Formation of new States and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing States
Article 3 of the Constitution of India deals with formation of new States and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing States. Parliament may by law— (a) form a new State by separation of territory from any State or by uniting two or more States or parts of States or by uniting any territory to a part of any State; The Constitution came into force on 26 Jan 1950.
Parliament may by law—
(a) form a new State by separation of territory from any State or by uniting two or more States or parts of States or by uniting any territory to a part of any State;
(b) increase the area of any State;
(c) diminish the area of any State;
(d) alter the boundaries of any State;
(e) alter the name of any State:
THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA (Part I.—Union and its territory) [Provided that no Bill for the purpose shall be introduced in either House of Parliament except on the recommendation of the President and unless, where the proposal contained in the Bill affects the area, boundaries or name of any of the States , the Bill has been referred by the President to the Legislature of that State for expressing its views thereon within such period as may be specified in the reference or within such further period as the President may allow and the period so specified or allowed has expired.] [Explanation I.—In this article, in clauses (a) to (e), “State” includes a Union territory, but in the proviso, “State” does not include a Union territory.
Explanation II.—The power conferred on Parliament by clause (a) includes the power to form a new State or Union territory by uniting a part of any State or Union territory to any other State or Union territory.]
Article 3, The Constitution of India.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 1
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this article, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this article.
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Bhim Singh vs U. O. I
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The MPLAD Scheme is constitutionally valid and intra vires of the Constitution of India. Article 282 empowers the Union to make grants for public purpose irrespective of whether subject matter falls under Seventh Schedule. Appropriation Acts passed annually by Parliament satisfy Article 266(3) requirement for 'law' governing expenditure from Consolidated Fund; no separate substantive enactment required. The Scheme does not violate separation of powers as MPs' function is limited to recommending works while actual implementation, verification, and approval authority vests in District Authorities. The Scheme supplements rather than supplants Panchayat and Municipal functions. Adequate accountability mechanisms exist through completion certificates, audit certificates, utilization certificates, software monitoring, and parliamentary oversight.
On this article: Referenced to illustrate quasi-federal nature of Indian Constitution where Center has unilateral powers
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Telangana Judges Association vs Union of India
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
The allocation of subordinate judicial officers following state bifurcation must be based on seniority as the primary criterion, with secondary consideration given to the state in which the officer's declared home district falls, and must be done by the Central Government after due consultation with the High Court. Article 371D does not apply to judicial services, and domicile cannot be the sole or primary basis for allocation as it violates Article 16(2) of the Constitution and the constitutional scheme of judicial independence vested in the High Court under Article 235. The High Court has exclusive jurisdiction to formulate guidelines for allocation, but the final allocation order is issued by the Central Government. Seniority is a valuable right that cannot be taken away due to state reorganisation, and officers who were senior in the combined seniority list cannot be made junior by prioritizing nativity over seniority.
On this article: Grants Parliament power to form new States from existing States, subject to constitutional scheme
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Ranjan Sinha vs Ajay Kumar Vishwakarma
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
When a state is reorganized and a new state is formed by transferring territories from the parent state, the First Register of pharmacists prepared by the parent state under Section 30 of the Pharmacy Act, 1948 continues to be the First Register for the newly formed state to the extent it contains pharmacists whose residential addresses fall within the territories of the new state. The newly formed state cannot prepare a fresh First Register under Section 30. All subsequent registrations must comply with the Education Regulations framed by the Pharmacy Council of India under Section 10 of the Act. Sections 84 and 85 of the Bihar Reorganization Act, 2000 ensure continuity of laws from the parent state to the new state, and the First Register published by the parent state has the force of law and cannot be re-prepared by the new state.
On this article: Parliament's power to form new states, alter boundaries, and reorganize territories
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Questions about Article 3
What have the courts held on Article 3 of the Constitution of India?
Bhim Singh vs U. O. I (06 May 2010) is the leading judgment on this article among those set out below: Referenced to illustrate quasi-federal nature of Indian Constitution where Center has unilateral powers. Another 2 judgments on this article are set out below, all of them from the Supreme Court. They run from 2010 to 2018.
How do I find court cases under Article 3 of the Constitution of India?
In judgments and charge sheets this article is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Article 3, Art. 3, article 3 of the Constitution of India. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 3 reported judgments on this article are set out on this page, beginning with Bhim Singh vs U. O. I (06 May 2010).
What should I read with Article 3 of the Constitution of India, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it.
When did Article 3 of the Constitution of India come into force?
Article 3 of the Constitution of India, cited as Article 3, came into force on 26 Jan 1950, having been enacted on 26 Nov 1949. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other articles of the Constitution
- 371D. Special provisions with respect to [the State of Andhra Pradesh or the State of Telangana1292 words
- 366. Definitions1280 words
- 371A. Special provision with respect to the State of Nagaland1245 words
- 371F. Special provisions with respect to the State of Sikkim1039 words
- 239AA. Special provisions with respect to Delhi1001 words
- 352. Proclamation of Emergency897 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Recovered from The Constitution of India in English 2026, the consolidated text published by India Code (item 544213ec-4072-44b2-a6fc-69fb84df2001). English only: the official translations are not reproduced here. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.