Toppling elected governments

Toppling elected governments

In recent times, the nature of Indian polity has transformed dramatically.  India has been witnessing subversion of democracy and democratic institutions. Though democracy provides opportunities to different conflicting interest groups to seek power though constitutional means, the naked pursuit of power by politicians has dented the image of Indian democracy, causing irreversible damage to the system of governance based on the rule of law. 

A degenerating political culture has emerged. The political defections- of floor-crossing, switching parties and horse-trading, devoid of ethics and morals- to gain power are a serious threat to parliamentary democracy.  To put an  end  to the opportunistic defections  that led to destabilizing the governments, the Constitution (52nd Amendment) Act - known as the anti-defection law- was brought by the Rajiv Gandhi government in 1985, in the form of Tenth Schedule to the Constitution, providing for disqualification of  legislators, if they defected to another party. And yet the trend still continues to surface every now and then, with the ruling party members of the Legislature lured by money and inducement of power, exposing the loopholes in the anti-defection law, failing to prevent defections, unholy alliances and electoral frauds.   

Toppling elected governments has become a new phenomenon in Indian politics, making a mockery of electoral verdict. After the Assembly elections 2017, in Goa, Manipur and Meghalaya, the efforts by the single largest party- the Congress- to form the governments were scuttled.  The Congress governments in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh were toppled by causing defections. The coalition government of Congress and Congress(S) in Karnataka, headed by Kumaraswamy, was dislodged in 2019 when 17 MLAs of the coalition resigned and crossed over to the BJP. The Supreme Court, while upholding the disqualification of the MLAs by the Speaker, ruled the defectors should not be debarred till the expiry of the term but could contest the election afresh.  This defeated the very purpose of the anti-defection law. Consequently, the defected MLAs got re-elected on the BJP Tickets and became Ministers in Yediyurappa government.

 In  March 2020, the Congress government of Kamal Nath in MP was toppled with 22 of its MLAs led by Jyotiraditya Scindia defected to the BJP, toppling their own government, power politics taking precedence over the pandemic. Both in Karnataka and MP, the BJP played host to the defectors, lodging them in expensive luxury resorts in Mumbai and Bangalore.  The Congress MLAs who defected and caused the downfall of their own governments had no commitment to party ideology and its policies. It is an indication   the party High Command is unable to ascertain, stamp the indiscipline, and hold is folks together.  It is a direct challenge to the leadership.

A political and constitutional crisis of a serious magnitude is looming large in Rajasthan- a repeat of Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh being attempted. Ashok Gehlot government is sought to be toppled, though the situation is somewhat different in Rajasthan. Sachin Pilot, the PCC President and Dy.CM, revolted against the leadership of Gehlot. He along with 18 dissident MLAs went to a resort in Manesar, where Haryana government is providing them police protection.  Fearing poaching and further defections, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot took some 109 MLAs (in a house of 200) to Fairmont Hotel, on the . outskirts of Jaipur. The meetings of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) were held on 13^th and 14^th July to gauge the mood of the MLAs, Chief Whip in the Assembly Mahesh Joshi, asking the MLAs to attend the meetings. The Pilot group boycotted the meetings. And on the complaint from the Chief Whip, the Assembly Speaker P.C. Joshi issued a Notice to Pilot and 18 rebels to explain why they should not be disqualified for not attending the CLP meetings, defying the Whip.  Instead of replying the Pilot camp filed a Petition in Rajasthan High Court (HC) challenging the Notice.

In 1992, the Supreme Court five-judge constitutional bench held in the case Kihoto Hollohan V.Zachillu that “judicial review should not cover any stage prior to the making of a decision by the Speaker. No interference would be permissible at an interlocutory stage of the proceedings.” And yet the HC not only admitted the petition, but also allowed the Pilot camp to amend the petition challenging the very validity of   Section 2(1) (a) and (b) of the Tenth Schedule relating to disqualification, making the Centre a party.  The HC passed an interim order on July 24, 2020, for “status quo” and adjourned the case indefinitely, thereby preventing the Speaker to take any action on his Notice.  Prima facie this is an interference with the functioning of an independent constitutional authority.  Kapil Sibal, who argued in the case of 1992, said, “Obviously the HC has no regard for precedent, no court can pass any protective orders for those whom the disqualification petitions are pending.” The matter has gone to Supreme Court. The HC has entertained a petition to re-examine the provisions of the anti-defection law, which fall under the purview of a constitutional bench, that is. only a seven-judge bench of the SC can review its judgment of 1992.

What is intriguing is the rebels, holed up in a luxurious resort in a BJP ruled state, maintain that they are still with the Congress Party and are not joining the BJP, while refusing to attend the party meetings and not responding to the party’s appeal to meet and discuss their grievances, and continue to hobnob with the rival party and take the CRPF protection.  What prevents them coming out from the hide out and making their stand public? Why are they holding their own government to ransom at a time all out efforts are required to combat the corona pandemic? The Media and the Courts are unable to see the larger picture.  It is imperative that   the guardians of democracy- the Judiciary and the Press- uphold the constitutional values.

If the feud is between the CM and his Deputy, then why is BJP fishing in troubled waters as the FIRs registered by SOG Rajasthan Police reveal that its leaders, including Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and the rebels were allegedly hatching a conspiracy, even prior to the Rajya Sabha election on June 19, to topple the Gehlot government! Are they worried the inquiry could expose the conspiracy? Why is the Governor Kalraj Mishra reluctant to call a special Assembly session that the Gehlot cabinet resolved to hold to seek a vote of confidence and end the political impasse? In fact, the Pilot camp and the BJP leaders, including its LOP Gulab Chand Kataria, were insisting Gehlot lost the majority in the Assembly and should go for a floor test. In 2016, a five judge Supreme Court bench in the Nabam Rebia case ruled, “the Governor can summon, prorogue and dissolve the House only on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.”

The anti-defection law should be amended to ensure that if the legislators once elected on a particular party ticket defect to another party get disqualified and debarred from re-contesting the election till the expiry of the term of the Legislature. The parliamentary democracy is essentially a government by party system. It is not the question of one party or another. If the party discipline is broken, the party system shall not survive, and ipso facto the democracy. The three-judge bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Arun Mishra, while hearing the Speaker’s petition, praying for stay of the High Court proceedings, observed: “The voice of dissent in a democracy cannot be shut down.”  It is a matter of conjecture whether politicians could go public violating the norms of their party discipline, when there are party forums to express their grievances.