6 months ago
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A five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court, with nary of the judges claiming sole authorship but fashioning it arsenic the ‘Opinion of the Court’, opined that the apex tribunal cannot hole timelines for Governors and the President to woody with State Bills nether Articles 200 and 201.
However, the Bench clarified that Governors could besides not usage their discretion to edifice to “prolonged and evasive law inaction” successful a deliberate bid to thwart the people’s volition expressed done projected laws passed by State legislatures.
Presidential Reference verdict updates - November 20, 2025
Here is however a Bench of Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, P.S. Narasimha and A.S. Chandurkar responded, successful its 111-page opinion, to the 14 questions from President Droupadi Murmu successful a Reference issued by her connected May 13, 2025.
The Reference nether Article 143 of the Constitution came simply a period aft a two-judge Bench of the Supreme Court, successful a judgement successful the Tamil Nadu Governor lawsuit connected April 8, plugged a Constitutional soundlessness by fixing circumstantial clip limits for Governors and the President to assent, withhold support oregon reserve State Bills for further information nether Articles 200 and 201.
1. What are the law options earlier a Governor erstwhile a Bill is presented to him nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India?
The Governor has 3 law options nether Article 200, namely to assent, reserve the Bill for the President's consideration, oregon withhold assent and instrumentality the Bill to the Legislature with comments. The archetypal proviso to Article 200 is bound to the substantive portion of the provision, and restricts the existing options, alternatively than offering a 4th option. Pertinently, the 3rd enactment — to withhold assent and instrumentality with comments — is lone disposable to the Governor erstwhile it is not a Money Bill.
2. Is the Governor bound by the assistance and proposal tendered by the Council of Ministers portion exercising each the options disposable with him erstwhile a Bill is presented earlier him nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India?
The Governor enjoys discretion successful choosing from these 3 law options and is not bound by the assistance and proposal of the Council of Ministers, portion exercising his relation nether Article 200.
3. Is the workout of law discretion by the Governor nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India justiciable?
The discharge of the Governor’s relation nether Article 200 is not justiciable. The Court cannot participate into a merits reappraisal of the determination truthful taken. However, successful glaring circumstances of inaction that is prolonged, unexplained, and indefinite, the Court tin contented a constricted mandamus for the Governor to discharge his relation nether Article 200 wrong a tenable clip period, without making immoderate observations connected the merits of the workout of his discretion.
4. Is Article 361 of the Constitution of India an implicit barroom to judicial reappraisal successful narration to the actions of a Governor nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India?
Article 361 of the Constitution is an implicit barroom connected judicial reappraisal successful narration to personally subjecting the Governor to judicial proceedings. However, it cannot beryllium relied upon to negate the constricted scope of judicial reappraisal that this Court is empowered to workout successful situations of prolonged inaction by the Governor nether Article 200. It is clarified that portion the Governor continues to bask idiosyncratic immunity, the law bureau of the Governor is taxable to the jurisdiction of this court.
5. In the lack of a constitutionally prescribed clip bounds and the mode of workout of powers by the Governor, tin timelines beryllium imposed and the mode of workout beryllium prescribed done judicial orders for the workout of each powers nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India by the Governor?
In the lack of constitutionally prescribed clip limits, and the mode of workout of powerfulness by the Governor, it would not beryllium due for this Court to judicially prescribe timelines for the workout of powers nether Article 200.
6. Is the workout of law discretion by the President nether Article 201 of the Constitution of India justiciable?
For akin reasoning arsenic held with respect to the Governor, the President’s assent nether Article 201 too, is not justiciable.
7. In the lack of a constitutionally prescribed timeline and the mode of workout of powers by the President, tin timelines beryllium imposed and the mode of workout beryllium prescribed done judicial orders for the workout of discretion by the President Under Article 201 of the Constitution of India?
For the aforesaid reasons arsenic indicated successful the discourse of the Governor nether Article 200, it is clarified that the President, too, cannot beryllium bound by judicially prescribed timelines successful the discharge of functions nether Article 201.
8. In airy of the law strategy governing the powers of the President, is the President required to question proposal of the Supreme Court by mode of a notation nether Article 143 of the Constitution of India and instrumentality the sentiment of the Supreme Court erstwhile the Governor reserves a Bill for the President’s assent oregon otherwise?
In our law scheme, the President is not required to question proposal of this Court by mode of notation nether Article 143, each clip a Governor reserves a Bill for the President’s assent. The subjective restitution of the President is sufficient. If determination is simply a deficiency of clarity, oregon the President truthful requires proposal of this Court connected a Bill, it whitethorn beryllium referred nether Article 143, arsenic it has been done connected galore erstwhile occasions.
9. Are the decisions of the Governor and the President nether Article 200 and Article 201 of the Constitution of India, respectively, justiciable astatine a signifier anterior into the instrumentality coming into force? Is it permissible for the Courts to undertake judicial adjudication implicit the contents of a Bill, successful immoderate manner, earlier it becomes law?
The decisions of the Governor and President nether Articles 200 and 201, respectively, are not justiciable astatine a signifier anterior into the instrumentality coming into force. It is impermissible for the Courts to undertake judicial adjudication implicit the contents of a Bill, successful immoderate manner, earlier it becomes law. Pertinently, discharge of its relation nether Article 143, does not represent ‘judicial adjudication’.
10. Can the workout of law powers and the orders of/by the President/Governor beryllium substituted successful immoderate mode nether Article 142 of the Constitution of India?
The workout of law powers and the orders of the President/Governor cannot beryllium substituted successful immoderate mode nether Article 142, and we hereby clarify that the Constitution, specifically Article 142 adjacent does not let for the conception of ‘deemed assent’ of Bills.
11. Is a instrumentality made by the State legislature a instrumentality successful unit without the assent of the Governor granted nether Article 200 of the Constitution of India?
Question 11 is answered successful accordance with our sentiment tendered connected Question 10, i.e., determination is nary question of a instrumentality made by the State Legislature coming into unit without assent of the Governor nether Article 200. The Governor’s legislative relation nether Article 200 cannot beryllium supplanted by different law authority.
12. In presumption of the proviso to Article 145(3) of the Constitution of India, is it not mandatory for immoderate seat of this Hon’ble Court to archetypal determine arsenic to whether the question progressive successful the proceedings earlier it is of specified a quality which involves important questions of instrumentality arsenic to the mentation of constitution and to notation it to a seat of minimum 5 Judges?
We person already indicated successful our sentiment that Question 12 relating to Article 145(3) and the creation of benches successful this Court that perceive cases of law value is irrelevant to the functional quality of this reference, and is returned unanswered.
13. Do the powers of the Supreme Court nether Article 142 of the Constitution of India constricted to matters of procedural instrumentality oregon Article 142 of the Constitution of India widen to issuing directions/passing orders which are contrary to oregon inconsistent with existing substantive oregon procedural provisions of the Constitution oregon instrumentality successful Force?
We person besides indicated successful our sentiment that Question 13 concerning the powerfulness nether Article 142 is overly broad, and not imaginable to reply successful a definitive manner. Our sentiment connected the scope of Article 142 successful the discourse of the functions of the Governor and President has already been answered arsenic a portion of Question 10.
14. Does the Constitution barroom immoderate different jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to resoluteness disputes betwixt the Union Government and the State Governments but by mode of a suit nether Article 131 of the Constitution of India?
Question 14 — pertaining to this Court’s jurisdiction to resoluteness disputes betwixt the Union and State Governments extracurricular of Article 131 — is besides recovered to beryllium irrelevant to the functional quality of the notation and hence returned unanswered.
