Faced with an unprecedented constitutional crisis following the Kerala Governor “sitting” on nine Bills passed by the State Legislature, the State government is all set to move the Supreme Court.
The government will approach the top court once it resumes functioning after the vacation. Given the unusual situation, the government is left with no other option but to move the apex court, highly placed legal sources said.
Order in Telangana’s plea
The recent apex court order in a petition by the Telangana government that the Governor shall return the Bills as soon as possible has come as a shot in the arm for the Kerala government.
The State would argue that the Governor holding the Bills indefinitely would lead to the collapse of the parliamentary democracy system and derail the constitutional framework laid down for the governments to function.
However, the move may further widen the divide between Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and the State government, it is feared.
The State government had last week sought the Advocate General’s (AG) opinion on the course of action to be followed to tide over the situation.
Options
The government feels that the Governor’s action went against Article 200 of the Constitution, which provided him the option of giving or withholding assent to a Bill or reserving it for the President’s consideration. The Constitution also provides that the Governor may, as soon as possible after the presentation of the Bill to him for assent, return it together with a message requesting that the House reconsider the Bill itself or any of its specified provisions. However, government sources say, the Governor has not opted for any of these Constitutional provisions but was inordinately delaying the decision.
Among the nine Bills, the University Laws (Amendment) Bill 2021, which was submitted for the Governor’s assent on November 12, 2021, is the longest pending one and the latest one is the Kerala Public Health Bill, which was submitted on March 3, 2023. The Kerala Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2022, the Kerala Lok Ayukta (Amendment) Bill 2022, and the Kerala Private Forest (Vesting and Assignment) Amendment Bill 2023 are also pending approval.
