The supreme court’s decision on the Tamil Nadu government’s petition against the governor’s withholding assent to bills passed by the legislature indefinitely is a welcome breeze when the center state equations are increasingly strained by an aggressive center. The governor’s office has come under criticism for political interference by a supposedly apolitical office and the attitude of the union has further complicated it. By ruling that the governor is constitutionally obliged to expeditiously decide on bills sent for assent and setting timelines of a maximum of one to three months has brought much required certainty in legislative procedure. As a federal court, center state issues are a subject of primary jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and along with interpretation of the Constitution it is the basic postulate of federalism. The court needs to rise to the occasion at a time when the union enjoys brute majority and other institutions are unable to withstand the executive power. Federalism and secularism are the main political planks for the opposition and today’s judgement would help them.
