Difference between Members of Parliament (MP) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)

MP and MLA are two terms that are often used interchangeably when discussing government officials, but they actually refer to two different positions in government.

The main difference is that MPs are officials who are elected to serve in the national parliament whereas MLAs are elected to serve in the state legislature.

Before we move to the differences, let’s understand what are Members of Parliament (MP) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA):

  • Members of Parliament (MP): Members of Parliament (MPs) are elected officials who represent their constituencies in the national Parliament, also known as the House of Commons.
  • Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA): Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) are elected officials who represent their constituencies in their state or provincial Legislative Assemblies.

Members of Parliament (MP) vs Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)

Now, let’s move to Members of Parliament (MP) vs Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA):

Major differences between Members of Parliament (MP) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)

Members of Parliament (MP) Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)
MPs are responsible for making and passing laws at the national level. MLAs focus on making and implementing laws at the state level.
The number of MPs is fixed by the constitution. The number of MLAs is adjusted periodically to reflect a state’s population changes.
The term length of MPs is five years. The term length of MLAs varies from state to state and ranges from 4-5 years.
MPs represent the people of their constituency in the national parliament. MLAs represent the people of their constituency in the state legislature.
MPs have the power to impeach the president and remove judges from office. MLAs do not have any similar national-level powers.

 

That’s it.

Note that sometimes, the question might also be asked as “distinguish between Members of Parliament (MP) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA)”.

Also see:

Final words

MPs and MLAs are elected representatives who serve the people, their roles and responsibilities are distinct in many ways. While MPs focus on issues of national importance, MLAs focus on issues specific to their respective states or provinces. Understanding these differences is important in order to fully comprehend the functioning of the government at both national and state levels.

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