Bengaluru, Jan 22 (PTI) Ending hours of political suspense, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Thursday arrived at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of state legislature and secretariat here, for the joint
session of the state legislature.
Gehlot was received at Vidhana Soudha by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Legislative Assembly Speaker U T Khader, Legislative Council Chairman Basavaraj Horatti and Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil.
In yet another Governor vs government face-off in a non-BJP ruled state, Gehlot had on Wednesday refused to deliver the Governor's address to the Karnataka legislature, leading to a stalemate over the fate of the customary speech that outlines the government's policies.
A total of 11 paragraphs in the government prepared speech, which allegedly makes critical reference to the central government and its policies, touching upon the "repeal" of MGNREGA and issues including devolution of funds seem to have irked the Governor, who wanted them to be deleted.
A delegation led by Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil had met Gehlot on Wednesday evening amid the impasse. The delegation comrpised Advocate General K Shashi Kiran Shetty and Legal Advisor to the CM A S Ponna.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Patil reiterated that the Constitution of India under Article 176(1) very specifically mandates that the speech prepared by the government is to be addressed by the Governor.
The governor's address is nothing but the declaration of the government's policies, programmes and views, he said. "Article 176(1) says that the Governor shall address the joint session and he should address the session in full. The full text of the speech prepared by the cabinet is to be red by the Governor. It is his first responsibility and he is duty bound by the Constitution of India."
"In case the Governor cuts short his speech or doesn't address, it will be a betrayal to the constitution on his part....the government will see what needs to be done if it happens," he added.
According to sources, late on Wednesday night, the state government agreed to remove a couple of sentences critical of the VB-G RAM (G) Act.
AG Shetty is reportedly in New Delhi, fueling speculations about a potential legal battle if the Governor does not turn up to address the joint session.
This is the third face-off between a governor and a state government in the past two days.
On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi walked out of the state Assembly without delivering his customary address to the House on the opening day of its inaugural session of the year, claiming "inaccuracies" in the text. Similarly, his Kerala counterpart Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar had allegedly "omitted" portions of his speech, with the Lok Bhavan claiming his suggestions had been excluded from the original draft. PTI KSU ROH
