Subversion of democracy

Tamil Nadu governor must urgently conduct a floor test

It has been understood since the Supreme Court’s verdict in S R Bommai vs Union of India in 1994 that there is only one legitimate and constitutional way to form a state government in India: Proving majority on the floor of the Assembly. The purpose of this mechanism is to ensure that governments are accountable to the electorate and that the federal structure of the country is upheld. The point is to reduce the governor’s, and the president’s, discretion and maintain the supremacy of the Assembly. It is unfortunate, therefore, that this crucial constitutional principle is being in effect ignored by the governor of Tamil Nadu, C Vidyasagar Rao, during the course of the current political crisis in that state.

Since the death of Tamil Nadu’s chief minister, J Jayalalithaa, her party – the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK – has been divided into factions for and against V K Sasikala. Ms Sasikala, Jayalalithaa’s close aide, has taken over as the general secretary of the party and now wishes to become the chief minister. She has the support of at least 127 members of the Legislative Assembly and the party has 135 seats in the 235-strong House. There are various straightforward ways in which this matter can be resolved constitutionally. One of the more obvious methods is that she should call on the governor with proof of this strength, the governor should call for a vote of no-confidence in the current government, Ms Sasikala should be sworn in and then demonstrate her government’s strength in a floor test.

However, this is not what is happening. The current chief minister, O Panneerselvam, has essentially refused to resign, although he has the backing of barely six or seven MLAs. And the governor has simply refused to let matters proceed, causing the politics of the state to be in limbo. This has left Mr Rao, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a former minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, open to accusations of meddling in state politics in order to further the BJP’s and the Centre’s interests — a particularly powerful and dangerous accusation when it comes in the wake of the Jallikattu protests that aroused powerful Tamil sub-nationalism for the first time in decades.

In his defence, Mr Rao says that there is a case of unaccounted wealth pending against Ms Sasikala in the Supreme Court, and he is awaiting the court’s judgment. But this is a weak argument since the judicial process moves on a parallel track to the political process. If the judgment goes against Ms Sasikala after she is sworn in as chief minister, she can simply resign. But the will of the people should not be so obviously thwarted as is being done now. It will further inflame an already tense situation in Tamil Nadu. That the Centre is not innocent is suggested by the statement by Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu over the weekend that the governor was “doing his duty”. The BJP can do better than to pick a favourite in the battle within the AIADMK and, for its own short-term gain, subvert the constitutional order. Moreover, doing so will provide more ammunition to the Tamil nationalists against the Union of India and “Delhi”. The governor’s waiting game should stop forthwith, and, as the Attorney General has suggested, Ms Sasikala should be allowed to demonstrate her strength in the Assembly at the earliest.