Article 321

Legislative Extension of PSC Functions to Local Authorities and Public Corporations

Official heading: “Power to extend functions of Public Service Commissions”

Check this article against the official editionAwaiting human legal review

Source edition: The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
Source locator: Part XIV, Article 321, printed page 182
Last human source-link check: Not yet checked
Last human legal review: Not yet reviewed

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1. In One Sentence

Authorizes Parliament or a State Legislature to expand the jurisdiction of Public Service Commissions to cover local authorities, statutory corporations, and public institutions.

2. What It Means in Everyday Language

While Article 320 sets out the core civil service functions of Public Service Commissions, Article 321 allows the Legislature to add more responsibilities.

Parliament (for UPSC) or a State Legislature (for SPSC) can pass an Act directing the Commission to conduct recruitments for municipal corporations, panchayats, statutory boards, or public universities.

This ensures that autonomous public bodies can utilize the transparent, merit-based selection systems of the constitutional Commissions.

3. Practical Illustrative Example

Everyday Scenario:

A State Legislature passes an Act assigning the recruitment of municipal commissioners and town planning engineers to the State Public Service Commission.

Core takeaway: Article 321 explicitly authorizes this expansion of jurisdiction through state legislation.

Illustrative Notice: The extension of functions must be made by an Act of the appropriate Legislature, not by mere executive order.

4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions

Article 321 allows constitutional recruitment standards to be extended across the broader public sector.

Statutory requirement: Functions can only be extended by an Act of Parliament or the State Legislature.
Institutional scope: Covers local authorities (municipalities, panchayats), corporate bodies, and public universities.
Prevents backdoor recruitment: Helps curb political patronage in statutory boards and municipal recruitment.

5. Operative Constitutional Text

An Act made by Parliament or, as the case may be, the Legislature of a State may provide for the exercise of additional functions by the Union Public Service Commission or the State Public Service Commission as respects the services of the Union or the State and also as respects the services of any local authority or other body corporate constituted by law or of any public institution.

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 XIV, Article 321, printed page 182 • 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