Who administers the Union Territories of India?

The correct answer is President

Key Points

• President:
  • Articles 52 to 78 in Part V of the Constitution deal with the Union executive.
  • The Union executive consists of the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, the council of ministers and the attorney general of India.
  • The president is elected not directly by the people but by members of electoral college consisting of:
    • the elected members of both the Houses of Parliament;
    • the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the states; and
    • the elected members of the legislative assemblies of the Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry
  • The president administers the Union Territories of India.
  • The President’s election is held in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote and the voting is by secret ballot.
  • The President holds office for a term of five years.

Additional Information

• Chief Minister
  • He is the head of the state government.
  • Governor appoints Chief Minister.
  • The chief minister is elected through a majority in the state legislative assembly.
  • The tenure of the Chief Minister is not fixed and he holds his office at the pleasure of the Governor.
  • He is a member of the Inter-State Council and National Development Council which are headed by the Prime Minister.
• Prime Minister of India:
  • The Prime Minister is appointed by the President and other ministers shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.
  • The Prime Minister of India is the Head of the Government of India.
  • He is also the head of the council of ministers.
  • He is the chairman of the cabinet and presides over the meetings of the Cabinet.
  • He acts as the chief advisor to the President of India.
  • The Prime Minister submits his resignation to the President of India.
• Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs):
  • MLAs are elected by the people. 
  • They then become members of the legislative assembly and also form the government.
  • In this way we say that the MLAs represent people.