Opinion: Do we have the right to know the health of our rulers

Her rival candidate Trump made it as an electoral issue by stating that how can a person who is taken ill can effectively function as the President of the United States. It is not the first time when the health condition of a rival candidate becomes a factor in the Presidential campaign in that country. 

In our country for all the constitutional post there are no criteria for physical fitness except for the posts of Supreme Court Judges and High Court Judges. For those two posts before the President signs a warrant a fitness certificate from a medical officer is obtained from the prospective appointee.

The Governor of a state gets the aid and advice from the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers in the exercise of his functions (Article 163). He can also use his discretion and is not strictly bound by such advices unlike the case of the President of India who is bound to act as per the advice tendered by the Central Cabinet. 

Under Article 167 of the Constitution a Chief Minister of the state has a duty to (a) to communicate to the Governor of the state all decisions of the Council of Ministers relating to the administration of the affairs of the State and proposals for legislation; (b) to furnish such information relating to the administration of the affairs of the State and proposals for legislation as the Governor may call for; and (c) if the Governor so requires, to submit for the consideration of the Council of Ministers any other matter on which a decision has been taken by a Minister but which has not been considered by the Council. 

When Fathima Beevi, former governor of Tamil Nadu rejected the mercy petition of Nalini, convicted in Rajiv murder case the Madras High court having found that she did not get the advice from the state cabinet set aside the order as being contrary to the constitutional exercise of power. One may not have a right  to know the nature of advice given by the Cabinet to the governor but at the same time an order passed by the governor should be in accordance with Law and must be based upon the advice tendered by the Cabinet. 

Therefore, a Governor of State in case of suspicion about the capacity of a Chief Minister who has to tender advice can call for the health reports and dissatisfy himself that the advice received was given under proper health condition. Being the authority to administer the State and orders are passed in his name and seal the Governor is bound to inform the people the health condition of the Chief Minister in case a doubt arises. 

That was what the present governor did when he visited the hospital and thereafter issued a press release. Unless the medical condition of a Chief Minister is an issue before the Court, no citizen may have a right to know the details of the health reports about him. It is mainly because that as can be seen above the Constitution itself never prescribes any health criteria as a prior requirement for such constitutional post. Because of this lacunae one may not know that a person who has the authority to rule has all the compliments for doing so.