Sixth Schedule Autonomous District Councils

The Sixth Schedule establishes autonomous tribal self-government through elected District and Regional Councils with powers over specified local matters. Under Article 244(2), it applies to designated tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, where councils exercise limited legislative, administrative, judicial and fiscal authority rather than sovereign power.

Territorial and institutional framework

The Governor may organise tribal areas into autonomous districts and create autonomous regions for distinct Scheduled Tribes within a district.

• The basic Schedule model provides a District Council of up to 30 members, with not more than four nominated by the Governor and the others elected on adult suffrage.
• A District Council exercises authority outside an autonomous region, while the relevant Regional Council is the primary council within that region.
• The Governor may alter boundaries, create or unite autonomous districts or regions, and change their names after following the prescribed constitutional process.

Legislative powers over local and customary matters

Under Paragraph 3, District and Regional Councils may make laws on subjects closely connected with tribal land, institutions and customs within their territorial jurisdiction.

• Their competence covers land allotment and use, management of non-reserved forests, agricultural watercourses, shifting cultivation and village or town administration.
• They may legislate on the appointment or succession of chiefs and headmen and on inheritance, marriage, divorce and social customs.
• Councils may regulate money-lending and trading by persons who are not Scheduled Tribes, subject to the special requirements of the Schedule.
• A law made under Paragraph 3 takes effect only after receiving the Governor's assent.

Judicial, administrative and fiscal powers

The Schedule enables councils to administer local services, resolve certain tribal disputes and raise revenue for autonomous governance.

• Councils may constitute village councils or courts for specified suits and cases in which all parties are members of Scheduled Tribes, with appeals arranged under the Schedule.
• The Governor may confer specified powers under the civil and criminal procedure laws upon councils or their courts for designated cases.
• District Councils may establish or manage primary schools, dispensaries, markets, ferries and roads, and may regulate primary education as provided by the Schedule.
• Councils may assess and collect land revenue and levy specified taxes on lands, buildings, professions, trades, animals, vehicles, entry of goods, markets and related local subjects.
• District Councils maintain district funds and may receive a share of mineral royalties from licences or leases granted within their autonomous districts.

Constitutional limits and the Uniform Civil Code

Council autonomy operates within the Constitution and is affected by the Schedule's state-specific provisions governing the application of parliamentary and state laws.

• Council laws remain subject to Fundamental Rights and other constitutional limitations.
• The Governor has constitutionally assigned roles concerning assent, application of laws, territorial reorganisation and, in specified circumstances, council administration.
• Article 44 directs the State to endeavour to secure a Uniform Civil Code, but it does not by itself repeal council laws or extinguish Sixth Schedule competence.
• The interaction between customary-law powers and a general civil law depends on that law's territorial application and the relevant Sixth Schedule provisions.