Article 245

Territorial Extent of Parliamentary and State Legislation

Official heading: “Extent of laws made by Parliament and by the Legislatures of States”

Check this article against the official editionAwaiting human legal review

Source edition: The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
Source locator: Part XI, Article 245, printed pages 146–147
Last human source-link check: Not yet checked
Last human legal review: Not yet reviewed

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1. In One Sentence

Demarcates the territorial boundaries of legislative power, authorizing Parliament to make laws for all of India with extra-territorial effect, and State Legislatures for their respective States.

2. What It Means in Everyday Language

Article 245 defines the territorial reach of legislative power in India.

Parliament can make laws for the entire territory of India or any part thereof. Clause (2) explicitly clarifies that no Act of Parliament can be declared invalid merely because it operates extraterritorially (beyond Indian borders, provided there is a nexus with India).

A State Legislature can make laws only for the whole or any part of that particular State. State laws cannot have extraterritorial operation unless there is an extraordinary territorial nexus with the object or subject matter.

3. Practical Illustrative Example

Everyday Scenario:

Parliament passes an information technology and cybercrime law that penalizes cyberattacks launched from overseas servers against Indian infrastructure.

Core takeaway: Under Article 245(2), Parliament’s law is constitutionally valid even though the offender acts outside Indian territory, because Parliament has plenary extraterritorial legislative authority.

Illustrative Notice: A State Legislature cannot enact a similar extraterritorial law punishing overseas conduct unless a direct, real, and substantial territorial nexus with that specific State is established.

4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions

Article 245 establishes territorial jurisdiction while subordinating all legislative power to the Constitution.

Subject to constitutional provisions: Both Parliament and State Legislatures are constrained by Fundamental Rights and constitutional limits.
Extraterritorial plenary power: Only Parliament possesses plenary authority to enact laws with extraterritorial consequences.
Doctrine of territorial nexus: State laws apply strictly within state borders unless a real and substantial connection to the State is proven.

5. Operative Constitutional Text

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, Parliament may make laws for the whole or any part of the territory of India, and the Legislature of a State may make laws for the whole or any part of the State. (2) No law made by Parliament shall be deemed to be invalid on the ground that it would have extra-territorial operation.

Transcription for reference; compare with the linked official editionNot yet verified by a human legal reviewer

6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations

Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.

Sources & Citation Metadata

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Constitutional TextThe Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)Cited PDF page
Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part XI, Article 245, printed pages 146–147 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.

Human legal review is pending; compare the text with the cited editionNon-partisan educational resource