SC issues notice on Bengal govt’s plea against Governor withholding assent on key bills

NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice on the West Bengal government’s writ petition filed against withholding of assent by the Governor on eight key bills passed by the state legislature.

A bench presided over by CJI DY Chandrachud sought a response from the Governor’s secretariat and Union government (through the Ministry of Home Affairs) in the matter.

The plea, filed through advocate Astha Sharma, said that the conduct of the Governor not only threatens to defeat and subvert the very fundamentals and basic foundation of the Constitution, including the rule of law and democratic good governance, but further proceeds to infringe upon the rights of the people of the state to the welfare measures sought to be implemented through the bills.

“Several crucial Bills have been lying dormant with the Governor of the State since 2022 when His Excellency Jagdeep Dhankhar (held the post), and no steps have been taken by his successor and the incumbent His Excellency Dr C.V. Ananda Bose,” it said.

The eight bills which are awaiting assent from the Governor are the West Bengal University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the West Bengal Private University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the West Bengal University of Health Sciences (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the West Bengal Krishi Viswavidyalaya Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, the Aliah University (Amendment) Bill, 2022, the West Bengal Town and Country (Planning and Development) (Amendment) Bill, 2023, and the West Bengal University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023.

Earlier in April, the top court had issued notice on a plea filed against Governor Ananda Bose’s decision to not give assent to the West Bengal University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022.

In September 2023, the Calcutta High Court had sought an affidavit from the Raj Bhavan on a PIL filed against Governor Bose’s decision to not give assent to the Bill proposing to replace the Governor with the Chief Minister as the Chancellor of all state universities. Later, a division bench of Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya suspended its earlier direction and decided to first examine the maintainability of the petition.

The Bill was passed by the Assembly in June 2022. Although the bill was forwarded to the Governor’s House on June 15 same year, the Governor has not given his assent to it to date.

On the appointment of Vice Chancellors for different state-run universities in West Bengal, the Supreme Court recently directed that the search-cum-selection committee, to be headed by the former Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit, will recommend three names to the Chief Minister, who will select one of the three names and recommend the same to the Chancellor of the university concerned, who is traditionally the Governor of the state.