Ahmedabad: A PIL has been filed in the Gujarat High Court demanding the recall of Governor Kamla Beniwal, saying that due process of law had not been followed in her appointment.
The PIL has been filed by Lucknow-based lawyer Asok Pande who claims to be president of `Hindu Personal Law Board`.
Pande has sought quashing of appointment, or a direction to the President and the Prime Minister to recall her.
The petition would come up for hearing in 1-2 days, he said. It contends that Beniwal was appointed without obtaining the approval of the Narendra Modi government, which was contrary to basic tenets of the Constitution.
The respondents in the PIL are the President, the Prime Minister, the Union Home Secretary, the Gujarat government and Beniwal.
Citing the recent appointment of Gujarat Lokayukta in which Beniwal allegedly bypassed the state government, the petition said it shows that the Governor had crossed the limits of democratic framework. This action of the Governor was "unconstitutional", Pande said.
The petition also claims that process of appointment of the Governor by the President "on the recommendation of Home Ministry was unconstitutional".
The reading of the Constituent Assembly debates makes it clear that the matter of appointment/ removal of Governor was in the purview of only the Prime Minister and the President, the PIL said.
According to the petitioner, the candidate for the post should be finalised by the Prime Minister and the President.
But currently, the process starts with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the PIL states.
PTI