Delay in Telangana’s Bill Approvals Raises Questions, Supreme Court to Hear State’s Plea

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Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan granted her approval to three out of the 10 pending Bills on Monday, while the remaining seven are awaiting her assent. The Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for the State government’s petition seeking to direct the Governor to grant her assent to the Bills after two weeks. The delay in approving the Bills has sent a negative message to the public, according to senior advocate Dushyant Dave, representing the Telangana government.

Dave argued that Bills in other States, such as Madhya Pradesh, are granted assent in a matter of 7-10 days, raising questions about the reason for the delay in Telangana. He stated that “the Governor is bound by the law” and the delay sends the wrong message. In response, State Finance and Health Minister T Harish Rao alleged that the Bills were only approved after the government filed a case in the Supreme Court. He further claimed that the Forest University Bill was forwarded to the President solely to impede the State’s progress.

The Governor’s advocate submitted a letter on Monday, informing the Supreme Court that she had granted her assent to three Bills, reserved two Bills for the consideration and assent of the President of India, and was actively considering three more Bills. One Bill wasn’t submitted by the Law Department yet. The State government had appealed to the apex court in the first week of March to direct the Governor to fulfill her constitutional obligation and approve the pending Bills.

Re-Reported from the story originally published in  IndianExpress.