The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed reservations over the Centre’s argument that false concerns were raised about Governors delaying action on state legislation. A Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and comprising Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, PS Narasimha, and Atul S Chandurkar was hearing a Presidential reference filed under Article 143 of the Constitution.
During the hearing, CJI Gavai questioned Solicitor General Tushar Mehta’s claim that delays were rare, asking, “How can you say that, if bills are pending for four years before the Governor?”, as per a report on Bar and Bench. Mehta responded that out of nearly 17,000 bills processed between 1970 and 2025, only 20 had been withheld, and that around 90 percent were cleared within a month.
Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi, however, objected to the reliance on such statistics, noting that the Solicitor General had previously resisted their attempt to present similar data. Justice Vikram Nath also remarked that comparisons between pre-2014 and post-2014 practices were not particularly relevant.
The matter stems from the Court’s April 11 verdict in State of Tamil Nadu v. The Governor of Tamil Nadu & Anr., where it ruled that Governors cannot indefinitely delay decisions on bills and must act within a reasonable time. The judgment also clarified that the President’s powers under Article 201 are open to judicial review and must be exercised within three months. Following this, the President posed 14 questions to the Court, highlighting ambiguities in the interpretation of Articles 200 and 201.
Appearing for Telangana, Senior Advocate Niranjan Reddy argued that the Governor’s discretion should be narrowly confined to referring a bill to the President, cautioning that a broader interpretation of Article 200 could have repercussions for Article 111, which governs the President’s assent to parliamentary legislation.
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