Why in the news?

  • A five judge bench of the Supreme Court of India has given their response to the 16th Presidential Reference in India.

Presidential Reference

  • What is it?: The President of India seeking the advisory opinion of the Supreme Court on any question of law or fact that is of public importance and is likely to arise or has already arisen.
  • Constitutional Provision: Article 143
  • Supreme Court’s Role: Supreme Court may tender or may refuse to tender its opinion to the president.
  • Nature of the Advice: The opinion expressed by the Supreme Court is only advisory (non-binding) and not a judicial pronouncement.

Supreme Court Response over Presidential Reference

  • Background:
    • In its judgement in the State of Tamil Nadu Vs. Governor of Tamil Nadu case, a two-judge Bench prescribed clear and mandatory timelines for Governors and the President to act on Bills.
    • The Court invoked Article 142 to hold that ten Tamil Nadu Bills had obtained “deemed assent,” noting that the Governor had failed to act on them for an excessively long time.
    • This raised constitutional questions and to resolve the ambiguity, the President invoked Article 143(1) and asked 14 questions to the Supreme Court.
  • Supreme Court’s Response:
    • The Supreme Court held that the judiciary cannot prescribe fixed timelines for the President or Governors to grant assent to bills passed by state legislatures under Articles 200 and 201 of the Constitution.
    • The Court overruled its April 2025 ruling, which had set specific deadlines (1-3 months) for Governors and the President to act on bills.
    • The judgment emphasized that the constitutional provisions use elastic terms like “as soon as possible,” giving discretionary power to these authorities without strict deadlines, in line with the doctrine of separation of powers.
    • However, the Court made it clear that indefinite delay or inaction by Governors frustrates the legislative process and cannot be allowed.
    • Courts can exercise limited judicial review to direct the Governor or President to act within a reasonable, time-bound period, without commenting on the merits of the bill.

Source: The Hindu