"Calling Special June Assembly Session Was Illegal": Governor To Bhagwant Mann

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit Monday wrote to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for the second time in a week, saying that calling the two-day Assembly session last month was "patently illegal".

In his letter that is likely to intensify the tussle between the Raj Bhavan and the AAP government, Governor Purohit also said that he had been receiving complaints of corruption and sought to remind the chief minister that the governor is a constitutional authority appointed by the President.

Governor Purohit's letter came two days after Mr Mann said it was "very unfortunate" that Purohit did not know whether the June 19-20 session was legal or illegal.

Referring to Mr Mann's statement which he made on Saturday, the governor said, “For your information, opinion has been taken from one of the leading constitutional experts. Crux of the opinion is attached for your knowledge, which clearly mentions that the House so summoned was patently illegal. Now, nothing remains to be responded to your comments.”

In a letter to CM Mann on July 17, Governor Purohit had said the calling of the Assembly session was likely a "breach of law and procedure" and indicated that he may not sign off soon on the Bills passed during that sitting of the House.

Governor Purohit had also questioned the legality of the Bills and said that he was actively considering seeking the Attorney General's advice on them or referring them to the President.

The governor's response had come after Mann urged him to sign the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, aimed at ensuring a free-to-air telecast of 'Gurbani' from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

It was one of the four Bills passed during the June 19-20 session

Responding to Governor Purohit's letter, CM Mann on July 22 had said during the previous Amarinder Singh government's tenure, the Assembly session was called twice without the permission of the governor as the session was not prorogued.

The session was called after consulting the experts of the Constitution, Mann had pointed out.

In his latest communique on Monday, the governor also reminded the CM that his letters to him remained unattended which Mann had called as “love letters”.

“But you are supposed to know that as per the Constitution, the Chief Minister is duty bound to furnish the information sought by the Governor. Non-supply of the information is a clear violation of the Article 167 of the Constitution,” wrote Purohit.

“During the debate in the Assembly you have taken pot-shots about the Governor, which is not liked by the people as the utterances by the Chief Minister are not befitting to the post,” he said.

“You should also keep in mind that I, Governor, am a constitutional authority appointed by the President of India and entrusted with duty to ensure a just, fair and honest administration and has to see that the governance is corruption free.

“As I am receiving various complaints of corruption, I urge you to give me the reply at the earliest without fail. Otherwise, it will be deemed as gross violation of the Constitution,” said Governor Purohit.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)