After a hiatus of at least two years and bitter political and legal wrangling between Raj Bhavan and the State government, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan signed one Bill passed by the Kerala Assembly into law.
The gubernatorial assent to the legislation came after the Supreme Court asked Mr. Khan’s office to factor in its latest judgment holding Governors responsible for acting within the four corners of the State legislature without flexing a non-existent veto power over Bills presented to them for assent.
The Bill approved by Mr. Khan is the Kerala Public Health Bill, 2022. The law proposes a comprehensive approach to public health beyond disease diagnosis and cure.
However, the legal and political row between Mr Khan and the government seems unlikely to ease anytime soon. Discomfitingly for the government, Mr. Khan has exercised his power under Article 200 of the Constitution by reserving seven Bills for the President’s consideration. Notably, the Constitution imposes no deadline on the President to decide on the outcome of a Bill.
The legislation reserved for Presidential consideration include the controversial Kerala Lok Ayukta Amendment Bill and the Kerala University Amendment Bill.
Publicly opposed
Mr. Khan had publicly opposed the amendment that accords appellate authority to the political executive to review Lok Ayukta’s declarations of maladministration and corruption. Such declarations ban guilty persons from holding public office. Mr. Khan has repeatedly held that “no person could be a judge in his own cause”.
The argument that the law to defang the Lok Ayukta tantamounts to whittling down the powers of the High Court paved the way for Mr. Khan to refer the legislation to the President.
The government had defended the amendment by stating that the original Lok Ayukta law lacked an appeal provision and such absolute power was Constitutionally untenable and violative of natural justice.
Mr. Khan has also reserved the contentious Kerala University Amendment Act (2022) for Presidential review. The politically touchy law seeks to remove the Governor as Chancellor of State universities.
Supplanting Governor
It also empowers the government to supplant the Governor with “renowned persons with academic expertise” as Chancellors of different varsities. The ruling front had repeatedly railed against Mr. Khan’s alleged trespasses on the autonomy of varsities.
The gubernatorial assent to one Bill might do little to stop the government and Raj Bhavan from pitting their political and legal wits against each other.
For one, the CPI(M) has said it would muster settler farmers and march to Raj Bhavan in December to press Mr. Khan to consent to the Kerala Government Land Assignment (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The Bill is of great import to settler farmers, especially in Idukki, as the law empowers the government to regularise violations of the original Act, including contraventions of land use patterns.
Raj Bhavan has reportedly sought more clarifications from the government on the Bill.
