Article 254

Doctrine of Repugnancy in Concurrent Legislative Powers

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

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Source edition: The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
Source locator: Part XI, Article 254, printed pages 150–151
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1. In One Sentence

Resolves conflicts between Central and State laws on Concurrent List matters, establishing parliamentary supremacy subject to Presidential assent.

2. What It Means in Everyday Language

Article 254 is the constitutional mechanism for resolving repugnancy between Central and State legislation enacted on subjects in the Concurrent List (List III).

Clause (1) establishes the general rule: if a State law on a Concurrent List subject is inconsistent with or repugnant to a law made by Parliament, the Parliamentary law prevails and the State law is void to the extent of the repugnancy.

Clause (2) creates an important federal exception: if a State law on a Concurrent matter has been reserved for the consideration of the President and has received Presidential assent, that State law prevails in that particular State despite being repugnant to an earlier Parliamentary law.

However, the proviso to clause (2) preserves parliamentary ultimate supremacy: Parliament can at any time enact further legislation amending, varying, or repealing the State law that received Presidential assent.

3. Practical Illustrative Example

Everyday Scenario:

A State Legislature amends criminal procedure to require special bail conditions for certain offenses, which conflicts with the Central Code of Criminal Procedure.

Core takeaway: If the State reserves the Bill and the President grants assent under Article 254(2), the State’s special bail law prevails in that State.

Illustrative Notice: Parliament can subsequently override the state law by enacting an amendment specifically varying or overriding it.

4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions

Article 254 governs repugnancy strictly within the Concurrent List.

Concurrent List requirement: Applies only when both statutes are in pith and substance within List III.
Presidential assent exception: A state law can prevail locally over an earlier Union law if reserved for and granted presidential assent.
Parliamentary override: Parliament retains ultimate power under the proviso to enact subsequent overrides.

5. Operative Constitutional Text

(1) If any provision of a law made by the Legislature of a State is repugnant to any provision of a law made by Parliament which Parliament is competent to enact, or to any provision of an existing law with respect to one of the matters enumerated in the Concurrent List, then, subject to the provisions of clause (2), the law made by Parliament, whether passed before or after the law made by the Legislature of such State, or, as the case may be, the existing law, shall prevail and the law made by the Legislature of the State shall, to the extent of the repugnancy, be void. (2) Where a law made by the Legislature of a State with respect to one of the matters enumerated in the Concurrent List contains any provision repugnant to the provisions of an earlier law made by Parliament or an existing law with respect to that matter, then, the law so made by the Legislature of such State shall, if it has been reserved for the consideration of the President and has received his assent, prevail in that State: Provided that nothing in this clause shall prevent Parliament from enacting at any time any law with respect to the same matter including a law adding to, amending, varying or repealing the law so made by the Legislature of the State.

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 254, printed pages 150–151 • 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