Published on : 22 Nov 2025, 10:37 am 8 min read

Yesterday, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court rendered its advisory opinion on a Presidential Reference concerning the scope of the Governor’s powers when a bill passed by a State legislature is presented for assent.

The Reference was triggered in the aftermath of State of Tamil Nadu v. Governor of Tamil Nadu , where a two-judge bench, confronted with extraordinary delays in granting assent, had introduced fixed timelines for gubernatorial action and the doctrine of “deemed assent” in cases of prolonged inaction.

In its opinion, the Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai has now held that both directions - prescribed timelines and deemed assent - are constitutionally impermissible and amount to a j

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