APPOINTMENT OF GOVERNORS
President Droupadi Murmu appointed Governors for Rajasthan, Telangana, Maharashtra, Punjab, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Assam, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh on Saturday (July 28). Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya has been given the additional charge for Manipur as well.
The President of India appoints state Governors, who function as the Centre’s representatives.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS WRT GOVERNOR
- Article 153 of the Indian Constitution says “There shall be a Governor for each State.”
- A fe years after the commencement of the Constitution, an amendment in 1956 laid down that “nothing in this article shall prevent the appointment of the same person as Governor for two or more States”.
- Article 155 says that the “Governor of a State shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal”.
- Under Article 156, “the Governor shall hold office during the pleasure of the President”, but his normal term of office will be five years.
- If the President withdraws her pleasure before the completion of five years, the Governor has to step down.
- Since the President acts on the aid and advice of the Prime Minister and the Union Council of Ministers, in effect, the Governor is appointed and removed by the central government.
QUALIFICATIONS TO BE A GOVERNOR
Articles 157 and 158 lay down the qualifications of the Governor and the conditions of his
office.
- The Governor must be a citizen of India.
- Should have completed the age of 35 years.
- The Governor should not be a member of Parliament or a state legislature, and
- Must not hold any other office of profit.
RELATIONSHIP OF GOVERNOR & STATE POLICE
The position of the Governor is envisaged as an apolitical head who must act on the advice of the Council of Ministers of the state.
Article 163 states: “There shall be a Council of Ministers with the Chief Minister at the head to aid and advise the Governor in the exercise of his functions, except in so far as he is by or under this Constitution required to exercise his functions or any of them in his discretion.”
POWERS OF A GOVERNOR
The Governor enjoys certain powers under the Constitution:
- Giving or withholding assent to a Bill passed by the state legislature;
- Determining the time needed for a party to prove its majority in the state Assembly; or,
- In cases such as a hung verdict in an election, which party must be called first to prove its majority — which make his position very significant.
- The Governor can send a report to the President about the failure of Constitutional machinery of the state. If accepted, President’s rule gets implemented.
Over the decades, Governors have been seen as acting on the behest of the central government in power at the time, and have been accused by state governments, especially those in opposition, of acting as “agents of the Centre”.
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