Now, a BJP leader questions relevance of Governor's address

Senior Karnataka BJP MLA Suresh Kumar on Friday (January 30) said there was a need to revisit the practice of the Governor’s annual address to the state legislature, calling it a “colonial hangover” whose relevance has diminished over time.

Calls for national debate

Speaking during the debate on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, Kumar said Karnataka should take the lead in triggering a national discussion on whether the practice should continue.

His remarks come amid a political row following the joint session of the legislature on January 22, when Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot refused to read the government-prepared address and concluded his speech in just three lines, drawing sharp criticism from the ruling Congress.

The Governor had objected to references critical of the Centre, including the decision to “repeal” the UPA-era MGNREGA.

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"The Governor addressing the joint session has become an annual exercise. The importance, purpose, and sanctity of the Governor's address has vanished today. There have been 18 Governors in Karnataka so far since Jayachamarajendra Wodiyar, among them some people like Dharam Vira are still remembered, while a few others are remembered for unwanted reasons, I don't want to detail it," Kumar said.

'Constitution framers didn’t foresee conflicts'

India adopted the Westminster system, under which the monarch addresses Parliament, Kumar said, but added that the Constitution’s framers may not have anticipated conflicts of the kind now surrounding Governors’ addresses.

"...they did not know about cyber crimes while framing the Indian Penal Code (IPC)," he added.

Clarifying that he was expressing a personal opinion and not the BJP’s official stand, Kumar questioned the relevance of continuing the practice.

“We bring the Governor to the Assembly, make him read a speech that begins with ‘my government’. The government drafts it, the opposition condemns it, and ultimately disrespect is caused to the Governor’s office,” he said.

Support for ending practice

Referring to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s call for a constitutional amendment to end the practice, Kumar said the Governor’s office deserved dignity. He also cited the late Rama Jois — former judge of the Karnataka High Court, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and Governor of Bihar and Jharkhand — as having held the view that the Governor’s address should be discontinued.

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Kumar said that if the practice were to continue, the address should reflect the government’s achievements over the previous year and outline its policy priorities for the year ahead.

“But today, the Governor’s address has political overtones,” he added.

(With agency inputs)