In a significant constitutional moment, the President of India has sought the Supreme Court’s advisory opinion under Article 143(1) on whether timelines can be judicially imposed on constitutional authorities ~ Governors and the President ~ when acting on bills passed by state legislatures. This move is more than a legal formality; it is a measured step by the Union government to re-calibrate the delicate architecture of India’s federal democracy. At the heart of this issue is the Supreme Court’s April 8 ruling that placed time-bound obligations on Governors and the President to act on state legislation. The judgment arose from Tamil Nadu’s protracted tussle with its Governor over several bills pending assent.

The court declared that constitutional functionaries cannot remain in prolonged inaction, especially when such delays obstruct the legislative will of an elected assembly. What makes the Court’s intervention momentous is its use of implied timelines ~ deriving........

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