Explained | The office of the Governor: its origins, powers, and controversies
The Hindu
The role of the Governor, which originates in the colonial period, has been a contentious one, right from the Constitutional Assembly debates to the Supreme Court cases around it.
The role, powers, and discretion of the Governor’s Office in multiple States have been the subject of constitutional, political, and legal debate for decades. Recently, the prolonged silence of Jharkhand’s Governor over Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s possible disqualification as an MLA resulted in political uncertainty.
The power spat between the Delhi government and the Centre-appointed Lieutenant Governor over the appointment of bureaucrats or the deadlock between the Tamil Nadu government and Governor R.N. Ravi over assenting to the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) exemption Bill are just two more instances of a tussle between the Raj Bhavan and the elected government in a State.
It thus becomes pertinent to understand what the framers of the Constitution had envisaged for the post of the Governor, and what powers have been specifically granted to the Office of Governors and Lieutenant Governor in the Constitution.
Since 1858, when India was administered by the British Crown, provincial Governors wereagents of the Crown, functioning under the supervision of the Governor-General.
Over the following decades, the Indian nationalist movement sought various reforms from British rule, aiming for better governanceThese efforts culminated in the Government of India Act, 1935, which came into force in 1937, bringing provincial autonomy. Post this, the Indian National Congress commanded a majority in six provinces.
With the 1935 law, the Governor was now to act in accordance with the advice of Ministers of a province’s legislature, but retained special responsibilities and discretionary power.
Upon Independence, when the Provisional Constitution of 1947 was adapted from the 1935 Act, the post of Governor was retained but the phrases ‘in his discretion, ‘acting in his discretion, and ‘exercising his individual judgement’, were omitted.
In yet another attempt to reserve C and D group jobs in the private sector to locals, the Karnataka government is proposing to bring 100% job reservation for Kannadigas in these categories and 5% reservation for persons with disabilities in private sector industries that have received benefits from the State.