India, Sept. 12 -- A constitution bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday asked whether the judiciary should feel "powerless and sit idle" when another wing of democracy fails to discharge its constitutional duties, as it reserved judgment on a rare presidential reference questioning whether courts could prescribe timelines for the President and governors to act on state bills.

Following marathon hearings over 10 days, the five-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and comprising justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, PS Narasimha and Atul S Chandurkar reserved its opinion. The advisory opinion will have to be delivered before CJI Gavai demits office on November 23.

On the last day of arguments, Solicitor General (SG...