Indian polity and Governors

The story: The post of Governors in Indian states was always a much-debated one. In the constituent assembly debates, the post was considered necessar

Indian polity and Governors

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• The story: The post of Governors in Indian states was always a much-debated one. In the constituent assembly debates, the post was considered necessary but with certain limitations. Elections to the post were ruled out finally. Over the past seven decades, many controversial issues came up.
• West Bengal: Since few years, the role of the Governor of West Bengal has been under a scanner. Present Chief Minister has described the Governor of the state as the 'central government’s own person', implying he is not a constitutional person. The Chief Minister wrote to the President of India demanding the withdrawal of the Governor.
• Points: There is a delicate federal balance in this Governor-State govt relationship.

1. Constitutional provisions - Article 153 says that there shall be a Governor for each State. One person can be appointed as Governor for two or more States. A Governor is appointed by the President and is a nominee of the Central Government. It is stated that the Governor has a dual role: (a) He is the constitutional head of the state, bound by the advice of his council of ministers (CoM), and (b) He functions as a vital link between the Union Government and the State Government.
2. Eligibility - Articles 157 and 158 specify eligibility requirements for the post of governor.
3. Other powers - Governor has the power to grant pardons, reprieves, etc. (Article 161). There is a CoM with the CM at the head to aid and advise the Governor in the exercise of his functions, except some conditions for discretion (Article 163). The Governor appoints the Chief Minister and other Ministers (Article 164). The Governor assents, withholds assent, or reserves the bill for the consideration of the President passed by the Legislative Assembly (Article 200). The Governor may promulgate the Ordinances under certain circumstances (Article 213).

• Controversies related to Governor’s role: Starting with the governments of PM Indira Gandhi, many instances of abuse of power (via Centre) were seen.

1. Abuse of power by Centre - There are examples of the Governor’s position being abused, usually at the behest of the ruling party at the Centre. The process of appointment has generally been the cause behind it.
2. Ideology - In some cases, politicians and former bureaucrats identifying with a particular political ideology were appointed Governors by the central government. This goes against the constitutionally mandated neutral seat and has resulted in bias, as appears to have happened in Karnataka and Goa.
3. Puppets - The Governor of Rajasthan was charged with the violation of the model code of conduct. His support of the central ruling party went against the spirit of non-partisanship that is expected from the person sitting on constitutional posts. Hence, negative terms like an agent of the Centre, Puppet and rubber stamps are used to describe a governor of the state.
4. Favouritism - The Governor’s discretionary powers to invite the leader of the largest party/alliance, post-election, to form the government has often been misused to favour a particular political party.
5. Misuse of power - A Governor's recommendation for President's Rule (Article 356) in a state has not always been based on 'objective material', but on political whim or fancy.

• Recommendations to improve the system: First and foremost comes the process of appointment and removal. The "Punchhi commission - 2010" recommended that there should be a provision for the impeachment of the governor by the state legislature, and that the state CM should have a say in the governor’s appointment.

1. Use of Article 356 - The "Punchhi commission - 2010" recommended that Articles 355 & 356 be amended. The Sarkaria Commission (1988) recommended that Article 356 should be used in very rare cases when it becomes unavoidable to restore the breakdown of constitutional machinery in the State. Recommendations were given by the Administrative Reforms Commission (1968), Rajamannar Committee (1971) and Justice V.Chelliah Commission (2002) as well.
2. On dismissal of State Government under Article 356 - The S.R. Bommai Judgment (1994) was the milestone ase. It put an end to the arbitrary dismissal of State governments by a hostile Central government. The verdict ruled that the floor of the Assembly is the only forum that should test the majority of the government of the day, and not the subjective opinion of the Governor.
3. On discretion - The Supreme Court in the Nabam Rebia judgment (2016) ruled that the exercise of Governor’s discretion Article 163 is limited and his choice of action should not be arbitrary or fanciful.

• Summary: For the smooth functioning of government, it is essential that the governor must act judiciously, impartially and efficiently while exercising his discretion and personal judgment. There is a need to strengthen federal setup in India, if economic progress without friction is to be achieved. The Inter-State council and the role of Rajya Sabha as the chamber of federalism must be strengthened. The appointment can be made from a panel prepared by the state legislature and actual appointing authority should be the Inter-state Council, not the central government. A 'Code of Conduct' should lay down certain 'norms and principles' which should guide the exercise of the governor's 'discretion' and his powers.

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