Can the President and the Governor be brought under the deadline to take a decision on the bills? The Constitution Bench of 5 judges headed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Central Government and all the state governments on this. This hearing has been started on the basis of Presidential Reference sent by the President. The next hearing of the case will be held in August.
By sending Presidential References under Article 143 (1) of the Constitution, President Draupadi Murmu has asked these 14 questions from the Supreme Court:-
1. When a bill is sent to the Governor under Article 200 of the Constitution, what constitutional options are there in front of him?
2. Is the Governor bound by the help and advice of the Council of Ministers while using his options in India?
3. Can the Governor hear the steps taken by Article 200 in the court?
4. Article 361, which keeps the Governor free from court action, bans judicial review of the decision taken by them under Article 200?
5. When the time limit is not given in the Constitution, can the time limit be set for the use of the powers of the Governor through judicial order? Can the method of exercise of those powers be determined?
6. Under Article 201 of the Constitution, the President takes a decision using his conscience? Can his power be heard in court?
7. When no time limit for the President’s decision has been fixed under Article 201 in the Constitution, can this be done through judicial order?
8. Does the President need to send a reference under Article 143 to take a decision under Article 201?
9. Under Article 200 and Article 201, the Governor and the President have to decide on the bills. Then he takes the form of law. Is it appropriate to consider the court constitutionally before the law is enacted by a bill?
10. Article 142, which gives special power to the Supreme Court for justice, can be used for matters coming under the jurisdiction of the President and Governor?
11. Can the Pass Bill from the Assembly be made a law without the consent of the Governor under Article 200 of the Constitution?
12. When the issue is important in constitutional terms, should it not be sent to a bench of at least 5 judges under Article 145 (3)?
13. Can the Supreme Court use Article 142 against any law or constitutional provision?
14. Article 131 provides for the intervention of the Supreme Court to resolve the disputes between the Central and State Governments. Does this article prevent the Supreme Court from interfering in other cases?
Under the prescribed process, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court forms a constitution bench of five judges to consider such cases. The Constitution Bench expresses its opinion after considering all the questions deeply. Chief Justice Bhushan Ramakrishna Gavai has formed a bench of 5 judges under his chairmanship, the rest of the members of it are Justice Surya Kant, Justice Vikram Nath, Justice PS Narasimha and Justice AS Chandurkar.
In April, a decision was given by a 2 -judge bench of the Supreme Court on the matter of pending 10 Bills of Tamil Nadu to the Governor and the President. The court had termed all the bills as perfect. Also, it was also said that the Governor and the President should take a decision within a fixed time limit. If this does not happen, the court can interfere.
This decision was being seen as a confrontation between the government and the judiciary. It was strongly criticized by the then Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar. He compared Article 142 to give special power to the Supreme Court to the missile. Among the law experts, the government had the option of filing a review petition in this case or sending Presidential References. The government chose another option. Now the Constitution Bench will express its opinion on this after detailed consideration.