On Tuesday, the Supreme Court will take up the reference made by President Droupadi Murmu under Article 143 of the Constitution, following the apex court’s verdict fixing timelines for the President and Governors to act on Bills passed by state Assemblies.
A Constitution bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai will consider the matter.
In the Presidential reference made under Article 143(1) of the Constitution, President Murmu had posed 14 questions over the top court’s April 8 verdict.
The President sought to know whether the actions of the Governors and President are justiciable and whether such timelines can be imposed on them in the absence of any such provision in the Constitution.
The reference pointed out that “there are conflicting judgments of the Supreme Court as to whether the assent of the President of India under Article 201 of the Constitution of India is justiciable or not”. Under Article 145(3), when the President makes a reference for the court’s opinion, it is placed before a five-judge bench.
On April 8, the Supreme Court had set a timeline for Governors to act on pending Bills, and for the first time, prescribed that the President should take a decision on the Bills, reserved for consideration by the Governor, within three months from the date on which such reference is received. Under Article 201 of the Constitution, no timeframe has been set for a President’s decision.
The April 8 ruling by a two-judge bench, headed by Justice J B Pardiwala, set aside Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s decision to withhold assent to 10 Bills for consideration of the President in November 2023 after they had already been reconsidered by the Assembly, and said that the action was illegal and erroneous.
Story continues below this ad
Congress protest in Chhattisgarh
Days after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Chaitanya Baghel, son of former CM Bhupesh Baghel, in a money laundering case linked to an alleged liquor scam, the Chhattisgarh Congress is set to stage an “economic blockade” across the state on Tuesday.
The blockade is in protest over misuse of Central agencies against Opposition leaders and to protect natural resources of Chhattisgarh, state Congress chief Deepak Baij.
The ED claims Chaitanya received Rs 16.7 crore from the alleged liquor scam and played a key role in handling more than Rs 1,000 crore that constituted the proceeds of crime. On Tuesday, Chaitanya is expected to be produced before a Raipur court as his five-day custody with the ED comes to an end.
“My son is not in politics and has remained limited to his own business and farming activities. Their (BJP’s) aim is to wipe out the Congress leadership and suppress them. On the other hand, they (BJP) have been conspiring to give all our natural resources to Adani. They want to hand over Chhattisgarh to Adani,” the former CM alleged.
Story continues below this ad
When asked if he could be the next target of probe agencies, Bhupesh Baghel said, “Yes. They thought I had been to jail many times so they targeted my son. But my son is stronger than me. We (Congress) are descendants of Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru and Sardar Patel, who spent 10 years in jail while fighting the British,” he said.
Monsoon Session continues in Parliament
After an interrupted first day of the Monsoon Session, which saw the Lok Sabha get adjourned twice amid the Opposition’s disruptions while demanding a discussion on the Pahalgam attack, Parliament will get underway again on Tuesday.
While the Rajya Sabha passed several Bills on Monday, the Lok Sabha will on Tuesday consider for passage The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2024. Currently, Goa has no Assembly seats reserved for tribal communities.
– With PTI inputs
