Goa Governor should dissolve house to avoid constitutional crisis: Congress

Even as a constitutional crisis brews in Tamil Nadu, the Congress in Goa on Friday claimed that the western coastal state may also be heading for a constitutional crisis if the state's sixth legislative assembly is not dissolved by the Governor and President's Rule is imposed before March 3.

State Congress President Luizinho Faleiro said that according to Article 174 of the Constitution, the Governor has to summon the state legislative assembly to conduct sessions every six months and March 3 marks the end of the six-month period from the time when the last assembly session concluded.

Results to the state assembly elections will be declared on March 11.

"If the government of the day seeks to continue in office without having the seating within six months, then this will be wholly unconstitutional and the government will be an unconstitutional government," Faleiro told a press conference in Panaji.

"The Governor, who is bound to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law is duty bound to exercise the discretion, either to summon the House or dissolve the House, if no summoning is done," Faleiro said.

The last sitting of the state legislative assembly was the Monsoon session which concluded on August 31.

Faleiro also said that the Election Commission should have recommended dissolution of the House after finalising the date for the elections (Feb 4) and counting (March 11), because this was a constitutional crisis the poll authority should have seen coming.

"We demand that the Governor should uphold the Constitutional mandate and not act as a rubber stamp of the government," he also said.

While Raj Bhavan has not commented on the issue, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said that the state Advocate General had been asked for an opinion on the issue.

"We have asked the AG to look into the matter. The government will abide by the Advocate General's opinion," Parsekar said.

--IANS

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