For Quick Alerts
ALLOW NOTIFICATIONS  
For Daily Alerts
Oneindia App Download

Kalyan Singh says 'We want BJP to win, Modi to become PM'; Can Governors make political statements?

|
Google Oneindia News

New Delhi, Mar 25: There are certain rules governing the conduct of the Governors once they assume the Constitutional post. Governor is an important post as the Constitution vests all the executive powers of the state government to the Governor.

File photo of Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh

The 1988 Sarkaria Committee on Centre-state relations recommends that "Governor should be a detached figure and not too intimately connected with the local politics of the state". This essentially means that Governors should be politically neutral once they assume the post. Not getting into the legal nuances of what is right or wrong for a Governor to speak, it is generally expected that the Governors would refrain from making political statement.

But, off-late we see that this is not strictly adhered to. Recently, Governor of Meghalaya, Tathagata Roy, called for boycotting "everything Kashmiri", including the Amarnath Yatra and purchasing products from the state, as a response to last week's Pulwama terror attack. The views expressed in tweets were not exactly political, but the remarks certainly did not befit the office that Roy held.

Today (March 25), Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh, said, "We all are BJP workers and we want the BJP to emerge victorious. We want that once again Modi ji should become the PM. It is important for the country."

Cong still blames Governor for BJP government formation in GoaCong still blames Governor for BJP government formation in Goa

Singh's remark is political as he is openly stating that he wants the BJP to win. The Sarkaria Committee report merely makes recomendations on the actions of the Governer, but does not delve deep into what they can or cannot speak in the public domain.

Now, roles of Governor are seen in the same light as that of President. But, while the President of India is "elected", the Governor is "selected" by the incumbent Central government. This selection by Union Government may lead to those being selected for the post who have inclination to take a biased stand when political situation in the state become unstable.

The 2017 Goa elections saw a close contest for most of the seats. The Congress with NCP had 18 seats and was the single largest party, and needed only three more for a majority. The BJP had 13, (well short of a majority), with the remaining ten seats in the 40-member assembly going to other parties and independents. Yet, the Governor appointed a BJP coalition with the MGP (three seats), Goa Forward Party (three seats) and three independents. Experts argue that the single largest party should have been called first for consultations on government formation. But, that clearly did not happen in Goa's case.

"I was anticipating that Congress would approach me first after securing the support of some groups, and form its government. But they didn't show up. No one even called," Goa Governor Mridula Sinha later told in an interview to Mumbai Mirror.

Meghalaya Guv tweets 'boycott everything Kashmiri', later claims he quoted ex-armymanMeghalaya Guv tweets 'boycott everything Kashmiri', later claims he quoted ex-armyman

So, all these issues point at the need for stringent guidlines on how the governors should carry themselves in public and also at 'the process followed to select the governors'. Is a change needed in the procedure? Rajeev Dhavan, a senior advocate in the Supreme Court, in an article published in The Wire suggests that "Governors should not be party men and be politically neutral by criteria declared and stated by the president based on constitutional commissions and committees." Among several other suggestions, he also says, "Prima facie, the governor must reject party candidates and individuals that abandon the mandate. India'a democracy cannot be put to ransom by governors in the drawing rooms of a Raj Bhawan."

For Daily Alerts
Get Instant News Updates
Enable
x
Notification Settings X
Time Settings
Done
Clear Notification X
Do you want to clear all the notifications from your inbox?
Settings X
X