Another rift emerged between Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Punjab Governor Banwari Lal Purohit on Friday morning. Once again, in the ongoing series of “Letter Wars,” Governor Purohit has written another letter to the Punjab Government, asserting that the summoning of future Assembly sessions is ‘illegal.’
Two days following the Punjab Vidhan Sabha’s request to Governor Banwarilal Purohit for an extension of the Budget session on October 20 and 21, the Governor issued a statement on Friday. He firmly declared that the “extended session would be deemed illegal, and any actions carried out during such sessions would be unlawful and void ab initio.”
In a formal letter addressed to the Vidhan Sabha Secretary, the Under-Secretary of the Raj Bhavan pointed out that the Governor had previously raised objections to the legality of a special session held in June. The government had intended to convene this session to endorse amendments to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law, facilitating the establishment of an appellate tribunal. The Parliament passed this law and sent it to all states for ratification. Given the ongoing conflict between the Punjab government and the Governor, the government had hoped for the Governor’s approval to grant legal validity to the extension of the Budget session, as it was intended to validate the Central government’s law. The government also aimed to present a resolution concerning the Sutlej Yamuna Link canal. However, the Governor communicated to the government that this session would lack legal legitimacy, and any proceedings conducted during it would not be legally binding.
The letter from Raj Bhavan stated, “Please refer to your letter No. 8-LA-2023/17041, dated October 10, 2023, regarding the summoning of the Assembly session from October 20, 2023, in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha Hall, Vidhan Bhawan, Chandigarh. I have been instructed to draw your attention to the Hon’ble Governor’s letter dated July 24, 2023, which registered the Hon’ble Governor’s objection to a similar extended session styled as ‘The Special Session of the 4th (Budget) Session of the 16th Punjab Vidhan Sabha,’ called on June 12, 2023, for June 19th and 20th, 2023.”
It further added, “Based on legal counsel and the reasons outlined in the aforementioned letter, the Hon’ble Governor highlighted that summoning such a session was fundamentally illegal, contravening established legislative procedures and constitutional provisions.”
“In the current instance, the summons for ‘A Special Session of the 4th Budget Session of the 16th Punjab Vidhan Sabha,’ suggesting it is a continuation of the 4th session adjourned sine die on June 20, 2023, is merely an effort to extend the Budget Session originally called by the honourable Governor for March 3, 2023, and concluded on March 22, 2023, following the completion of its business agenda.”
“In light of the reasons provided in the letter dated July 24, any such extension of the session is unequivocally illegal, and any actions taken during such sessions are unauthorized and void from the outset,” the letter emphasized. Meanwhile, the state government continues to convene special sessions, and the Governor has yet to prorogue the Budget session. Since the session has not been prorogued, the government is not required to seek the Governor’s permission before convening the next session. This situation has, however, resulted in a legal dispute.
