Punjab: In fresh letter, Governor Purohit 'reminds' CM Mann of his duties

Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Saturday sought to "remind" Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of his duties and said his legal advisors were not adequately briefing him on the same.

The row between the Raj Bhavan and the AAP government escalated on Friday after the governor sought a list on the legislative businesses to be taken up in the proposed Assembly session on Tuesday, evoking a strong reaction from Mann, who said it was "too much".

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Earlier, Purohit had foiled the state government's plan to summon a special Assembly session on September 22 to bring a confidence motion.

On Saturday, he wrote to the chief minister and said, "After reading your statements in today's newspapers, it appears to me that perhaps you are 'too much' angry with me."

He further said, "I think your legal advisors are not briefing you adequately. Perhaps, your opinion about me will definitely change after reading the provisions of Article 167 and 168 of the Constitution, which I'm quoting for your ready reference."

While Article 167 defines a chief minister's duties towards the governor, Article 168 speaks about the composition of the state legislature.

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On Friday, Mann had openly expressed his unhappiness over the governor's demand saying his consent before any session of the legislature is a formality.

"Gov (Governor)/Presi (President) consent before any session of Legislature is a formality. In 75 years, no Presi/Gov ever asked list of Legislative business before calling session. Legislative business is decided by BAC (Business Advisory Committee of the House) and Speaker," Mann had said in a tweet.

"Next Gov will ask all speeches also to be approved by him. Its too much," he had said.