RANCHI: Considering the seriousness of the matter, the state government is working on a plan to put the three bills -- Khatian-based local policy bill, OBC reservation bill and mob lynching prevention bill, again on the floor of the Jharkhand Assembly. Notably, these three bills have been returned by the Governor for reconsideration after they were sent for approval. The then Governor Ramesh Bais on March 2022 returned the anti-lynching bill back to the state government with two specific suggestions, including reconsidering the definition of ‘mob’ which was “not in consonance with the well-defined legal lexicon or glossary”.
Later in January, this year, Bais also returned the 1932-Khatian-based Local Policy Bill-2022 passed by Jharkhand Assembly on the same day asking the government to review its legality so that it is in accordance with the constitution and as per orders passed by the Supreme Court. Again in April, this year, the newly appointed Governor CP Radhakrishnan returned the OBC reservation bill seeking an increase in the reservation in government jobs and education institutions up to 77 per cent.
The Governor is said to have returned on the basis of the legal opinion from the attorney general of India. Notably, any bill passed by the Legislative Assembly is sent to the Governor's Secretariat by the State Government for the assent of the Governor. When the Governor agrees or disagrees with the bill, a message is also attached by the Governor regarding the said bill, but the message has not been attached by the Governor's Secretariat in the above returned Bills.
According to an official communiqué from the Chief Minister’s Office, the State Government is working to bring these Bills again in the Legislative Assembly. Therefore, the Governor's Secretariat has been requested to make the said message available, so that the government can re-present these bills of public interest with full force on the table of the assembly, it said.
“For this, under Article 200 of the Constitution of India and Rule-98 (1) of the procedure and conduct of business of the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly, the above bills returned by the Governor’s Secretariat are requested to be made available to the State Government and the Legislative Assembly along with the Governor's message,” stated the official communiqué from the Chief Minister’s Office.