Reference’s use to avoid judicial scrutiny is debated by experts.

• Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin accused the Union government of bypassing the legal process of challenging the Supreme Court verdict.

• Senior advocate Kapil Sibal argued that the Presidential Reference was a way to reverse the judgment by a two-judge Bench led by Justice J.B. Pardiwala.

• Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul argued that seeking a review of the judgment would not be decisive and that the President’s power to make a Reference cannot be taken away by the Supreme Court’s review or curative jurisdiction.

• Sibal argued that an opinion under a Presidential Reference was not binding, but a judgment of the apex court was binding on all.

• Justice Kaul argued that an opinion from the Supreme Court would end future conflicts and that the President had made the Reference on points of law.

• Sibal called the judgment a milestone and warned that without a timeframe, the government could destabilize governments.