Role Of Governor In Appointment Of Chief Minister

A problem of the center state division and the unattendedissue of formation of government during a coalition

- Sarvesh Kumar Shahi

The role of the Governor has emerged as one of the key issues in Union-State relations. Problems which arose in the working of Union-State relations were mostly matters for adjustment in the intra-party forum and the Governor had very little occasion for using his discretionary powers. The role of the Governor has come in for attack on the ground that some Governors have failed to display the qualities of impartiality and sagacity expected of them. It has been alleged that the Governors have not acted with necessary objectivity either in the manner of exercise of their discretion or in their role as a vital link between the Union and the States.

The recent Karnataka election results where BJP secured 104 seats against 78 seats of Congress and 38 seats of JDS has put the ball in Governor’s court to exercise his discretion on appointment of the Chief Minister of party proving majority in the assembly. However, such instances are not unfamiliar to Indian politics. One can debate endlessly, whether the fallout events of situations, such as the present one, are lethal to our democracy or not, but the fact remains that these testing times have made the institutions more stable and stronger over a period of time. To understand the issue, it is pertinent to discuss the constitutional role and powers of the Governor in detail.

Articles 163 and 164 of the Constitution deal with the Council of Ministers in the states. Article 163 states that there shall be a Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister that should aid and advice the Governor in exercise of his functions, except in so far as he is by or under the Constitution required to exercise his functions or any of them in his discretion.