Political Diary
New
Delhi, 12 March 2019
Governors Revolving
Door
KAL NETA AAJ RAJYAPAL KAL NETA
By Poonam I Kaushish
Public office has a
lot to do with perception. Wherein, your actions do the talking. Alas last week
in a Constitutional onslaught, the Modi Sarkar
turned gubernatorial and political posts into revolving roles which not only highlights
India’s open secret but also undermines a Governor’s position and impartiality,
a crucial bastion of our democracy. With the devil taking the hindmost!
Unsurprisingly, like
its erstwhile predecessor Congress, the BJP has turned the conventions of a
Governor always being a Governor on its Constitutional head whereby a Rajyapal relinquishes his office and again returns to
active politics. Friday last Mizoram Governor K Rajasekharan did just that, resign
his office and is set to contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from home
State Kerala where the BJP wants to make a dent.
True, Governor
Rajasekharan is correct when he asserts there is no Constitutional or legal bar
restraining him from going back to rajniti
after serving as Governor of a State. And neither has he violated protocol.
In fact, the Justice Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State relations is spot one
when it desired eminent persons being appointed to State Raj Bhawans.
What’s new? Various
Congress regimes since the 1970s have eroded gubernatorial impartiality without
outwardly violating the letter of the Constitution. Trust them to find a lacuna
and brazenly and blatantly exploit it. By merrily taking advantage of the
“silence” of our Constitution framers.
Their leader reveled
in anointing ‘distingiushed people’ who belonged to six illustrious categories:
Defeated netas (from the ruling Party
at the Centre), politicians who needed to be 'retired' or sent far away from
their home State (also from the ruling Party at the Centre) or those whom it
perceived as a threat to the High Command, ‘unwanted’ leaders and even trusted
lieutenants or retired 'loyal' bureaucrats to play ‘I-spy game’ on Opposition-ruled
States to the ‘high and august’ Office of a Governor, read be the Centre’s ‘kathputli’, yes-man, chamcha.
Pertinently, Karnataka
Chief Minister SM Krishna was first appointed Maharashtra Governor and later India’s
Foreign Minister. Ditto the case with Sushil Shinde who relinquished the Office
of Maharashtra Chief Minister in November 2004 and was anointed Andhra Pradesh Governor
the same day. Two years later he re-entered active politics a within a few
hours and was sworn in as the Congress-led UPA Government’s Cabinet Minister
for Power, before taking over as Union Home Minister in 2012.
Sheila Dixit who was
three times Delhi Chief Minister became the Kerala Governor after the Congress
lost to Kejriwal’s AAP. She resigned her post soon after following her nomination
as Congress Chief Ministerial candidate for the UP Assembly elections in 2017. It’s
another matter she did not contest and is now the Congress’s Delhi Chief.
What its bête noire
did, the BJP could do one better. It rewarded senior and Sangh leaders with
gubernatorial posts. SP Malik a career politician is now J&K Governor, Meghalaya
Governor V. Shanmuganathan was a RSS prachark who was forced to resign following
allegations of sexual harassment and running the Raj Bhawan as a “young ladies
club”. Kalyan Singh, former UP Chief Minister is Rajasthan Governor and his
erstwhile Cabinet colleague Lalji Tandon is Bihar Governor, KN Tripathi ex-UP Speaker
sits in West Bengal’s Raj Bhawan, BR Maurya in Haryana and ex-Petroleum
Minister Ram Naik occupies UP.
Worse, the Party went
a step ahead and anointed former Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam as Kerala’s
Governor. Like it had done ex-CAG TN Chaturvedi, first electing him to the
Rajya Sabha and thereafter appointing him Karnataka and Kerala and presently UP
Governor.
To be fair to the NDA
Government, it is only carrying forward a long established tradition! Recall, ex-CJI
Ranganath Mishra accepted Congress nomination to the Rajya Sabha and Justice
Baharul Islam-turned-Congress Lok Sabha MP. Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief
Justice Rama Jois turned-Governor-BJP Rajya Sabha MP and Supreme Court Judge KS
Hegde-turned Congress Rajya Sabha MP-turned Janata Party Lok Sabha
MP-turned-Speaker.
Yet again, the
country’s first woman Supreme Court judge Justice Fatima Beevi was appointed
National Human Rights Commission member post retirement in 1992 and in 1997
appointed Tamil Nadu Governor where she was in the eye of a political storm
over her decision to anoint late AlADMK supremo Jayalalithaa as Chief Minister
in 2001, despite her inability to contest Assembly poll due to her conviction
in a corruption case.
I remember a famous 2004
anecdote when Punjab Chief Minister Badal reprimanded former CEC MS Gill for
accepting Rajya Sabha MP-ship from the Congress by stating those who held
august offices should not contest on Party tickets. Retorted Gill: “Maine koi theka liya sau saal da”.
Underscoring there is
a revolving door between the bipartisan role of a Governor and active politics.
Predictably, this has tossed out the ‘safety valve’ envisaged by the
Constitution makers of who should be appointed Governors, manner of their
appointment and their role. During Constituent Assembly debates leaders hoped
that eminent individuals, preferably not those directly involved with politics
should be appointed to this ‘exalted’ position.
A time when there was
a process of consultation between the Union Home Minister and State Chief
Minister and his consent taken prior to a Governor’s appointment. Soon this
convention was thrown to the winds primarily because the Party that ruled the
country wanted to impose Governors, especially in States where its opponents
were in power.
Alas, this is par for
the course today. Wherein instead of consultation, Chief Ministers are either
informed directly or learn through the media. Never mind if it goes against the
spirit of the Constitutional intent. In fact, every Government has given short
shrift to gubernatorial posts whereby today over 60 per cent of the present lot
of Governors are active politicians.
Recall, the Justice
Sarkaria and Justice Punchhi reports had recommended certain criterias for
anointing Governors namely, he should be eminent in some walk of life, be a
person from outside the State, be detached and not intimately connected with
local politics of the State and a person who has not participated in politics
generally, particularly in the recent past. This was endorsed by the Justice Venkatachaliah
National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution.
All regaled to the
dustbin. Clearly, we need to find a new method of appointing Governors.
Consultation with the State Government might not be enough as some might be
supportive of the Central Government. Instead, the Rajya Sabha should screen
prospective candidates who should be interrogated, investigated and judged on
suitability before confirmation.
The President too
should not just act on the aid and advice of his Council of Ministers but could
lay down guidelines wherein he is not misled about a person’s political
affiliations and politics and only those citizens appointed who are politically
neutral.
Questionably, can
India afford to allow persons holding Constitutional offices to accept political
“rewards” for doing at its bidding? No. Ultimately, principles emerge from good
practices not bad ones. Good principles recognise Constitutionalism and
democracy. Time we restore the office of the Governor to its old glory. This
calls for fairness, uprightness and adherence to Constitutional values and
conventions.
Our leaders need to
rise above politics and appoint neutral non-political Governors not neta-turned rajyapal-turned neta. It is
now imperative that Prime Minister Modi who postulates the Constitution also
practices what he solemnly preaches! ----- INFA
(Copyright, India News & Feature Alliance)
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