Tamil Nadu governor returns 10 bills, Stalin govt calls special House session to adopt them again

Tamil Nadu speaker M Appavu on Thursday called for a special sitting of the assembly on Saturday, hours after governor R N Ravi returned 10 out of the 12 bills sent to him for assent over the last three years, officials aware of the developments said.

On Wednesday night, the governor returned the 10 legislations that were cleared by the assembly and were pending before him since 2020, the officials said. He, however, did not cite any reasons behind rejecting the bills. Besides, he is yet to act on the remaining two bills, the officials added.

Read here: Tamil Nadu governor returns bills sent to him, DMK govt set to adopt them again

As the state government wants to pass these (returned) bills immediately and send them again to the governor for approval, the speaker called for a special session, the officials said.

“He (the governor) returned 10 bills on Wednesday night… to pass these bills again, the special session has been called,” said a government official, requesting anonymity.

“The governor is yet to act on the remaining two bills,” the official added.

The Raj Bhavan’s move came days after the Supreme Court raised serious concerns and sought a response from the Union government on a petition filed by the Tamil Nadu government against the governor’s delay in processing the 12 bills passed by the state legislature, besides withholding several other files relating to sanction and remission.

According to Article 200 of the Constitution, if a bill is passed again by the House, with or without any amendment, then the “governor shall not withhold assent therefrom”.

“We will re-introduce the bills he (governor) has returned and re-adopt them,” Avappu said.

Raj Bhavan did not respond to HT’s calls and messages for a comment on the matter.

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led Tamil Nadu government has been locked in a standoff with the governor over various issues, including the latter’s pending assent to the legislations.

In a petition filed in the top court on October 31, Tamil Nadu chief secretary Shiv Das Meena alleged Ravi was “toying away with the citizen’s mandate” and sought directions to Raj Bhavan to dispose of all pending legislations and files forwarded by the assembly and government within a specified timeframe.

“The issues raised are of great concern. From the tabulated statement, it appears that as many as 12 bills submitted to the governor under Article 200 have not elicited any further action and other matters regarding proposal for grant of sanction, premature release and appointment of public service commission are pending. We issue notice to the Union of India represented by the secretary in the ministry of home affairs,” a bench, headed by Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, ordered on November 10.

The top court’s remarks came at a time when Raj Bhavans in several states have been locked in confrontation with the elected government. In the last few months, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, besides Punjab, have approached the Supreme Court, seeking directives to their respective governors over pending legislations.

While hearing the Punjab government’s petition on November 6, the top court said that governors must remember that they are not the elected representatives of states and have limited power over legislative actions of an elected government. It also said that governors should not compel the state governments to pursue legal recourses each and every time the latter exercised their legislative powers.

The Tamil Nadu speaker said the state government’s petition in the Supreme Court will not be discussed in the assembly.

According to the official quoted above, the bills which were returned pertain to amendments in various laws governing state universities, giving more power to the state government over the appointment of vice-chancellors, and provide for the establishment of a university for siddha, ayurveda, unani, yoga & naturopathy and homoeopathy. Of the 10 bills, two were passed by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government in 2020, the official added.

Read here: SC seeks govt reply on Tamil Nadu plea accusing Governor of delaying bills

Earlier, Ravi returned two bills – one to ban online gambling with stakes and another to abolish the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). However, the state government convened special assembly sessions in both occasions and re-adopted the bills.

The bill to abolish NEET was referred to President Droupadi Murmu for her assent in May last year. On October 27, chief minister MK Stalin handed over a representation to Murmu, reiterating the government’s request to accord assent to the bill.

While the anti-gambling legislation was cleared by the governor and notified by the government in April this year, the Madras high court upheld only some portions of the law.

“As per the law, the governor cannot deny assent to a bill sent to him for the second time,” law minister S Reghupathy had said in March.