Chennai: Tamil Nadu governor R N Ravi has sent the 10 bills which were re-adopted by the state assembly to the President of India Droupadi Murmu. However, the bills re-adopted by the assembly cannot be reserved for the President, the Supreme Court said on Friday.
“The governor has sent this to the President to prolong the issue,” said Tamil Nadu’s law minister S Regupathy on Friday. The re-adopted 10 bills were forwarded on November 28 to the President, said senior advocate P Wilson speaking to reporters in Delhi. “This is in violation of the Supreme Court’s orders.”
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud is hearing separate petitions filed by the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab and Telangana who had moved the top court seeking a direction against their respective Raj Bhavan for keeping bills pending for long.
Tamil Nadu’s petition on October 30 in the Supreme Court says that of 12 bills sent to governor Ravi, he has not acted on any of them. Following a rap by the top court, Ravi on November 15 returned 10 of these bills and sent two to the President. So the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government held a special assembly on November 18 to re-adopt the 10 bills and pass them again.
Article 200 of the Constitution says that the Governor cannot deny assent to bills sent to him for the second time which the Supreme Court has made clear during the course of these hearings too. “Since he has no other option but to give his assent this time, he has sent it to the President,” the law minister said. Wilson had argued in the Supreme Court that under Article 200, the Governor doesn’t have the powers to forward it to the President when the Bills have been sent to him for the second time.
{{/usCountry}}Article 200 of the Constitution says that the Governor cannot deny assent to bills sent to him for the second time which the Supreme Court has made clear during the course of these hearings too. “Since he has no other option but to give his assent this time, he has sent it to the President,” the law minister said. Wilson had argued in the Supreme Court that under Article 200, the Governor doesn’t have the powers to forward it to the President when the Bills have been sent to him for the second time.
{{/usCountry}}The 12 bills pertain to amendments in various laws governing state universities, clipping the powers of the Governor in appointing vice-chancellors to state run universities and other files relating to sanction and remission.