The Vidhan Parishad (or
Legislative Council) is the upper house in those
states of India that have a bicameral legislature.
In contrast with a state's Vidhan Sabha
(Legislative Assembly), the Legislative Council
is a permanent body and cannot be dissolved;
each Member of the Legislative Council (MLC)
serves for a six-year term, with terms staggered
so that the terms of one-third of a Council's
members expire every two years. This
arrangement parallels that for the Rajya Sabha,
the upper house of the Parliament of India.