Pleasure Doctrine & Governor's Duties and Powers

The governor of Kerala has issued a warning to ministers, stating that any remarks made by a minister that diminish the stature of the governor's office may result in retaliation, including the withholding of pleasure.

Pleasure Doctrine: What is it?

• In accordance with the English common law's "pleasure theory," the monarch is free to terminate any employee's employment at any time.
• According to Article 310 of the Indian Constitution, each member of the Union's defence or civil service serves at the pleasure of the President, and each employee of a state's civil service serves at the discretion of the Governor.
• It adds that Ministers hold office during the pleasure of the Governor. In a constitutional scheme in which they are appointed solely on the CM’s advice, the ‘pleasure’ referred to is also taken to mean the right of the CM to dismiss a Minister and not that of the Governor. In short, the Governor of an Indian State cannot remove a Minister on his own.

Supreme Court’s View:

Shamsher Singh & Anr v. State of Punjab (1974):

In this case, a seven-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled that, aside from a few well-known exceptional circumstances, the President and Governor, the guardians of all executive and other powers under various Articles, shall only exercise their formal constitutional powers on the advice of their Ministers.

Deputy Speaker and Others v. Nabam Rebia and Others (2016):

The Supreme Court noted B. R. Ambedkar's findings in this case: "Under the Constitution, the Governor has no tasks that he can do alone; none at all. The House would be well to keep in mind that while he has no functions, he does have certain obligations.

Prafulla Chandra v. Mahabir Prasad, 1969:

The case revolved around the question of the nature of the governor’s pleasure under article 164(1).

• The governor's pleasure under article 164(1) is subject to Article 164(2). Thus, the withdrawal of the governor's pleasure must coincide with the withdrawal of support to the ministry by the assembly.

What aspects of the Constitution relating to the governor?

• Each State must have a governor, according to Article 153. A single individual may be named governor of two or more states.
• A Governor is a Central Government nominee who is nominated by the President.

The Governor is said to have two roles.

• As the state's constitutional leader, he must abide by the recommendations of his Ministerial Council (CoM).
• He serves as an essential conduit between the State Government and the Union Government.
• For the position of governor, certain qualifications are outlined in Articles 157 and 158. A governor must be an Indian national.
• 35 years of age minimum.
• not be a member of the state legislature or of either house of the parliament.
• not hold any profitable offices.
• The governor has the authority to give amnesties, pardons, etc (Article 161).
• With few exceptions for discretion, the Governor is assisted and advised in the performance of his duties by a CoM, which is led by the CM (Article 163)
• The Chief Minister and all Ministers are appointed by the Governor (Article 164).
• The Governor signs, vetoes, or reserves a law enacted by the Legislative Assembly for the President's consideration (Article 200).
• In certain situations, governors may issue the ordinances (Article 213).

What are the points of contention between the governor and the state?

• The governor is pictured as a nonpartisan leader who must follow the cabinet of ministers' recommendations. The Governor does, however, have some latitude allowed by the Constitution.
• Giving or refusing to give consent to a state legislature-passed bill are only a few examples. Another is deciding which party shall be summoned first after an election with a hung vote to demonstrate which party has the majority.
• The way the Governor and the state must interact publicly when there is a difference of opinion is not specifically outlined in the law.
• The Governor's term is for five years, and he can only hold the position until the President so chooses.
• The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution held in 2001 that the Union was responsible for the Governor's appointment and reappointment.
• He might operate in conformity with the directives issued by the Union Council of Ministers, which raises concern.
• The Governor's authority to name a CM or dissolve the Assembly is not subject to any restrictions in the Constitution.
• The length of time a Governor may refuse to sign a bill is unrestricted.
• In order to recommend the President invoke Article 356 (President's Rule), the Governor sends a report to the centre, which serves as the foundation.

How have concerns about the alleged partisan role played by governors been addressed?

Changes to the Governors' Selection Process:

• The Atal Bihari Vajpayee administration created the National Commission To Review the Working of the Constitution in 2000, and it recommended that the President pick a State's Governor after consulting with the Chief Minister of that State.

Sarkaria Commission's proposal:

• The Prime Minister should contact the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Vice President of India while choosing governors, according to a recommendation made by the Sarkaria Commission, which was established in 1983 to examine relations between the Centre and states.

Punchhi Committee's suggestion:

• The 2007 Justice Madan Mohan Punchhi Committee on Center-State Relations recommended in its report that the Governor be chosen by a committee made up of the Prime Minister, Home Minister, Vice President, Speaker, and the relevant Chief Minister.
• Despite supporting the Governor's ability to approve the prosecution of ministers despite the state government's advice, the Punchhi Committee suggested that the "Doctrine of Pleasure" be removed from the Constitution.
• It also called for a clause that would allow the state legislature to remove the governor from office.

