RAS question
Residuary powers of legislation under the Indian Constitution vest with:
Correct answer: (A) Parliament.
Under Article 248 of the Indian Constitution, residuary powers of legislation vest exclusively with Parliament.
Explanation
Article 248 settles the allocation of residuary legislative power in clear terms: Parliament has exclusive power to make laws on any matter that is not enumerated in the Concurrent List or the State List. Read with Entry 97 of the Union List, this means that subjects left out of the three constitutional lists do not fall to the states by default; they fall to Parliament. The provision also includes the power to make a law imposing a tax not mentioned in the relevant lists. Therefore, when a RAS question asks where residuary powers of legislation vest under the Indian Constitution, the constitutionally precise answer is Parliament, not the states, a shared authority, or the President.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) State legislatures are confined to their constitutionally assigned fields and do not receive residuary legislative power under Article 248.
- (C) Residuary legislative power is not shared, because Article 248 gives Parliament exclusive power over matters not enumerated in the relevant lists.
- (D) The President of India is not the holder of residuary legislative power; Article 248 vests that power in Parliament.
Concept
This tests Centre-state legislative distribution under the Seventh Schedule and Article 248. It recurs in RAS because residuary powers mark the Constitution's federal tilt towards the Union.