Article 249 of CoI : Article 249: Power of Parliament to legislate with respect to a matter in the State List in the national interest.

Explanation using Example

Example 1:

Scenario: The Parliament decides to implement a uniform Goods and Services Tax (GST) across India to streamline the tax system and boost the economy.

Situation: The Council of States (Rajya Sabha) passes a resolution with a two-thirds majority, stating that it is in the national interest for the Parliament to legislate on GST, which is typically a matter for the State List.

Action: Based on this resolution, the Parliament enacts a law to implement GST across all states in India, overriding the individual state laws on the matter.

Outcome: The GST law remains in force for one year. If the Council of States passes another resolution before the end of the year, the law continues for another year. If no further resolution is passed, the law ceases to be effective six months after the initial resolution expires, except for actions already taken under the law.

Example 2:

Scenario: There is a severe drought affecting multiple states in India, and the central government believes that a coordinated national policy on water management is necessary.

Situation: The Council of States passes a resolution with a two-thirds majority, declaring that it is expedient in the national interest for the Parliament to legislate on water management, a subject typically under the State List.

Action: The Parliament enacts a comprehensive water management law to address the drought situation, ensuring uniform policies and resource allocation across the affected states.

Outcome: The water management law remains in force for one year. If the Council of States passes another resolution before the end of the year, the law continues for another year. If no further resolution is passed, the law ceases to be effective six months after the initial resolution expires, except for actions already taken under the law.