Anti-superstition laws

• The state of Kerala has emphasized the need for new legislation to stop such superstitious practices and recommended rigorous application of the current laws in this area in the wake of the alleged human sacrifice of two women in Kerala.

Introduction

• It is an unfounded conviction stemming from "ignorance or terror and characterised by obsessive veneration for omens, charms, etc." or "reverence for the supernatural."
• The word "superstition" comes from the Latin word "Superstitio," which denotes a ferocious fear of the deity.
• Superstitions are pervasive and can be found all over the world; they are not specific to any one nation, religion, culture, community, area, caste, or social class.

Arguments in favour of/need for legislation

• Black magic and other superstitious activities make crimes that the IPC cannot handle.
• Religious authority cannot justify harmful actions that cause harm to others, such as the hurling of children upon thorns or the parade of women in their undies.

Arguments in opposition: We don't need a separate law

• Special laws being passed for each category of crimes is not a solution and only makes the situation worse.
• Although it may appear important, an anti-superstition law cannot take into account all realities.
• Such a law's purpose is to combat superstition, which is primarily connected to religious and occult rituals.
• For the mere reason that there is no scientific justification for almost everything connected to any religion, it may be argued that it is superstitious.
• Absence of scientific evidence: Attending a temple, mosque, or church can be considered superstitious because there is no evidence to suggest that doing so has any positive effects.
• Since these actions produce no harm to anyone, they cannot be stopped.
• We have the freedom of conscience and the right to hold beliefs even when logic and science don't support them due to the fundamental principles of a liberal democracy.
• Our nation's substantive legal system is strong enough to deal with these offences.
• For instance, Sections 307 and 323 of the IPC make it illegal to throw a kid upon thorns. In a similar vein, Section 354B of the IPC can deal particularly parading a lady while she is nude.
• Changes to the Indian Evidence Act and Criminal Procedure Code can be made to address these superstitions.

Major Obstacles

• Fundamental rights are violated by witch-hunting and other crimes associated with superstition, which are prohibited by Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Indian Constitution.
• Several international laws, including the "Universal Declaration of Human Rights," "International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights," and "Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women," to which India is a signatory, are also violated by these activities.
• Ineffective implementation: States are permitted to create particular criminal laws since law and order is a state responsibility. States have the same freedom to change laws that are enacted by the Union.
• Lack of effective governance: If the administration is serious about stopping such behaviours, current rules need to be more actively implemented and enforced.
• Punishment certainty: Studies in criminology have shown that it is punishment certainty, not the type or severity of the punishment, that has the greatest impact on reducing crime.
• Poor implementation: We have a history of passing good legislation but failing to put them into practise. More laws but less "rule of law" is referred to as "over-criminalization" in the legal community.
• Religions are aware that religion can be misused; there have long been tales of phoney sadhus and dishonest sanyasis.

Similar Laws

• There are already laws against witch-hunting in eight states in India. Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan, Assam, Maharashtra, and Karnataka are some of these.
• In 1999, the state of Bihar took the lead in enacting a law to address superstitious behaviours.
• One of the earliest laws in India to confront witchcraft and cruel rituals was the Prevention of Witch Practices Act.
• The practice of human sacrifice was outlawed in the state of Maharashtra in 2013 with the passage of the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act.
• In 2015, the Assam Witch Hunting (Prohibition, Prevention and Protection) Bill was passed. Together with Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, this Act will be enforced. Nearly three years after the Assembly passed this bill, it became law.
• The Karnataka Prevention and Eradication of Inhuman Evil Practices and Black Magic Act, a contentious anti-superstition law, was also enacted in the state of Karnataka in 2017.
• It thoroughly opposes "inhumane" practises connected to religious rituals, such as performing any inhumane act, engaging in evil deeds and black magic in search of riches, tantric acts such as physical and sexual assault, creating the impression of "possession" and exorcism or assaulting people under the guise of exorcism, claiming to have healing abilities, compelling people to perform fire-walking, and so on.
• Prevention of Eradication of Black Magic, Sorcery, and Inhuman Evil Practices in Kerala Bill' in 2019 that included fines of up to Rs 50,000 and prison terms of up to seven years for those convicted of crimes covered by the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
• However, it was unsuccessful because it was not brought up for debate or approved by the state legislative assembly.

Way forward

• Sensitization is required since no superstition can be eradicated by the force of legislation. A mental sensitization is required for that.
• The anti-superstition law also enables the restriction of so-called godmen's actions before they amass too much power.
• Criminal justice that is more easily accessible requires a significant redesign of the enforcement apparatus.
• Indian people have a fundamental obligation to cultivate a scientific temperament, humanism, and a spirit of inquiry and reform, according to Article 51A (h) of the Indian Constitution.
• Drugs and Magic Remedies Act of 1954 provisions also seek to address the detrimental effects of numerous superstitious practices that are common in India.