RAS question
Under which Article can Parliament legislate on a State List subject if Rajya Sabha passes a resolution by a 2/3 majority?
Correct answer: (D) Article 249.
Article 249 empowers Parliament to legislate on a State List matter when the Rajya Sabha declares, by a resolution supported by at least two-thirds of members present and voting, that such legislation is necessary or expedient in the national interest.
Explanation
Article 249 is the specific constitutional route for Parliament to enter the State List on a national-interest basis. The official Constitution text says that, if the Council of States passes a resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting, Parliament may make laws for the whole or any part of India on the State List matter named in that resolution. The resolution can remain in force for a period not exceeding one year. It can also be continued for a further one-year period if another resolution is passed in the same manner. That is why the trigger in the question, a Rajya Sabha two-thirds resolution, points directly to Article 249.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Article 252 applies when two or more State Legislatures consent to Parliament legislating for those States, not when Rajya Sabha alone passes a national-interest resolution.
- (B) Article 253 concerns Parliament's power to implement treaties, agreements, conventions and international conference decisions, so it does not match the Rajya Sabha resolution mechanism in the question.
- (C) Article 250 allows Parliament to legislate on State List matters while a Proclamation of Emergency is in operation, not merely because Rajya Sabha has passed a two-thirds national-interest resolution.
Concept
This tests Centre-State legislative relations under Part XI, especially the exceptional situations in which Parliament may legislate on State List subjects. RAS repeatedly asks this because Articles 249, 250, 252 and 253 look similar but operate through different constitutional triggers.