Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi.
Credit: PTI Photo
Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) on Monday demanded the immediate recall of Governor R N Ravi for refusing to accept the recommendation of Chief Minister M K Stalin to appoint reinstated MLA K Ponmudy as a minister, saying his action amounts to “subversion of the rule of law” and violates the country’s Constitution.
In his statement, DMK Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate P Wilson termed the Governor as a “repeat offender” and accused him of acting with “scant regard” to the Constitution of India. Wilson also said the Governor’s refusal to administer the oath of office and secrecy to Ponmudy amounts to “contempt of court” since the Supreme Court suspended the conviction for the sole reason that it should not operate as a disqualification.
“This Governor who has no regard for the constitution, for the laws, for the orders of the Supreme Court, needs to be sacked forthwith. I urge the President of India to recall him immediately as he is an insult to the office of Governor,” Wilson said.
The statement comes a day after Ravi wrote to Stalin expressing his “inability” in acceding to his request to appoint Ponmudy as a minister saying the Supreme Court has only suspended his conviction by way of “interim relief” and not set aside the Madras High Court judgement. The governor added that induction of Ponmudy into the Council of Ministers while he remains “tainted of corruption” would be against Constitutional morality.
“Governor Ravi has given his own interpretation of the Supreme Court’s order stating that the conviction has only been suspended, not set aside. This is an absurd interpretation and is an affront to the Supreme Court’s order. The Governor is bound by the orders of the Supreme Court under Article 142 & 144 of the Constitution of India,” Wilson said.
He added that Ravi’s “blatant refusal” to accede to the Chief Minister’s request amounts to “subversion of the rule of law” and violation of Article 164(1) of the Constitution.
“The Governor's action is a clear act of contempt of Court since the Court suspended the conviction for the sole reason that it should not operate as a disqualification,” Wilson said and added that when the conviction order of the High Court is “suspended” by the apex court, it means that the order is non-existent in the eyes of law.
The interpretation of the Governor, Wilson said, cannot be a mere ignorance of law but “wilful and wanton violation” of the order of the Supreme Court for which the Governor must be prosecuted for contempt.
“It is now well settled that a Governor cannot decide who should be a Minister on moral grounds or any other grounds. That sole prerogative is with the Chief Minister. The Supreme Court has held in several rulings that the Governor cannot question the assessment of the Chief Minister regarding the suitability of the person being appointed as a Minister,” Wilson added.
In the statement, the Rajya Sabha MP accused the Governor of “acting as the de-facto President of the Tamil Nadu BJP unit” and seeking to run a parallel government from the Raj Bhavan because the “BJP can never set foot” in Fort St George, the seat of power of the Tamil Nadu government.
The Governor and the DMK dispensation clashed with each other on a slew of matters, most importantly in the functioning of state-funded universities, prompting the government to knock at the doors of the Supreme Court last year seeking to impose a timeline for the Governor to decide on bills sent to him by the Assembly.