The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the decision of Madhya Pradesh Governor Lal Ji Tandon asking the then Kamal Nath-led Congress Government to undertake floor test, but expressed concern over the trend of legislators being whisked away by rival political parties to safe hideouts.
It said that if the Governor has reasons to believe that the Government has lost confidence of the House, constitutional propriety requires the issue be resolved by the trust vote. The top court however expressed concern over the trend that legislators are taken away by rival political parties .
“The spectacle of rival political parties whisking away their political flock to safe destinations does little credit to the state of our democratic politics. It is an unfortunate reflection on the confidence which political parties hold in their own constituents and a reflection of what happens in the real world of politics,” said the bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and Hemant Gupta.
The SC, which had on March 19, asked Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker NP Prajapati to reconvene a special session the next day with a sole agenda of conducting the floor test, gave a detailed order on Monday. Nath, who had been the Chief Minister for 15 months, then resigned on March 20 — paving the way for the BJP Government led by Shivraj Singh Chauhan.
The verdict on Monday further said that the decision of the Governor calling for a floor test cannot be construed to have acted “beyond the bounds of constitutional authority”.