In SR Bommai v. Union of India (1994), the Supreme Court held that judicial scrutiny of Governor's report under Article 356 includes examining whether the report was based on ______ material, not political considerations or subjective assessments.

Answer: objective

Objective material under SR Bommai: (a) Context: Challenge to President's Rule imposition based on subjective assessments, political considerations, (b) Supreme Court holding: (i) Judicial scrutiny includes examining whether Governor's report based on objective material of constitutional breakdown, (ii) Objective material includes: Verified facts, independent inquiries, floor test results, not subjective opinions, media reports, political considerations, (iii) Courts can strike down proclamations based on unverified reports, political considerations, (c) Applications: (i) Rameshwar Prasad (2006): Struck down Bihar Assembly dissolution based on unverified media reports, political considerations, (ii) Recent Governor cases (2022-2024): Reiterated objective material requirement, struck down politically motivated Article 356 invocations, (d) Rationale: (i) Democratic legitimacy: Elected State governments represent people's will; Article 356 exceptional measure, not routine political tool, (ii) Constitutional morality: Governor as constitutional functionary, not political agent, (iii) Federal balance: Protects State autonomy against arbitrary Centre overreach via gubernatorial discretion, (e) Illustrates constitutional federalism: Objective material requirement protects State autonomy; judicial review ensures Article 356 used for genuine constitutional breakdown, not political convenience.