Constitution of India:

Constitution of India:

According to the Constitution, elections are held once in every five years, unless the parliament dissolves earlier or on the other hand, emergency is declared. Parliament consists of two houses viz. The Lower House or the Lok Sabha and the Upper House or the Rajya Sabha. The Rajya Sabha consists of up to 250 members, out of which 230 members are elected by state legislatures and about 15 are nominated by the President.

Most of the parliamentary activities like passing the laws, no-confidence votes, budget bills, etc. takes place in the Lower House and hence the Upper House together with the Lower House amends the Constitution. These two Houses together with the state legislatures also elect the President.

The states have their own legislatures. Some states have two Houses and some only one House. The Lower House where most of the legislature activities happen is called the Vidhan Sabha. The elections are held every five years unless the state government is dissolved earlier. In these elections members for the Lower House are elected. The head of a state is called Chief Minister, who is also the member of the Lower House. Constitutionally the figurehead of the state is the Governor, who is appointed by the President according to the advice of the national government.