SC response to Presidential reference 'deplorable, shocking': CPI(M) General Secretary
New Delhi (PTI) The Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary MA Baby on Thursday said the Supreme Court's response to the Presidential Reference on timelines to grant assent to Bills was "deplorable and shocking".
President Droupadi Murmu had, exercising her power under the rarely used Article 143 (1),
posed 14 crucial questions before the top court over its April 8 verdict, which imposed a three-month deadline for the President and governors on dealing with Bills placed before them for assent, or consideration.
After deliberating on the Presidential Reference, a five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice B R Gavai on Thursday opined that timelines cannot be fixed for the President and the governors for granting assent to Bills passed by state assemblies.
In an X post, the CPI(M) general secretary said, "The Supreme Court's answer in response to the Presidential Reference is deplorable and shocking. Courts should not hesitate to play a meaningful role in ensuring proper checks and balances between the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary."
Baby said that while on one hand the Supreme Court has said that timelines cannot be set for granting assent to bills, on the other, it said that the court can exercise a "limited power of judicial review to direct the governor to decide in a time-bound manner".
"Now, who will decide what is a time-bound manner?!! Judiciary should not absolve itself of its constitutional responsibility," Baby asked.
In its unanimous opinion on the Presidential Reference, the bench held that the Supreme Court cannot grant "deemed assent" as it would amount to virtual takeover of the role of a separate constitutional authority.
The bench also ruled that the governors do not have "unfettered" powers to sit over the Bills for "perpetuity" as they have only three options -- either to grant assent, or refer the Bills to the President, or withhold assent and send back them to the assemblies for reconsideration under Article 200.
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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge met a high-level delegation from Chile, led by Chilean Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna, at Vidhana Soudha on Thursday to discuss collaboration in emerging technologies, clean energy, and startup ecosystems, officials said.
The delegation’s visit to Bengaluru, as part of its India engagements, underscores Karnataka’s growing prominence as a preferred partner for global collaborations in technology, innovation, and startup ecosystems, officials added.
The discussions reflected strong alignment between Chile’s evolving technology-focused growth strategy and Karnataka’s established leadership in innovation and deep-tech ecosystems, according to a statement.
Both sides explored opportunities to build partnerships that move beyond traditional sectors and focus on innovation-led growth, talent exchange, and market access.
The meeting focused on opportunities in renewable energy, including green hydrogen and sustainable industrial innovation.
Other potential areas of collaboration included marine biotechnology, aquaculture technologies, and AI applications across traditional industries.
According to the state IT minister, Karnataka is now a global hub for deep-tech, AI, biotech, aerospace, and advanced research, backed by one of the world’s strongest talent pipelines.
“As partners under the global innovation alliance, we must move beyond agreements on paper to actionable collaboration,” Kharge said.
“We are keen to work with Chile on startup exchanges, market access programmes, and building joint innovation corridors, including R&D centres, incubators, and accelerators. Chile’s position as a gateway to Latin America presents a significant opportunity for our startups to scale globally,” he added.
Officials said the engagement builds on the Letter of Intent signed between the Government of Karnataka and the Government of Chile during the Bengaluru Tech Summit, which established a framework for collaboration in startups, emerging technologies, research, and skill development under the Global Innovation Alliance.
Mackenna, Chile’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, said the country is actively advancing its transition toward a knowledge- and technology-driven economy.
“Our engagement with Karnataka reflects our interest in building strong innovation partnerships that enable technology exchange, talent collaboration, and access to dynamic startup ecosystems,” he added.
“We see significant potential to work together in sectors such as clean energy, digital technologies, and emerging industries, while also strengthening Chile’s role as a bridge between India and Latin America,” he said.
