Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan Clears 1 Bill After Supreme Court Notice On Delay
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has cleared one of the bills pending with him while reserving his decision on seven others.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has accepted one of eight outstanding bills passed by the state legislative assembly a while ago, at a time when the Supreme Court is hearing the government's petition claiming excessive delay by Raj Bhavan in passing legislation, news agency PTI reported. On the state's petition charging Raj Bhavan of failing to pass eight bills, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the Centre and the Kerala Governor.
Kerala Governor clears one pending bill, reserves seven bills, including University Amendment Bill, for presidential assent: Raj Bhavan
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 28, 2023
Five of the eight bills concern to amendments in the University Act. Three of them were presented on November 12, 2021, addressing the Governor's duty as Chancellor. These bills have been waiting for approval since then. The Kerala Cooperative Societies Distinction Bill and the Public Health Bill were also among the pending bills, to which the Governor has given his nod.
Earlier, the apex court advised Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan to read its decision outlining governors' rights and related obligations in relation to measures forwarded to them for approval by state legislatures. The court ruled that governors could not leave laws pending forever and that they had to provide their consent if the legislature re-adopted the bills notwithstanding their objections.
“We uploaded the order in Punjab matter last night. Ask the governor’s Secretary to look at the order and tell us on Tuesday (November 28) what your response is,” a bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud stated.
The Kerala LDF government petitioned the Supreme Court in response to Khan's failure to give assent to measures passed by the state Legislative Assembly.
The Supreme Court declared in a similar appeal brought by the Punjab Government that the Governor, as a symbolic head of state, cannot frustrate legislatures' lawmaking abilities.
States like Tamil Nadu and Telangana had also petitioned the Supreme Court against their governors.
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