Governor’s rule through proxy must stop

The ongoing tussle between Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi and the DMK state government took another turn when the Governor, last week, returned 10 pending Bills to the government refusing assent for them. Within the week the Assembly convened, the Bills were passed again and sent back to the Governor for an assent that he now, constitutionally cannot refuse.

The Governor’s decision to return the Bills itself was precipitated by the state government’s petition in the Supreme Court where they alleged that he was dragging his feet unduly on the Bills passed by the Assembly and sent to him for approval, sitting on them for years together without either giving his assent or rejecting the same. The Supreme Court in earlier hearings expressed its displeasure with Governors who were sitting on legislation that the state governments wanted enacting.

The long-running saga of Governors of states ruled by political parties that oppose the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is in power at the Centre (and appoints Governors), putting a spoke in the wheel of these state governments has been a major irritant for several Opposition Chief Ministers. Whether it be Arif Mohammed Khan in Kerala, Jagdeep Dhankar earlier and now Ananda Bose in West Bengal, Tamilisai Soundararajan in Telangana, Banwarilal Purohit earlier in Tamil Nadu and now in Punjab, and Ravi in Tamil Nadu, Governors have become a thorn in the flesh of the democratically-elected governments. Lieutenant Governors in Delhi have almost continuously troubled the Aam Aadmi Party government. From refusing to convene Assembly sessions, sitting for months or even years on legislation, making political speeches directly at odds with state government policy and appointing Vice Chancellors unilaterally, Governors in these states have pushed the law to its limit using every loophole there is to create trouble.

The Punjab, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu governments, at various stages, decided to approach the Supreme Court for relief. While the court’s observations have been scathing about Governors’ actions (going as far as to say that the Punjab Governor was playing with fire) the orders in these cases are still awaited.

The fact that there is no time limit in the law within which a Governor must either give their assent or return legislation for reconsideration is being utilised fully by Governors in these states. This can effectively paralyze state government functioning, as without the assent of the Governor the Bills do not become law. Governors argue that they are not mere rubber stamps to sign whatever is put up to them, and that they have cleared the majority of Bills put up to them and there are only a small number overall that they have sat on.

However, it has been the convention for Governors not to withhold assent unless there is a serious constitutional issue with the Bill. Also, the practice of sitting on the Bill for years together is a more recent method adopted by Governors.

The state government asked the Centre to instruct the Governor to clear the Bills on time and said he was acting against the interests of the state. The ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MPs also raised this issue in Parliament. Yet Ravi has gone on merrily, taking regular potshots at the government and even more irritatingly for the ruling party, rubbishing the ideology of the DMK by praising Sanatana Dharma and cultural values that are anathema to the Dravidian party. In June, he even unilaterally dismissed arrested Minister Senthil Balaji, but withdrew the dismissal order within hours after receiving a message from Union minister Amit Shah.

Clearly, the BJP sees Governors as a means of keeping Opposition-run governments in check. Governors in BJP-ruled States have largely remained invisible, and have been enthusiastic supporters of the ruling state governments. To be fair to the BJP, they are certainly not the first ruling party at the Centre to attempt to misuse the office of the Governor. Through its long years in power, from the time of Indira Gandhi onwards, the Congress used Governors as their stooges in state capitals, and many of them were used to dismiss democratically-elected state governments. The BJP is merely carrying on that tradition and finding newer ways to needle state governments.

Ravi, a former police officer, came to Tamil Nadu after a stint as Governor of Nagaland where he was abruptly transferred to Chennai. He was expected to maintain a lower profile once he took charge in Tamil Nadu in September 2021. But he had other ideas. Within months, matters had reached such a head that Stalin and his Cabinet boycotted the Governors tea party on Republic Day. Soon, some alliance partners of the DMK and smaller parties were holding demonstrations and showing black flags against the Governor. A recent incident, where a bottle filled with petrol was lit and thrown near the gate of the Raj Bhavan in Chennai by a person who allegedly wanted the abolition of the NEET exam, gave further ammunition to the Governor to claim law and order was poor in the state. The running battle continues.

In the interest of the development of states it is essential that the Supreme Court give clear directions to the Governors in line with the constitutional provisions. The stymieing of the peoples’ mandate by the unelected representatives appointed by New Delhi has gone on for too long. It is time for it to stop.

(Sumanth Raman is a Chennai-based television anchor and political analyst.)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.