In April 2025, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment concerning the constitutional role of Governors in the legislative process. The case centered on Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi's actions regarding 10 Bills that had been pending with him, some since January 2020. The Court invoked its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to effectively grant assent to these Bills, while also establishing clear timelines for Governors to exercise their lawmaking powers. The Supreme Court ruled that Article 200 of the Constitution expects the Governor to inform the state government of reasons for withholding assent to a Bill. Article 200 addresses the powers of the Governor concerning assent to bills passed by the State legislature, as well as other powers such as reserving a bill for the President’s consideration. 200. Assent to Bills When a Bill has been passed by the Legislative Assembly of a State or, in the case of a State having a Legislative Council, has been passed by both Houses of the Legislature of the State, it shall be presented to the Governor and the Governor shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he withholds assent therefrom or that he reserves the Bill for the consideration of the President:Provided that the Governor may, as soon as possible after the presentation to ...
