady	General	Vacant
	10	Kamaraj Nagar	General	Jose Charles Martin	LJK	NDA
	11	Lawspet	General	V. P. Sivakolundhu	AINRC	NDA
	12	Kalapet	General	Senthil Alias Ramesh	DMK	None
	13	Muthialpet	General	Vaiyapuri Manikandan	AINRC	NDA
	14	Raj Bhavan	General	Vignesh Kannan	DMK	None
	15	Oupalam	General	A. Anbalagan	AIADMK	NDA
	16	Orleampeth	General	G. Nehru Alias Couppoussamy	NMK	INDIA
	17	Nellithope	General	V. Cartigueyane	DMK	None
	18	Mudaliarpet	General	A. Johnkumar	BJP	NDA
	19	Ariankuppam	General	C. Aiyappan Alias Mouttayappan	AINRC	NDA
	20	Manavely	General	B. Ramu	TVK	INDIA
	21	Embalam	SC	E. Mohandoss	AINRC	NDA
	22	Nettapakkam	SC	P. Rajavelu	AINRC	NDA
	23	Bahour	General	R. Senthilkumar	DMK	None
Karaikal	24	Nedungadu	SC	V. Vigneswaran	IND	None
	25	Thirunallar	General	G. N. S. Rajasekaran	BJP	NDA
	26	Karaikal North	General	P. R. N. Thirumurugan	AINRC	NDA
	27	Karaikal South	General	A. M. H. Nazeem	DMK	None
	28	Neravy – T. R. Pattinam	General	T. K. S. M. Meenatchisundaram	BJP	NDA
Mahe	29	Mahe	General	Adv. T. Ashok Kumar	IND	None
Yanam	30	Yanam	General	Malladi Krishna Rao	AINRC	NDA

Party position

No. of MLAs	Leader of the party
All India N.R. Congress	12	N. Rangasamy
Bharatiya Janata Party	4	A. Namassivayam
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	1	A. Anbalagan
Latchiya Jananayaka Katchi	1	Jose Charles Martin
Nominated	3	N/A
Government - National Democratic Alliance	21	N. Rangasamy
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam	2	TBA
Indian National Congress	1	P. Karthikeyan
Neyam Makkal Kazhagam	1	G. Nehru Alias Couppoussamy
Independent	3	N/A
Opposition - TVK-led Alliance	7	TBA
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam	5	A. M. H. Nazeem
Others - Secular Progressive Alliance	5	A. M. H. Nazeem

Notes

^ Delhi Assembly existed between 1952 and 1956 as a part C state and re-established in 1993.^[1]
^ Puducherry Assembly exist since 1962.
^ was a state until 2019.^[2]

^ 30 directly elected members and 3 appointed members by the Government of India.

References

^ The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991
^ "Jammu and Kashmir assembly election in 2021 after delimitation: EC sources". Zee News. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
^ Weber, Jacques (1988). Les établissements français en Inde au XIXe siècle, 1816–1914 (4). FeniXX. ISBN 978-2-402-11912-2.
^ "Treaty establishing De Jure Cession of French Establishments in India". Ministry of External Affairs. Media Center (Government of India). 1956.
^ ^a ^b "The Government of Union Territories Act, 1963" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
^ Malhotra, G. C. (1964). Cabinet Responsibility to Legislature. Metropolitan Book Co. Pvt. Ltd. p. 464. ISBN 978-81-200-0400-9. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^ "Parliamentary Debates: Official Report, Volume 208, Issues 18–19". Council of States Secretariat. 2006. p. 263. Retrieved 19 October 2024.

External links

[3] Delhi Assembly existed between 1952 and 1956 as a part C state and re-established in 1993.^[1]

[4] Puducherry Assembly exist since 1962.

[6] was a state until 2019.^[2]

[1] 30 directly elected members and 3 appointed members by the Government of India.

[2] The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991

[5] "Jammu and Kashmir assembly election in 2021 after delimitation: EC sources". Zee News. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2022.

[7] Weber, Jacques (1988). Les établissements français en Inde au XIXe siècle, 1816–1914 (4). FeniXX. ISBN 978-2-402-11912-2.

[8] "Treaty establishing De Jure Cession of French Establishments in India". Ministry of External Affairs. Media Center (Government of India). 1956.

[1963Act-9] "The Government of Union Territories Act, 1963" (PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved 8 June 2020.

[ref2004-10] Malhotra, G. C. (1964). Cabinet Responsibility to Legislature. Metropolitan Book Co. Pvt. Ltd. p. 464. ISBN 978-81-200-0400-9. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)

[11] "Parliamentary Debates: Official Report, Volume 208, Issues 18–19". Council of States Secretariat. 2006. p. 263. Retrieved 19 October 2024.

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v t e Legislature of the Puducherry
Legislatures after de-facto transfer in 1954	1st 2nd
Legislatures	1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th
Related	State legislative assemblies of India Puducherry Lok Sabha constituency Government of Puducherry Elections in Puducherry

v t e Assembly constituencies of Puducherry
Constituencies	Ariankuppam Bahour Embalam Indira Nagar Kadirkamam Kalapet Kamaraj Nagar Karaikal North Karaikal South Lawspet Mahe Manavely Mangalam Mannadipet Mudaliarpet Muthialpet Nedungadu Nellithope Neravy T. R. Pattinam Nettapakkam Orleampeth Ossudu Oupalam Ozhukarai Raj Bhavan Thattanchavady Thirubuvanai Thirunallar Villianur Yanam
Nominated	Nominated (3)
Former constituencies	Bussy Cassicade Cotchery Grandi Aldee Kuruchikuppam Kuruvinatham Oulgaret Palloor Poudousaram Reddiarpalayam
Related Topics	List of constituencies of the Puducherry Legislative Assembly Elections in Puducherry

v t e Elections in Puducherry
General elections	1967 1971 1977 1980 1984 1989 1991 1996 1998 1999 2004 2009 2014 2019 2024
Legislative Assembly	1946 1951 1955 1959 1964 1969 1974 1977 1980 1985 1990 1991 1996 2001 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026
See also: Elections in India