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Journalism of Courage
When Defence Minister George Fernandes returned from his China visit, he was placed in quarantine for Sars at the international airport. This exercise however only lasted a few minutes, in sharp contrast to George8217;s political quarantine in the Lok Sabha. Over the last several months, every time the defence minister got up to speak, the Left and Congress MPs8212;as ordered by their party high commands8212;filed out of the house, in protest against his re-induction into the cabinet after the Tehelka expose.
However valid it may once have been, the utter absurdity of this boycott continuing ad infinitum has been once again illustrated over the recent 8220;disciplining8221; of Congress MP Jagmeet Singh Brar, along with three others, for 8220;defying8221; the high command and participating in a calling attention motion with Fernandes over the MiG crashes. As in a feudal court, Brar has had to apologise in writing to Congress President Sonia Gandhi for his actions.
The fact that Jagmeet Singh Brar has had to abjectly bend before the high command for taking part in the perfectly legitimate and serious issue of the MiG crashes, shows how completely today8217;s MPs are subordinated to the party system and are unable to voice their views for fear of the supreme leader. Parliament is the forum of serious national debate and the manner in which the Congress has forestalled discussions shows how childishly it is seeking some sort of moral high ground, at the cost of serious damage to parliamentary functioning.
To be sure, after his noisy and dramatic resignation two years ago, George Fernandes had no business stealing back into the Cabinet before the Venkataswami Commission probing the Tehelka revelations had cleared his name. The fact that he did so clearly reveals that Crusader George, one-time trade union tempest secretly adores being minister and often forgets his earlier anti-establishment avatar.
Yet it is the government8217;s right to appoint whomsoever it chooses as minister and it is up to a responsible Opposition to tackle him on issues rather than stage puerile tantrums that compromise national security.
