CHANDIGARH: Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit has reserved three Bills, including the one that aims to replace him with the chief minister as the chancellor of state-run universities, for the consideration of President Droupadi Murmu.
These bills have been at the centre of a controversy between Purohit and the AAP-led Punjab government.
The bills sent to the President are The Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, the Punjab Universities Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and The Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The Punjab Assembly passed the bills in its June 19-20 session.
A Raj Bhavan spokesperson said: “The governor has reserved these three bills for the consideration of the President of India as per Article 200 of the Constitution.’’
The Article says: “When a bill has been passed by the legislative assembly of a state or, in the case of a state having a legislative council, it shall be presented to the governor and the governor shall declare either that he assents to the Bill or that he withholds assent or that he reserves the Bill for the President’s consideration.”
While the Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023, aims to pave the way to bring about an independent mechanism for the selection and appointment of suitable persons to the director general of police post, the Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, ensures free-to-air telecast of ‘Gurbani’ from the Golden Temple in Amritsar.