The Mizoram Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of Mizoram state in Northeast India. The seat of the legislative assembly is at Aizawl, the capital of the state. The assembly comprises 40 members[1] directly elected from single-seat constituencies. It sits for a term of five years, unless it is dissolved earlier.[2]: 72 Early dissolution of state assemblies happens when the governing party (or alliance) loses confidence of the assembly. This leads to either the President's Rule being imposed on the state, or early elections being called. Mizoram is the fourth-smallest state in India, covering 21,081 km2 (8,139 sq mi); and the second-least populous state with a population of 1.10 million.[3] The Mizoram Legislative Assembly has existed since 1972, when it had 30 constituencies.
Mizoram Legislative Assembly | |
|---|---|
| 7th Legislative Assembly of Mizoram | |
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
Term limits | 5 years |
| Seats | 40 |
| Elections | |
| First past the post | |
Last election | November 2023 |
| Meeting place | |
 | |
| Legislative Assembly House, Aizawl, Mizoram, India – 796001 | |
| Website | |
| www.mizoramassembly.in | |
Since the independence of India, the Scheduled Tribes (ST) along with the Scheduled Castes (SC) have been given Reservation status, guaranteeing political representation, and the Constitution lays down the general principles of positive discrimination for STs and SCs.[2]: 35, 137 [4] The 2011 census of India stated that the indigenous population constitutes 95% of the state's total population.[5][6] The Scheduled Tribes have been granted a reservation of 39 seats in the Mizoram assembly, leaving only one (Aizawl East-I) unreserved.[7]
History
Mizoram became a Union Territory of India in 1972, at which time it was assigned a 30-member legislative assembly and it had its first election.[8] In 1986, after the Mizoram Peace Accord was signed, the 53rd Amendment to the Constitution of India was passed. Mizoram was officially converted into a state in February 1987, and the number of constituencies for its legislative assembly was increased to 40.[9][10]
| Year | Act/Order | Effect | Assembly Seats | Elections | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | General | ST | ||||
| 1971 | North-Eastern Areas (Reorganisation) Act[11] | Assam state's Mizo hills area was converted into the separate Union Territory of Mizoram. | 30 | 30 | 0 | 1972[8] |
| 1976 | 30 | 3 | 27 | 1978[12] | ||
| 1978 | 30 | 30 | 0 | 1979,[13] 1984[14] | ||
| 1986 | Mizoram Peace Accord | Mizoram was given full statehood after the Mizoram Peace Accord, and the number of seats in the legislative assembly was increased to 40. | 40 | 2 | 38 | 1987[15] |
| 1987 | There was an increase in the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes. | 40 | 1 | 39 | 1989,[16] 1993,[17] 1998,[18] 2003,[19] 2008,[20] 2013,[21] 2018,[22] 2023[23] | |
Constituencies
The following is the list of constituencies of the Mizoram Legislative Assembly, since the last delimitation in 2008.[7]
Reservation