The Chief Minister of a state is appointed by the :

Article 164(1) of the Constitution of India provides that the Chief Minister of a State shall be appointed by the Governor, who then appoints the other Ministers on the advice of the Chief Minister. The Governor is the constitutional (nominal) head of the state executive, while the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister is the real executive authority that aids and advises the Governor under Article 163.

In this state-executive framework, it is the Governor — not the President, the Council of Ministers, or the Prime Minister — who holds the constitutional power to appoint the Chief Minister of a state.

• President: appoints the Governor of each state under Article 155 and is the constitutional head of the Union executive, but has no direct role in appointing a state's Chief Minister.

• The Council of Ministers: is itself constituted only after a Chief Minister has already been appointed and sworn in by the Governor, so it cannot itself appoint the Chief Minister.

• Prime Minister: heads the Union Council of Ministers and is appointed by the President under Article 75, but has no constitutional role in a state's executive appointments.

Hence, the authority that appoints a state's Chief Minister is the Governor, in exercise of the power vested by Article 164(1).