That Bhandari's utterances appear synchronised with an orchestrated campaign for dismissal of the Bihar government by senor BJP leaders -- Pramod Mahajan forecast it after the pitra-paksh (ending September 20) onextra-terrestrial considerations exposes him to Laloo Yadav's charge that the governor wants to foment political uncertainty in the state at a time when the Bihar Assembly is seized of the government's confidence motion.

The merits of his assessment of the Bihar situation apart, by claiming to the Press that his report presents ``a fit case'' for the Bihar government's dismissal, Bhandari seems to have over-stepped his brief. In the process he has also managed to drag the institution of governor into yet another controversy. No doubt, he is only discharging his constitutional obligation by submitting his report to the President. In the report he is free to recommend anything, including dismissal of the government. But the governor's report to the President is a solemn communication from one constitutional functionary to another. It is not a public document. Even the courts can refer to it only to determine whether the grounds on which the governor's recommendations are based are relevant to theconstitutional provisions or not. It is not for the governor to judge if his report presents a ``fool-proof'' case for invoking Article 356.

The Constitution makes dismissal of a state government subject to the satisfaction of the President -- of course, on the advice of his Council of Ministers -- not only on the basis of the governor's report but also ``otherwise''. Unfortunately, sagacity and constitutional propriety have rarely been the hallmark of governors. This is because their appointments are guided by political considerations. Unfortu-nately, those appointed by the BJP-led government too have not proved an exception. In a way, Bhandari is doing what the then UP Governor Romesh Bhandari had done. The recent remarks of his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Bhai Mahavir that he was not satisfied with the functioning of the Congress government in the state and there appeared to be a communication gap between him and the government also fall in the same category. One wishes he had shared his perceptions andapprehensions with the state government instead of airing them in public.

After all, the dignity of the governor's post depends more or less on the behaviour of the person occupying it.