The endless squabbles between the Governors and respective State governments in Kerala and West Bengal are alarming.
These Governors have arrogated to themselves an activist role, which is at the heart of the tensions.
What did the Governors do?
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan has made repeated public statements on controversial questions such as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.
He has said that it was his duty to defend the laws made by the Centre.
He must be mindful that the Constitution envisages the execution of popular will through an elected government.
West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar often appears eager for the next spectacular showdown with the State government.
The parties barring the central ruling party in both States are agitated over the proactive and provocative roles of their respective Governors.
The active profiles of these Governors are symptomatic of a larger malaise of degrading relations between the Centre and States ruled by parties opposed to the central ruling party.
What is the Constitutional role of the Governor?
The Constitution seeks to bolster centripetal forces in this vast and diverse country, and the Centre’s power to appoint Governors is one such.
The Governor’s constitutional role has been debated and interpreted through several cases.
But ingenious occupants of the office have managed to push the boundaries with unprecedented moves.
How is this office being used?
Sagacious occupants have used the Governor’s office to promote national integration.
Many others have merely acted as agents of the ruling party at the Centre.
Using a pliant Governor to undermine a State government or engineer a legislative majority is an old and secular trick used by all parties at the Centre.
How is the current conflict different?
State government-Governor conflicts have hence not been rare, but what makes the current situation extraordinary is the political context.
No other government in the past has sought to construct a centralising narrative for the nation as the current one at the Centre.
No government in the past has been as intolerant as the current one is towards its diversity.
In this schema, the Governor appears to have a critical, instrumental role.
In 2019, the ignominious role played by the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir in ending its special constitutional status is instructive.
How the Governor’s office should be?
The Governor’s role as a link between the State and the Centre shall not be an imperial one.
The office of the Governor must be a dialogic and consultative one.
The combative posturing in Kerala and West Bengal will bring more disarray, no unity.
The Centre must treat State governments with the respect that democratically elected governments deserve.
