Kerala will soon challenge the legality of President Droupadi Murmu withholding her assent for the Bills that were passed by the Kerala Legislature before the Supreme Court.
The President had withheld assent to Kerala University Laws (Amendment No. 2) Bill 2022, University Law Amendment Bill, 2022, and the University Law Amendment Bill, 2021 from the seven Bills that were referred to her in November 2023. However, she gave her assent to the Kerala Lok Ayukta Amendment Bill, 2022. The State is yet to hear about the fate of two University Law Amendment Bills.
The unusual move of the Kerala Government will open doors for a Constitutional debate on the scope of a judicial review of the decisions of the President of India. The State would contend that the legality of the President’s decisions and the factors that influenced it can be judicially reviewed.
The State plans to bring up the issue before the Supreme Court on March 22 when the court considers its writ petition seeking to issue a directive to the Kerala Governor to act on the Bills passed by the State Legislature.
Kerala would argue that the Governor should not have referred the Bills to the President as its subject matters were confined to the State List of the Constitution where the State has powers to legislate. None of the Bills were in conflict with any Central legislation. Also, the Bills did not belong to the special categories for which prior Presidential assent was required, sources pointed out.
Kerala would also state that the Bills, which followed the Ordinances cleared by the Governor, should not have been sent for Presidential assent. It would also point out that its Council of Ministers had earlier volunteered to send a few Bills for Presidential assent.
The State will point out that the reasons for the President withholding the assent were not known to it when it had moved the Supreme Court seeking to issue directions to Mr. Khan to act on the Bills. Kerala later modified the writ petition to issue guidelines for the Governors to act on the Bills. The State will shortly decide on whether to file a fresh petition raising the issue or tag it with the existing petition.
