Kerala hopes to get the six Bills that were recently passed by the Assembly approved by the Governor without any hassles in the wake of the Supreme Court spelling out the options available for the Governors on Bills passed by the State Legislatures.
The Bills that would be submitted for the Governor’s clearance include the Kerala State Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) Bill, 2025, the University Laws (amendment) Bill, 2025, the Kerala State Elderly Commission Bill, 2025, the University Laws (Amendment) (No.2) Bill, 2025, the Kerala Sports (amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
Relaxed affair
The submission of Bills for the gubernatorial clearance has become a relaxed affair for the Kerala government following the Supreme Court intervention on Tuesday in the Tamil Nadu case, asking the Governors to act within the Constitutional framework while considering the Bills passed by the State Assemblies.
The apex court, which set a timeline for the Governors to act on the Bills, also reminded that their role under Article 200 of the Constitution was restricted to the three options of granting assent, withholding assent, or reserving the Bill for the consideration of the President.
The top court directive in the Tamil Nadu case has found resonance in Kerala, which too had moved the Supreme Court against former Governor Arif Mohammed Khan’s act of inordinately holding back a few Bills passed by the State Assembly.
Against President
The State had also moved the Supreme Court against President Droupadi Murmu withholding assent for four Bills passed by the Kerala Legislature without disclosing any reasons.
The fate of the six Bills to be presented before the Kerala Governor will be known within a few months as the apex court has set the time-frame for the Governors to act.
In the event of Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar deciding to withhold assent or reserve the Bill for the President, such decisions will have to be taken within one month of the Bill reaching him.
If he decides to withhold the assent for the Bills, they have to be returned to the State legislature within three months. The Governors will also reserve the Bill for the President within three months of his receiving it.
Within one month
The top court has also directed that the Governors shall grant assent to the Bills, which are re-passed and re-presented by the legislature within one month.
The State government will submit the Bills for the approval of the Governor shortly. The government hopes that the Bills will be cleared soon, said P. Rajeeve, State Minister for Law and Industries.
Published – April 10, 2025 04:09 am IST
