Governors Must Discharge Their Duties In Accordance With Constitution : Justice BV Nagarathna

Expressing concerns over the recent trend of State Governors facing litigation at the instance of State Governments over their refusal to give assent to bills, Supreme Court judge Justice BV Nagarathna stated that the Governors must act in accordance with the Constitution.

Speaking at the "Courts and The Constitution Conference" organised by NALSAR University, Hyderabad, Justice Nagarathna said :

"The recent trend has been that the Governor of a state is becoming a point of litigation because of either omission by not considering the bills in assenting or giving opinion on the bills or other kinds of actions which the Governors would take. I feel this is not a healthy trend under the Constitution to bring the actions or omissions of the Governor of a state for consideration before constitutional courts. I think I must appeal that the office of the Governor, though it is called a gubernatorial post, it is a serious Constitutional post. The Governors must discharge their duties under the Constitution in accordance with Constitution, so that this kind of litigation before the law courts reduce. It is quite embarrassing for the Governors to be told to do or told not do a thing. Hence, the time has come where they would be now told, I suppose, to discharge their duties in accordance with the Constitution."

The State Governments of Punjab, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Kerala have filed writ petitions in the Supreme Court challenging the refusal of the respective Governor's to grant assent to bills passed by the legislatures. Last year, while hearing the petition filed by the State of Telangana, the Supreme Court stated that the Governor's must return the bills as soon as possible. In the petition filed by the State of Punjab, the Supreme Court delivered a detailed judgment holding that a Governor cannot veto a bill by sitting over it without granting assent.

The Supreme Court has also criticised the Governors of Kerala and Tamil Nadu for their delay in taking action of bills. The Court at one point even asked why the Governors take action on bills only after the States approach the Courts.

Last week, the Supreme Court expressed displeasure at the Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi for refusing to re-induct MLA K Ponmudi as a Minister, even after his conviction was suspended by the Supreme Court.

Justice Nagarathna On Former CJI UU Lalit & The Constitution Benches Formulated

Justice Nagarathna recalled how the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a halt in 2020, and the Indian judiciary was no exception. Courts across the country, including the Supreme Court, had to suspend regular proceedings, resorting to virtual courts (VC) to continue their operations. This period saw a significant backlog of cases, awaiting resolution.

Post-pandemic, with Justice UU Lalit as the Chief Justice of India, the Supreme Court saw a determined shift towards clearing this backlog. Recognizing the urgency, Justice Lalit masterminded the constitution of five special benches.

Justice Nagarathba lauded that all 30 judges of the Supreme Court, including herself who had recently joined from the High Court, got a chance to contribute directly to this endeavour.

“With Justice UU Lalit becoming the CJI, who took over after the pandemic, he diligently planned the work of the Supreme Court. He was determined to reform and dispose of the cases which were long pending and therefore, he constituted 5-constitution benches. All 30 judges of the Supreme Court got the chance to be on a constitution bench including myself who had joined the High Court very recently…. The constitution benches took up 25 long pending cases covering the widest range of the legal spectrum. The constitution of benches after the pandemic was significant.”

The Supreme Court Judge explained that the composition of these benches was a landmark decision, taking up 25 of the longest pending cases that spanned a broad spectrum of legal issues. This not only demonstrated the Supreme Court's commitment to justice but also its adaptability in the face of unprecedented challenges.

Live updates from the lecture can be read here.