After TN and Kerala, Karnataka govt to move Supreme Court as Governor delays nod to key Bills passed by state legislature

The Bills returned by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot include The Karnataka (Mineral Rights and Mineral Bearing Land) Tax Bill, 2024, which was expected to generate a revenue of Rs 4,700 crore for the state exchequer; The Karnataka State Rural Development and Panchayat Raj University (Amendment) Bill, 2024; The Mysuru Development Authority Bill, 2024; The Karnataka Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2024; and The Karnataka Souharda Sahakari (Amendment) Bill, 2024, among others.

In February, the apex court questioned Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s decision to withhold assent to some Bills presented to him by the state legislature and had stated that he would have to show the court what led to the decision. Earlier, in November 2023, the Supreme Court had pulled up Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan over a similar concern and asked, “What is the Governor doing for two years sitting tight on these Bills?”

Speaking to The Indian Express, A S Ponnana, legal advisor to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, said the state government was deliberating on filing a petition in the Supreme Court over the issue. “There have been delays in granting assent to key Bills passed by the state legislature,” he said.

A total of seven bills passed by the Assembly and Council in the Winter Session of legislature were sent back by the Governor, a source in the Law Department said. The objection to the important Karnataka (Mineral Rights and Mineral Bearing Land) Tax Bill, 2024, was that the state government did not have powers to frame laws over minerals.

“The law was drafted following a Supreme Court decision on the issue. Moreover, mines and minerals are in the concurrent list and the state has powers to frame laws on such subjects,” the source said, adding that other Bills too were being returned without valid reasons.

The Congress government in Karnataka and the Governor’s office have been at odds since last year. In 2024, the Governor returned 11 Bills passed by the government citing concerns raised by local bodies and opposition leaders regarding the legislations, and asked them to be re-submitted.

The state government had criticised the ‘unprecedented’ development. Most of the Bills were subsequently cleared by the Governor’s office.

Though the government had plans to approach the Supreme Court earlier, assent to a few laws by the Governor at the last moment had delayed the process, a senior legislator said. “We have not faced such a situation before. In past governments, very rarely were Bills returned for re-submission by the Governor. Now, it is turning out to be a routine process,” the legislator added.