New Delhi, Sep 09: The Supreme Court on Tuesday said governors were expected to act within “reasonable time” even if the term “as soon as possible” were not there in Article 200 that governs powers to assent to bills passed by the state legislature.

A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice B R Gavai, hearing arguments on the eighth day on the presidential reference, whether the court could impose timelines for governors and President to deal with bills passed by assemblies, reiterated it would only interpret the Constitution and not examine facts of individual cases.

Article 200 governs powers of Governor regarding bills passed by the state legislature, allowing them to either assent to the bill, withhold assent, return the bill for reconsideration or reserve the bill for the consideration of President.

The first proviso of Article 200 says Governor may, as soon as possible, after the presentation to him of the bill for assent, return the bill, if it is not a money bill, to the house for reconsideration and shall not withhold the consent after the assembly reconsiders and sends it back to him.

The bench, also comprising Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, P S Narasimha and A S Chandurkar, was urged by senior advocate Arvind Datar, appearing for the Punjab government, that the framers of the Constitution put “as soon as possible” in Article 200 and there was no fetters for the court in setting the timeline of three months for grant of assent to bills.

“Even if the term ‘as soon as possible’ were not there, the Governor was expected to act within reasonable time,” the bench said.

Senior advocate K K Venugopal, appearing for Kerala, said former state Governor Arif Mohammad Khan had followed a practice of sending bills to the ministries concerned for briefing him whenever he received them.

“We will not be deciding individual matters,” the CJI said.

Senior advocate Gopal Subramanium, appearing for the Congress-led Karnataka government, said under the constitutional scheme, President and governors were only “titular heads”, bound to act on the aid and advice of the council of ministers, both at the Centre and in states.

Article 361, said Subramanium, granted immunity to President and governors from any criminal proceeding, for they did not perform any executive function and when it came to Governor’s satisfaction required for acting on bills passed by assembly, it meant satisfaction of the council of ministers.

Referring to verdicts, he said neither President nor governors exercised executive power in their personal capacity.

“Article 361 grants immunity because executive powers are exercised not by them individually but under ministerial advice through rules of business,” Subramanium said.

The Constitution, he said, did not envisage “parallel administrations” or allow governors to override elected governments.

Referring to the 44th constitutional amendment, he said it permitted President to send ministerial advice back for reconsideration but it ultimately bound her to accept the bill.

“The President is a constitutional head, bound by aid and advice,” he said, pointing out the same principle applied to governors under Article 163 except in the “narrowly defined” discretionary areas such as Article 356 (President’s Rule) or few other special provisions.

He said if the Centre’s submissions were to be accepted, then governors would be above judicial review, becoming an “all-pervading authority”.

“The Governor is not an agent of the union but takes oath for the well-being of the state,” he submitted, cautioning against resurrecting such a doctrine and hark back to colonial frameworks.

Referring to Article 200, he said the Constitution provided only three options, granting assent, returning the bill for reconsideration or reserving it for President.

“There is no fourth option of withholding assent indefinitely. Any suggestion of an unqualified veto is antithetical to the Constitution,” he added.

Venugopal said Articles 200 and 201 must be read as mandating governors to act “as soon as possible” without scope for an indefinite delay.

He warned even money bills, which deal with urgent financial matters such as salaries, could not be kept pending.

“Could one imagine a Governor sitting over a money bill for 10 months?” he asked, pointing out the constitutional urgency attached to such legislation.

Datar weighed in, “Governor has options under Article 200. He does not have the discretion.” He said governors had no unqualified discretion and the term “as soon as possible” appeared multiple times in the Constitution and statutory laws, denoting urgency.

“To accept the union’s stand that Governor can withhold a bill indefinitely creates a constitutional paradox. The Governor is not a constitutional filter,” Datar said.

Governor’s power to withhold assent, he said, was intrinsically linked to the obligation to send a message to the legislature, and not a standalone pause button.

“If he wishes the legislature to reconsider, he must send a message. To say he can simply withhold it forever is absurd,” he said.

The hearing is likely to conclude on September 10.

The court is examining 14 questions referred by President Droupadi Murmu, including whether constitutional authorities can indefinitely withhold assent to bills and whether courts can impose mandatory time frames. (Agencies)

New Delhi, Sep 09: Strongly rooted in the RSS and the BJP, Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan was on Tuesday elected as the 15th Vice President of India, the third leader from Tamil Nadu to occupy the coveted post.

Seen as a soft-spoken and non-confrontational leader, the 67-year-old Radhakrishnan succeeds Jagdeep Dhankhar, who resigned as vice president on July 21, taking everyone by surprise.

Described as a ‘Pachai Tamizhan’ (true-blue Tamil) by well-wishers, Radhakrishnan was serving as the Governor of Maharashtra when he was named as the vice presidential nominee of the BJP-led NDA.

A two-term member of the Lok Sabha from Coimbatore during the tenure of prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Radhakrishnan came close to becoming a Union minister, but had to lose out to fellow Tamilan Pon Radhakrishnan in 1998 after some confusion over his name by the then floor managers of the BJP.

Radhakrishnan joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as a teenager and rose through the ranks in the organisation and later in the BJP, gaining acceptability in the party and the state.

A member of the socially dominant and economically prosperous Kongu Vellalar Gounder community, he became the secretary of the BJP’s Tamil Nadu unit in 1996 and served as the party’s state unit president between 2003 and 2006.

