PART XI RELATIONS BETWEEN THE UNION AND THE STATES · CHAPTER I.— LEGISLATIVE RELATIONS · Distribution of Legislative Powers

Article 248: Residuary powers of legislation

The Constitution of India

(1) ¹[Subject to article 246A, Parliament] has exclusive power to make any law with respect to any matter not enumerated in the Concurrent List or State List.

(2) Such power shall include the power of making any law imposing a tax not mentioned in either of those Lists.

Footnotes in the official text

1.Subs. by the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016, s. 3, for "Parliament" (w.e.f. 16-9-2016).

Leading cases

I.C. Golak Nath v. State of Punjab (1967)By 6:5, the Court held that Parliament cannot amend the Constitution so as to take away or abridge fundamental rights, rejecting Sankari Prasad and Sajjan Singh, but left existing amendments in force and dismissed the petitions.
State of West Bengal v. Kesoram Industries Ltd. (2004)The majority upheld State cesses on coal-bearing land, tea estates, brick earth and minor minerals as taxes on land or mineral rights (Entries 49 and 50, List II), held that royalty is not a tax, and overruled Mahanadi Coalfields.

Questions on this article

6 questions in 13 of our papers cite Article 248. Try these from the free papers:

1. The power to make laws with respect to any matter not enumerated in the Concurrent List or the State List, including a tax not mentioned in either of those Lists, is vested by Article 248 in:

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