Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)

Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)

Members of Vidhan Sabha are called Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA). MLA's are the elected representative of the constituency from which they fight the state elections. They are responsible for working on the development of their constituency, amongst other things. Additionally, MLAs are also responsible for drafting and proposing bills which are introduced in Legislative Assembly. It is only MLA's have the power to introduce Money Bills* in the state legislature.

In matters concerning government formation, the Members of Legislative Assembly are preferred over Members of Legislative Council, and hence, a vast majority of any ministry consists of MLAs. MLAs serve for a term of 5 years. To become an MLA, a person must be a citizen of India. Additionally, they need to be a minimum of 25 years of age, be mentally sound, and not be bankrupt. They must also be enrolled on the voters' list of the state from which they are contesting an election, and they may not be a Member of Parliament.

*"A Bill is said to be a Money Bill if it only contains provisions related to taxation, borrowing of money by the government, expenditure from or receipt to the Consolidated Fund of India. Bills that only contain provisions that are incidental to these matters would also be regarded as Money Bills"