“We the Idiots” from “We the People”

The Telegraph said it openly and bluntly, “We the Idiots!”

The framers of the Indian Constitution drafted the document from the perspective of ‘We the People.’ However, when our constitutional institutions and worthy people occupying those positions acted in a late-night drama to install Devendra Fadnavis as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, they did everything on the basis of perspective that we are just a bunch of idiots and not a people!

A government which is installed secretly, taking advantage of the darkness of late night, cannot but be termed as an immoral child of darkness!

When I say this, I do not mean to claim that Indian politics was full of pristine virtues until the night of 22-23 November 2019. Throughout independent India’s history, politicians and political parties have acted in the worst manner whenever it suited them for capturing power. However, all such acts had the benefit of some or other loophole in the constitutional scheme of things. For example, look at the latest Supreme Court verdict that allowed Karnataka’s defector MLAs to contest the bye-elections despite being disqualified from the same assembly. Though the decision may not appeal to the sense of what is right, one cannot fault the Supreme Court because of the legal position or loophole existing as of today.

The same is the case with most government formations in the recent past. Nitish Kumar broke a pre-poll alliance that was running the government in Bihar only to join their opponent BJP to form another government. In Karnataka, MLAs from the ruling alliance were induced to resign from their posts to cause the fall of the existing government, and then inducted and given tickets for contesting the bye-elections by BJP. Most recently, in Haryana, BJP joined hands with their arch-rivals in the just concluded elections to form a coalition government. I am not even going to list all the other governments formed by BJP since Narendra Modi assumed power at Centre, from Kashmir to Goa to Manipur, using not so honourable tactics like threatening or purchasing of MLAs.  

Howsoever it may be desirable, honour is not a mandatory requirement in politics and all these government formations (and scores of others by other ruling parties in the past) can be defended as (much abused) Chanakya’s strategy that took advantage of the existing loopholes in the system.

Let us be practical. In a multiparty representational democracy when no single party or alliance manages to get a simple majority to form the government, the parties that contested elections against each other may have to come together to form post-poll alliances and assume the power. Otherwise, we will end up with perennial reelections until one party or alliance manages to get the majority.

Since post-poll alliances cannot be wished away, there is nothing wrong (legally, even if not ideologically or morally) if BJP and NCP decide to come together and form a government. So is the case when ideological opponents like Congress and Shivsena decide to form a coalition government.

There is nothing wrong in such attempts per se, at least from the constitutional perspective.

In all such attempts at government formations, the ruling party at the Centre is likely to have some advantage over the opposition, mainly owing to the role of Centre’s nominee, the Governor acting as a biased arbitrator. There is no point denying these political realities.

However, when such attempts are made to form governments by creating a majority, it is the solemn duty of the Governors and other constitutional authorities to ensure that things are kept within the limits of the Constitution. As they say, at least the pretense of constitutional propriety must be maintained in everything that is done by these authorities. No matter, who got them appointed to the posts, these authorities have a duty to the people and the Constitution since they and their families are eating out of the salary received by them from the taxes paid by the people!

In the case of Maharashtra, it is now apparent that the Governor, the Prime Minister, and the President have all acted in an unconstitutional manner to install and illegal government. Ajit Pawar switched sides and took oath as part of this illegal government, without even the mandatory support of one-third of the MLAs. And to facilitate such an illegal act, the President agreed to withdraw the Governor’s rule in the dead of the night, without even insisting on the mandatory recommendation from the Cabinet.  There can be no two opinions that this act of the President was nowhere near the dignity of his office. If this presidential order can be compared with anything, it is only with the infamous order of declaring the Emergency in 1975.

Only a regime that treats the people as a mere bunch of idiots can undertake such gross violations of their duties and constitutional norms. It is in this context that the Main Heading of The Telegraph becomes apt and assumes critical importance for India’s polity.

Now we can only wait to see how the Supreme Court deals with its paramount duty of upholding the Indian Constitution. Will the Court act promptly in restoring the people’s confidence in our systems, or will it procrastinate and thereby provide adequate time and opportunity to BJP to indulge in horse-trading and cobbling up an immoral majority?

Until then ‘We the Idiots’ can only feel sorry of the Indian Constitution!