CM Siddaramaiah termed Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot’s one-line address at the Karnataka Legislature joint session a “serious breach of the Constitution”, triggering a political face-off between the state government and Raj Bhavan.
The dramatic scenes witnessed during the joint session of the Karnataka State Legislature on Wednesday have marked the beginning of a direct and open confrontation between the state government and Raj Bhavan. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah strongly condemned Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot for concluding the government-prepared address in just one line and walking out of the House without reading the speech in full, calling it a serious breach of constitutional norms and parliamentary tradition.
CM Siddaramaiah’s Outraged Response
Speaking to the media after the incident, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah described the Governor’s action as an “insult to the Constitution”. He alleged that the Governor had deliberately disregarded established constitutional conventions.
“The Governor has thrown the rules of the Constitution to the wind. Copies of the prepared speech were distributed to all legislators. Yet, the Governor shirked his responsibility, apparently to shield the failures of the central government,” Siddaramaiah said.
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Opposition to the ‘G RAM G’ Scheme
The Chief Minister further linked the controversy to the state government’s opposition to the Centre’s decision to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme as ‘G RAM G’, thereby dropping Mahatma Gandhi’s name.
“Our government strongly opposes this move. It is not right for the Centre to decide where people should work under the scheme. Our struggle will continue until MGNREGA is restored in its original form,” he asserted.
What Do Constitutional Provisions Say?
As per Article 176 of the Constitution, it is mandatory for the first session of the Legislature each year to begin with the Governor’s address.
Government’s Stand on the Governor’s Address
The Governor’s address is essentially a statement of the state government’s policies, rules, and achievements. It is prepared by the Council of Ministers.
Source of the Crisis
A constitutional crisis arises when the state government criticises the Centre’s policies or refers to alleged discrimination in financial allocations in its speech, and the Governor, appointed by the President, refuses to read those portions.
Scope for Legislative Debate
Even if the Governor does not read the address in full, the Constitution allows the government to table the speech in the House and hold a debate on it.
BJP MLA Sunil Kumar’s Retort
Responding to the controversy, BJP MLA Sunil Kumar defended the Governor’s actions.
“The Governor read the first and last lines of the address, which legally amounts to the delivery of the speech. However, the Law Minister and Congress MLAs violated legislative decorum by heckling the Governor inside the House,” he said.
He added that the BJP would urge the Speaker to initiate action against those involved in disrupting the proceedings.
