Punjab Farm Bills: Know How Article 254(2) Of Indian Constitution Provide States To Negate Central Acts

Punjab Farm Bills: The Bill would be effective only if the President of India accords his consent to such Bills. It is President's sole prerogative to sign the state Bills.

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The Punjab Government on Tuesday unanimously passed three Bills to counter the the three farm laws enacted recently by the Centre, terming it a move to "protect the state's farmers and agriculture". The three bills introduced by the Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh to counter the Centre's laws are -  the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Special Provisions and Punjab Amendment Bill 2020, the Essential Commodities (Special Provisions and Punjab Amendment) Bill 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services (Special Provisions and Punjab Amendment) Bill 2020. The resolution rejected Centre's proposed Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2020 and sought the promulgation of ‘a fresh ordinance making the procurement of food grains on the Minimum Support Price a statutory right of the farmers." Addressing the members of House, Singh said that agriculture is a state subject but the Centre ignored it. Hence, the Punjab CM resorted to Article 254 (2) of the Indian Constitution to circumvent the central legislation. Article 254(2): Know About The Provisions Allowing States To Negate Central Laws Article 254(2) of the Indian Constitution has the provision for the state legislature to make a law different from the parliamentary law which is in operation in that state. The Article refers to a scenario where a law made by a state legislature concerning any matter that falls in the Concurrent List contains any provision repugnant to the provisions of an earlier law made by Parliament or an existing law, with respect to that matter. However, it must be noted that the Bill would be effective only if the President of India accords his consent to such Bills. It is President's sole prerogative to sign the state Bills. In other words, Article 254 (2) says that of the central government frames a law on a subject which is within the competence of the state legislature, then the state has the option to prevail it provided it gets an approval of the President of India. The article deals with the inconsistency between Parliamentary laws and the state legislatures on the subjects on which both the Centre and States are entitled to enact laws.