Apex court issues notice to Centre, to hear U’khand Governor’s plea after six weeks
The Supreme Court will examine a plea by Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi questioning the legality of Union Home Secretary directing Governors to step down from their posts. Qureshi has contended that such orders can only come from the President of India.
A five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court will hear this issue after six weeks as the subject required interpretation of Article 156 of the Constitution. Under Article 156(1), the Governor shall hold office during the pleasure of the President.
Qureshi, who was represented by a battery of senior lawyers including Kapil Sibal, Salman Khursheed, Vivek Tankha and Harin Raval, pointed out that neither the Constitution nor the Supreme Court judgments indicated the procedure for removing a Governor.
Issuing notice on Qureshi’s petition, the bench headed by Chief Justice RM lodha said, “If the President’s pleasure is discontinued, somebody will have to convey it. You cannot expect the President or Prime Minister to do it; then the Home Secretary may do it.”
Sibal said the court must seize this opportunity and lay down the procedure for Governor’s removal under Article 156 for all times to come. He said here was a case where the Home Secretary was “threatening” a Governor to resign or face removal.
The petition stated that the Home Secretary had no authority to ask a Governor, who is his “Constitutional superior”, to resign.
The reaction of the Congress to the court order was evident. Speaking to reporters later in the day, AICC general secretary Ambika Soni said, “It was bound to happen...This was in pipeline that somebody is definitely going to challenge that. This has been talked about ever since the sacking of Mizoram Governor Kamla Beniwal.”
The notices were issued to the Centre, Home Secretary, and the Uttarakhand Government. The bench, also comprising Justices Kurian Joseph and Rohington Nariman, said, “If the mode (of removal) is Constitutional, it is fine, but if it is extra-Constitutional, it may require examination by five-judge bench.”
Qureshi did not seek stay on his removal. This leaves the option open for the Centre to remove him even during the pendency of this petition. He was appointed as Uttarakhand Governor on April 28, 2012. A month after the NDA came to power at the Centre in May this year, Qureshi was briefly made Governor of UP as well. During his brief tenure in UP, lasting less than a month, he made a controversial remark that even Gods cannot prevent rape from occurring in the State.
On July 30, Home Secretary called up Qureshi and asked him to step down over the remark. The Governor wrote a detailed explanation on August 2 following which on August 5 he received a second call from Home Secretary to step down or face removal. On August 12, a communication from the Home Minister reached the Governor informing that his letter was under consideration.
“There is no question that the Union Government or Home Minister, through Home Secretary, can set terms to the Governor and attempt to extract resignation under the fear of removal. Such mode of action is alien to the Constitution and violative of Constitutional ethos,” the petition said.
In this connection, Sibal sought production of files containing all communication exchanged between his client and the Home Ministry. But the bench felt that the five-judge bench will take a call in this regard.
Qureshi is the first Governor to move the Supreme Court against the Modi Government, which has sacked two Governors already. Four other Governors appointed by the former UPA Government have resigned since the NDA came to power in May this year.
The Home Secretary is believed to have telephoned some of the Governors, appointed by the previous UPA regime, asking them to step down after which West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan, Nagaland Governor Ashwani Kumar, UP Governor Bl Joshi and Chhattisgarh Governor Shekhar Dutt put in their papers.