Governor’s power to summon, prorogue or dissolve an assembly

Subject: Polity

Section: Governor

There are two provisions in the Constitution that deal with a governor’s power to summon, prorogue and dissolve an assembly.
Under Article 174, a governor shall summon the House at a time and place, as she or he thinks fit.
Article 174 (2) (a) says a governor may from “time to time” prorogue the House and,
Article 174 (2) (b) allows her or him to dissolve the Legislative Assembly.
Article 163 says the governor shall exercise her or his functions with the aid and advice of the council of ministers. But it also adds that she or he would not need their advice if the Constitution requires her or him to carry out any function at her/his discretion.
A Madras High Court judgment of 1973 answered the question on the discretion of power over prorogation by reading Article 163 into Article 174 to hold that a governor was bound by the aid and advice of the council of ministers.

Supreme Court on governor’s discretionary powers

In 2016, SC stated that a “governor can summon, prorogue and dissolve the House, only on the aid and advice of the council of ministers”.
But the court also clarified that if the governor had reasons to believe that the chief minister and her or his council of ministers have lost the confidence of the House, a floor test could be ordered.