Radhakrishnan brings along a rich political and administrative experience, which will prove handy in his role as the vice president, who is also the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

An avid sportsperson, Radhakrishnan was a college champion in table tennis and a long-distance runner. He also enjoys cricket and volleyball.

Radhakrishnan is considered an untainted leader with rich political and administrative experience for the vice president’s office and this would also prove useful as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

“Thiru CP Radhakrishnan Ji has rich experience as MP and Governor of various states. His Parliamentary interventions were always incisive. During his gubernatorial tenures, he focused on addressing challenges faced by common citizens. These experiences ensured that he has vast knowledge of legislative and Constitutional matters. I am confident he will be an inspiring Vice President,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said after the NDA chose Radhakrishnan as the vice presidential candidate.

The Tamil Nadu leader is said to be held in high esteem across party lines in his state, resulting in the BJP giving him multiple gubernatorial assignments in Jharkhand, Telangana, Maharashtra and Puducherry.

Radhakrishnan’s candidature also seeks to disarm the Opposition of a key political narrative, as he is the first OBC leader from South India to be named for the vice-president’s office.

An official profile circulated by the NDA projects Radhakrishnan as a leader who is eminent, knowledgeable and untainted by any legal accusations.

Radhakrishnan’s political innings started with his association with organisations such as the RSS and the Jan Sangh.

He took up student politics and has since used politics as a medium to serve the people.

Radhakrishnan’s track record of holding electoral, organisational and constitutional responsibilities shows that he is set to create history as the vice president of India.

He was sworn in as the governor of Maharashtra on July 31, 2024. Before this, he served as the governor of Jharkhand for nearly one-and-a-half years.

Born on October 20, 1957, at Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu, Radhakrishnan has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

Starting as an RSS swayamsevak at the age of 16, he became a state executive committee member of the Bharatiya Janasangh in 1974.

Between 2004 and 2007, Radhakrishnan served as the Tamil Nadu BJP president. In this role, he undertook a 19,000-km ‘Rath Yatra’ that lasted for 93 days.

The Yatra was organised to highlight his demands for the linking of all Indian rivers, eradicating terrorism, implementing a uniform civil code, removing untouchability and combating the menace of narcotic drugs, some of the key planks of the BJP and the RSS.

New Delhi, Sep 09: The Government of India on Tuesday issued a travel advisory for its citizens in view of the volatile situation in Nepal, urging them to avoid non-essential travel to the neighbouring country until the situation stabilises.

In its advisory, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) asked Indian nationals currently in Nepal to remain indoors, avoid venturing out on the streets and exercise utmost caution. Citizens were further advised to closely follow local safety instructions as well as updates issued by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu.

For assistance, the Embassy of India in Kathmandu has set up helplines. Citizens can contact the mission on:

• +977-9808602881 (also available on WhatsApp)
• +977-9810326134 (also available on WhatsApp)

The advisory comes amid ongoing protests and clashes in Nepal that have led to casualties and raised security concerns.

New Delhi, Sep 09: Gold prices skyrocketed by Rs 5,080 to hit an all-time high of Rs 1,12,750 per 10 grams in the national capital on Tuesday in line with strong global trends.

According to the All India Sarafa Association, gold of 99.9 per cent purity had closed at Rs 1,07,670 per 10 grams on Monday.

Silver prices also surged by Rs 2,800 to hit a record high of Rs 1,28,800 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes) on Tuesday. The precious metal had settled at Rs 1,26,000 per kg in the previous market session.

In global markets, gold hit an all-time of USD 3,659.27 per ounce on Tuesday. The precious metal later traded at USD 3,652.72 per ounce, up by USD 16.81, or 0.46 per cent.

Traders said weak labour market data in the US last week has raised the likelihood of a monetary policy easing, which pushed investors towards safe-haven assets such as gold. The dollar’s retreat further supported the upward momentum in bullion prices.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 97.29, went lower by 0.17 per cent.

New Delhi, Sep 09: More than 400 scientists worked round-the-clock to provide support using earth observation and communication satellites during Operation Sindoor, ISRO chairperson V Narayanan said on Tuesday.

The space agency provided satellite data from its spacecraft for national security requirements, Narayanan said in his address at the 52nd National Management Convention of the All India Management Association (AIMA).

“During Operation Sindoor, all satellites were working 24×7 perfectly, enabling all requirements,” he said.

“Over 400 scientists were working 24×7, full-time and all the satellites used for earth observation and communication were working perfectly during the mission,” the ISRO chief added.

The role of the space sector in armed conflicts came into sharp focus during Operation Sindoor, which saw extensive use of drones and loitering munitions and tested the capabilities of air defence systems such as indigenously developed Akash Teer.

According to Narayanan, ISRO has completed 7,700 ground tests under the Gaganyaan project that plans to achieve India’s maiden human spaceflight by 2027. Besides, 2,300 more tests are planned under the project before carrying out the human spaceflight.

Under the Gaganyaan project, ISRO plans to carry out three uncrewed missions, the first expected in December this year. This will be followed by two more unmanned missions.

The space agency has secured approvals for carrying out two crewed missions under the Gaganyaan project.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tasked ISRO with setting up India’s own space station by 2035 and landing an Indian astronaut on the moon by 2040.