Kerala governor signs all pending bills in one go

KOCHI: In a surprise move, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, who received flak from Supreme Court for sitting on bills passed by the state legislature for more than two years, on Saturday gave his assent for five pending bills in one go.

The bills signed are Land Assignment Amendment Bill, Kerala Cooperative Societies (Amendment), the Paddy Wetland Amendment Bill, the Dairy Cooperation Bill and the Abkari Law Amendment Bill.

The Paddy Wetlands Act Amendment Bill, grants authority to Deputy Collectors to change land types, in addition to Revenue Divisional Officers (RDO). With the latest development, all the bills under the governor’s consideration have now been cleared.

No explanation is forthcoming from Raj Bhavan regarding the “welcome” volte face.

Kerala’s ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) government had to move Supreme Court against the Governor for withholding the bills without rejecting or approving for months on end.

The apex court in last November reminded Khan that the Governor has no power to keep bills pending indefinitely.

A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud noted that neither reason nor justification was given by the governor to keep the Bills pending for such an “inordinately long period.” The governor dealt with the bills only after notice was issued to the Raj Bhavan by the Supreme Court on Nov.20 on a petition filed by Kerala.

“There is some substance in what is being argued by the State here. What was the governor doing for two years on these bills. The power of the governor cannot be used to thwart the normal process of democratic law-making by the legislature,” Chief Justice Chandrachud observed.

Ruling Communist Party of India - Marxist (CPI-M) had organised protests across the state against the governor, highlighting the delay in considering the bills.

Senior CPI-M leader and former minister MM Mani had lambasted Khan for not signing the Land Use Amendment Bill.

The LDF also observed a strike in Idukki district during the governor’s visit.

In March this year, Kerala government approached the supreme court against the President of India for withholding assent to four bills passed by the state legislature without giving “any reason whatsoever” and the state governor for keeping seven bills “pending for as long as two years” and then referring them to the president, terming the actions “manifestly arbitrary.”