Hyderabad: From an amendment to the municipal Acts to streamline taxes, to a proposal for raising the retirement age for government medical college faculty, and another seeking decentralisation of gram panchayats — these are among the 10 bills that have brought Telangana’s K. Chandrashekar Rao government at loggerheads with Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, with the latter yet to approve them.
With seven of the bills pending since late last year, the state government had moved a special leave petition in the Supreme Court earlier this month, seeking directions to the governor to approve the bills.
The case came up for hearing Monday. The top court observed that notices cannot be issued to the governor as it is a constitutional post but instead sought the central government’s view on the issue, according to a LiveLaw report. The court posted the matter for further hearing on 27 March.
In its petition — a copy of which ThePrint has seen — the state government said it was “constrained” to move the top court as there was no other option, and also keeping in view the “importance and magnitude of the issue” at hand.
The state government said “if the governor has any objection, they could send the bills back to the House asking them to reconsider any specific provisions (which are objectionable)”.
“Provided the House consider the recommendations, make changes and pass the bill in the legislature and then send it to the governor to assent — the approval should not be withheld,” it added.
ThePrint reached the governor’s office for a comment and is awaiting a response. This report will be updated once a response is received.
The KCR government and leaders of his Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) have, on several occasions, lashed out at Tamilisai, and accused the central government of pushing political vendetta through governors.
Prior to being appointed as Telangana governor in 2019, Tamilisai was Tamil Nadu BJP president.
The governor, however, had denied the state government’s allegations last month. “I want some clarification and there is no time limit in the assent of the bills,” the governor had said.
While 7 of the 10 bills have been awaiting the governor’s assent since late last year, the remaining three were passed in the Telangana assembly last month and sent to the governor’s office for approval.
In its petition, the state government said “(a) very frequent constitutional impasse (has been) created on account of the refusal of the governor of the state of Telangana to act on several bills passed by the state legislature. These bills are pending from 14th September 2022 till date for the assent of the governor”.
What are the 10 bills
Cleared by the Telangana assembly on 13 September last year, the Azamabad Industrial Area (Termination and Regulation of Leases) (Amendment) Bill, 2022, was sent to the governor’s office the next day. The bill aims to regularise land in Azamabad industrial area, and allow freehold conversion of land (owners can use the land beyond industrial purposes) following market-rate payments.
Another bill is the Telangana Municipal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022, also passed the same day, which seeks to make certain amendments in the existing municipal Acts to streamline the collection of property tax, vacant land tax, title transfer of property, and to merge a few municipalities, among other things.
Yet another bill cleared by the assembly in September is the Telangana Universities Common Recruitment Board Bill, 2022, which focuses on centralised recruitment to teaching and non-teaching posts in the universities under the administrative control of state-run bodies — higher education department, agriculture and cooperation department, and animal husbandry department — through a common recruitment board.
The Telangana State Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) (Amendment) Bill, 2022, was also passed by both houses of the state legislature in September. This seeks to include 5 more private universities in the ambit of the Telangana State Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) Act, 2018, which centres on setting up more private institutions.
The University of Forestry Telangana Bill, 2022, sent to the governor’s office on 14 September, seeks to establish an institution for forest education, research and outreach, and to upgrade Hyderabad’s Forest College and Research Institute into a full-fledged University of Forestry, Telangana.
The Public Employment (Regulation of Age of Superannuation) (Amendment) Bill, 2022, seeks to include the director of medical education and additional director of medical education among the categories of professors, associate professors and assistant professors of government medical colleges for the purposes of superannuation, and also raise their superannuation age to 65 years from 61 years.
Aimed at defining the cost of vehicles to assess taxes for vehicles originally registered in Telangana, or entering into the state from other states, the Telangana Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, was passed by both houses in September.
In the budget Session in February, the state government passed 5 bills, three of which focused on decentralisation of gram panchayats — Telangana Panchayat Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2023, adding villages to municipalities, the Telangana Municipalities Amendment) Bill, 2023), and the Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which seeks to enable the university to give affiliation to government colleges and institutions.
While these three bills are pending the governor’s approval, the other two — Appropriation Bill, 2022, and Appropriation Bill, 2023 — had got clearance.
Of all the bills, the KCR government is really keen on getting the governor’s approval on the bills related to municipal laws and universities, sources in the government told ThePrint.
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2-year-old rift
The fight over pending bills is among the numerous issues that the state’s two highest offices have been facing for more than 2 years.
The differences first came to light last year when Tamilisai held back a resolution referred to her by the state cabinet seeking the nomination of BRS leader P. Kaushik Reddy (then TRS) as a member of the legislative council under the governor’s quota.
The gap has just just widened with KCR’s visits to the governor’s residence Raj Bhavan decreasing, Telangana government holding assembly sessions without the governor’s speeches, and both celebrating Republic Day separately this year.
Tamilisai, in September last year, also accused KCR and his government of discriminating against her, humiliating her, and not followed the protocol.
(Edited by Anumeha Saxena)
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