Chief minister (India)

The Constitution of India sets the principle qualifications one must meet to be eligible to the office of chief minister. A chief minister must be: • a citizen of India. • should be a member of the state legislature • of 25 years of age or more An individual who is not a member of the legislature can be considered the chief minister provided they get themselves elected to the State Legislature within six months from the date of their appointment. Failing which, they would cease to be the chief minister. == Election ==

The chief minister is elected through a majority in the state legislative assembly. This is procedurally established by the vote of confidence in the legislative assembly, as suggested by the governor of the state who is the appointing authority. They are elected for five years. The chief minister holds office at the pleasure of the governor. == Oath ==

Since, according to the constitution, the chief minister is appointed by the governor, the swearing in ceremony is held before the governor of the state. The oath of office The oath of secrecy ==Resignation ==

In the event of a chief minister's resignation, which conventionally occurs after a general election or during a phase of assembly majority transition, the outgoing chief minister holds the informal title of "caretaker" chief minister until the governor either appoints a new chief minister or dissolves the assembly. Since the post is not constitutionally defined, the caretaker chief minister enjoys all the powers of a regular chief minister, but cannot make any major policy decisions or cabinet changes during his or her short tenure as caretaker. ==Remuneration ==

By Article 164 of the constitution of India, remuneration of the chief minister as well as other ministers are to be decided by the respective state legislatures. Until the legislature of the state decides salary, it shall be as specified in the second schedule. The salaries thus vary from state to state. As of 2019, the highest salary is drawn by chief ministers of Telangana, which is and lowest by the chief ministers of Tripura which is legally. == Deputy Chief Minister ==

Various states throughout the history have appointed deputy chief ministers. Despite being not mentioned in the constitution or law, the deputy-chief minister office is often used to pacify factions within the party or coalition. It is similar to the rarely used deputy-prime minister post in the central government of India. During the absence of the chief minister, the deputy-chief minister may chair cabinet meetings and lead the assembly majority. Various deputy chief ministers have also taken the oath of secrecy in line with the one that chief minister takes. This oath has also sparked controversies. == Current list ==