Can Nayab Singh Saini function as ‘caretaker’ CM in Haryana?

In May 2024, the Congress party demanded the imposition of President’s Rule in Haryana, claiming the BJP-led government had lost the confidence of the Assembly after three Independent MLAs withdrew their support.

The last Assembly session was held on March 13, 2024, as a one-day special sitting for newly appointed Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini to seek a vote of confidence. According to Article 174 of the Constitution, the Assembly must reconvene within six months, making September 12 the deadline for the next session.

However, with the session not being convened, the Haryana cabinet met on Wednesday and recommended the dissolution of the 14th state Assembly. As the state heads to elections on October 5, the Governor must now decide between two options: either impose President’s Rule until a new Assembly is formed or request the Chief Minister to continue as a caretaker.

The latter course would be politically embarrassing for the BJP as it potentially can lead to questions around the legitimacy of the chief minister to continue even as a caretaker. Can a chief minister who failed to uphold the Constitution continue to function?

While the Haryana assembly is likely to be dissolved later today, after the Governor returns to Chandigarh, the likely continuance of Saini as the caretaker for the next few weeks may well provide the opposition with another stick in the election to question the BJP government’s competence and commitment to the people and the Constitution.

In all fairness, Nayab Singh Saini is possibly the least guilty of them all. The responsibility of convening the House is of the government but neither the Governor nor the union home ministry can shirk their own responsibility.

They shielded a government which may have lost majority support in the House to continue in the state. They should have advised the chief minister to convene the House but possibly did not do so deliberately because it would have led to the collapse of the government.

That willingness to allow an unconstitutional and illegitimate government to continue speaks volumes about their faith in the Constitution.  

The PRS India, which monitors the functioning of the Parliament and the state legislatures, points out that in 2021, 29 state assemblies met for an average of 21 days, the average boosted by Kerala (61), Odisha (43), and Karnataka (40), the only three states which met for 40 days or more that year.

Five states met for less than 10 days while Haryana Assembly met for 14 days in 2021, the last year for which PRS India has data. States which met for less than 20 days included Tripura (11), Punjab (14), Uttarakhand (14), and Delhi (16).

The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) had recommended setting a minimum period of sitting days for state legislatures. It had suggested that state legislatures with less than 70 members should meet for at least 50 days a year, while the rest should meet for at least 90 days.

None of the states come anywhere close to that benchmark. The union government has failed to push the reform forward and the states, many of them ruled by parties in the opposition, have shown little enthusiasm to ensure longer sessions.

Fewer sittings imply less time with the legislatures to function effectively. As many as 16 Bills were introduced and passed on the last working day of the 15th Punjab Legislative Assembly (2017-2021).

In the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly’s Winter session in 2022, the session duration was cut short from five to two days. Within those two days, 13 Bills were introduced and passed with only five minutes allocated for the discussion and passing of most Bills.

With Haryana going to the polls on 5 October, it is a good time for people to demand for assurances that the legislature’s sessions in future will be longer to allow for meaningful discussions on issues of public concern.