Bills that sparked standoff with guv in past await assent as list stacks up
At the heart of the impasse were two key bills passed unanimously by the Vidhan Sabha in Dec 2022 during the then Congress-led govt — the Chhattisgarh Public Service (Reservation for SC, ST, and OBC) Amendment Bill and the Chhattisgarh Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Amendment Bill. These legislations sought to raise the quotas for Scheduled Tribes (ST) to 32%, Other Backward Classes (OBC) to 27%, Scheduled Castes (SC) to 13%, and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) to 4%, taking the total to 76% — the highest in India at that time.
However, the then-governor Anusuiya Uikey withheld assent, citing a 2012 Chhattisgarh High Court judgment that declared a 58% quota formula unconstitutional for breaching the 50% ceiling imposed by the Supreme Court. She demanded quantifiable population data from the state's commission to justify the proposed hike, but the Congress govt declined to share the report, leading to a standoff.
Although the controversy momentarily subsided after governor Uikey's transfer to Manipur in early 2023, her successor Vishwabhushan Harichandan was yet to clear the bills.
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by Taboola
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The delay continues to stall govt recruitments and admissions under the enhanced reservation structure, frustrating job seekers and students alike.
The issue has triggered fierce political crossfire. The Congress accuses the BJP of deliberately blocking pro-reservation reforms for political mileage. The BJP counters that constitutional propriety must not be compromised and supports the governor's demand for data-backed justification.
Officials said the other bills, passed by the assembly since 2000, were also awaiting gubernatorial assent. These include the Chhattisgarh University (Amendment) Bill 2020, Pt. Sundarlal Sharma Open University Chhattisgarh (Amendment) Bill 2020, Indira Kala Sangeet University (Amendment) Bill 2020, Chhattisgarh Agricultural Produce Market (Amendment) Bill 2020, and Chhattisgarh Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2020.
The Chhattisgarh Kushabhau Thakre University of Journalism and Mass Communication (Amendment) Bill presents a tricky situation as it proposes to rename the university after veteran Congress leader Chandulal Chandrakar, a respected journalist and five-time Member of Parliament from Durg, who was among the strong advocates for carving out a Chhattisgarh state from undivided Madhya Pradesh.
The university is currently named after Kushabhau Thakre, a senior BJP ideologue, who held the position of national BJP president from 1998 to 2000.
Thakre, a veteran RSS pracharak and one of the BJP's founding organisers, was known for his organisational work, especially in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. During the previous Congress regime, the Bhupesh Baghel govt got the amendment bill passed in the legislative assembly, but the bill is still awaiting the governor's assent.
Chhattisgarh Congress senior spokesperson Surendra Verma said, "The crucial bills are in limbo as they are pending with Raj Bhawan.
The Mandi amendment bill is crucial for the farmers as it will provide security to farmers directly selling their produce to traders. Naming the journalism university after veteran journalist Chandulal Chandrakar is an issue linked with the state's pride," he added.
Two older bills — including a Religious Freedom Bill from Ajit Jogi's regime and another by BJP leader Ramvichar Netam during Dr Raman Singh's tenure — remain pending with the President of India, adding further weight to the growing pile of legislations awaiting final clearance, he said.
Senior BJP leader and former minister Ajay Chandrakar said, "The issue of bills pending for the governor's assent is neither a matter for political debate nor something that should be raised in the Assembly. There are clear constitutional powers vested in the governor on such matters. The Congress is trying to politicise these issues for narrow brownie points."
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