The Supreme Court’s unequivocal ruling that the State Governors must give assent or return the Bills ‘as soon as possible,’ as mandated by Article 200 of the Constitution, is a welcome development. The deliberate inaction by some Governors on the Bills passed by the Assemblies has, of late, become a matter of major concern in the non-BJP-ruled states. The apex court cleared the air on the role of Governors while dealing with a petition filed by the Telangana government, which had complained about Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan sitting on nearly 10 Bills passed by the Assembly. The state government has rightly argued that the Governor was creating a ‘constitutional impasse’ by refusing to act on several Bills passed by the legislature. Such deliberate delay can only be construed as illegal and unconstitutional. In recent times, the roles of Governors appointed by the present BJP led NDA government are coming under scanner because of their partisan approach.
The tussle between the state governments and the Governors be it in Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal or Punjab, has been intensifying over a plethora of issues, including unnecessary intervention of the Governors in the day-to-day administration and deliberate delays on their part to give assent to the Bills. Recently, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin suggested that the non-BJP states must collectively urge the Centre to fix a timeframe for Governors to approve Bills passed by Assemblies. Telangana was forced to move the court under Article 32 of the Constitution in view of a constitutional impasse created on account of the Governor’s refusal to act on several Bills passed by the legislature. The Governors should take note of the SC ruling and extend all possible support to the state governments.