Hand as Fist

The decision of the Jharkhand governor to invite Shibu Soren to form a government, and then give him almost three weeks to prove his majorit...

The decision of the Jharkhand governor to invite Shibu Soren to form a government, and then give him almost three weeks to prove his majority, is a travesty of all constitutional morality. The decision on whom to invite to form a government in cases where no party or coalition has a clear majority is not an easy one, and there is no formulaic answer to this conundrum. But, in this particular case, the governor has clearly crossed all bounds of propriety. The NDA was closer to a majority than its rivals, and it claimed to have the support of 41 MLAs. The independents in question had been paraded before the governor. The proper thing to do would have been to invite them to form the government and give them an opportunity to prove themselves on the floor of the house.

There was no justification to hurriedly swear Shibu Soren and then give him a long lease of life to secure a majority. The governor8217;s decision, coming on the heels of Goa Governor S.C. Jamir8217;s misconduct in Goa, has again compromised the authority of the governor8217;s office. The governor has few powers other than to facilitate the making and breaking of governments. It is palpably clear that governors are willing to use this discretion arbitrarily. From a constitutional point of view it is a mystery why governors give weeks rather than a couple of days for governments to prove their majority. Shorter lead times in conducting votes will, at the margins, ensure that independents vote their first instincts rather than act under tantalising incentives.

The Congress Party must take a fair share of the blame in this matter. Whether or not the governor acted on his own behest is beside the point. The party has a shocking record of politicising the office of the governor. One of its first acts in office was to remove three governors and replace them with old Congress hacks. It will now be difficult for the party8217;s protestations to carry any conviction. The party seems determined to acquire power at all costs. It was just routed in Bihar, securing less than a dozen seats. It snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in Jharkhand. Yet it feels entitled to share in power. The only kind of politics such an aspiration can unleash is a politics of backroom wheeling and dealing. Rather than gracefully accepting verdicts, the Congress is encouraging the worst kind of power politics. It would be too much to expect the party to rise above the temptations of power in the short term. But the Congress should remember that it declined in part because it got a reputation for playing footloose with constitutional values. Its commitment to secularism and its concern for the poor will amount to nothing if the impression gains ground that it colludes with governors to cheat its adversaries out of power.