The basic problem is upholding the concept of justice and Constitutional law, of which the Supreme Court is the guardian. The problem started with Opposition politicians jumping ship and Speakers appointed by the ruling party, who, instead of deciding Disqualification Petitions within a reasonable time, sat on them, forcing the petitioners to approach the High Court, which has to go by law as the Constitution lays down no timeline! Girish Chodankar filed the petition with Speaker Tawadkar against 8 Congress politicians who defected in September 2022. No action ultimately forced Girish to approach the Supreme Court, and only after that was a decision given in October 2024 by simply dismissing the petition! Likewise, other partisan Speakers, like in Maharashtra, did the same.
The matter came to a head when the Tamil Nadu Governor, instead of following Constitutionally laid down procedures, forwarded the Bills to the President. A division bench of the Supreme Court laid down time limits for the President, Governors, and Speakers as the guardians of the Constitution and thus ensured there was no misuse by the statutory bodies! The Union government is essentially now using the President’s power, asking the Supreme Court to elaborate on a judge-made law! The makers of our Constitution were honourable people and left it to the good sense of elected politicians and those governing to have a sense of justice. The timing of this reference to the Supreme Court, when the former CJI has just retired, seeks to redefine the balance of power between the legislature and the judiciary. If left as it is, it can paralyse the non-BJP governments.
