The all too familiar drama is being re-enacted once again on 10 Janpath. Following the resignation Sonia Gandhi from Lok Sabha and the chairpersonship of NAC, sponsored cheerleaders are being brought to commemorate the so-called sacrifice of their leader. One is reminded of a familiar sight in Emergency days in the seventies. However, all this sponsorship is not going to distract from one glaring fact: the managers of the Congress party, having landed their leader in a mess, now make a virtue out of their palpable failure.We need to clear first the fundamental facts. Under Article 102 of the Constitution, a person is disqualified to become an MP/MLA in case he holds an office of profit at the Centre or in the states, unless the office is exempted by a valid legislation. In the event of a complaint, the matter is to be referred to the President who under Article 103 is obliged to obtain the opinion of the EC and is required to act according to such opinion. In case of an MLA, the reference is by the governor.What is an office of profit is not defined but the Supreme Court in a series of judgments has laid down the parameters: (i) whether the government appoints and terminates the office, (ii) the remuneration is paid from government funds, (iii) the nature of functions, etc. Whether the stress would be laid on one or the other factor would depend upon the facts of each case but when several elements are present in a given case the office becomes an office of profit. By notification dated May 31, 2004 the NAC was constituted by the GoI, whose expenditure was to be borne by the central government and it was to be serviced by the PMO. The most important function of the NAC as mentioned in the notification was “to monitor the progress of the implementation of the Common Minimum Programme”. On June 3, 2004, Sonia Gandhi was notified as its chairperson with the “rank” and “status” of a union minister.It can hardly be debated that the CMP is the USP of the UPA government. In a parliamentary form of government the power to monitor the implementation of the most important programme of the government should and must vest in the prime minister. However, it was given to the NAC whose chairperson in effect enjoyed the status of leading a super cabinet.It was evidently clear that Sonia Gandhi was holding a office of profit and hence suffered palpable disqualification to continue to remain an MP. The managers of the Congress party have completely messed up their political management right from the beginning. When they sponsored the proceeding against Jaya Bachchan, they completely overlooked the fact that it could recoil on their leader. Once wisdom dawned upon them, hasty decisions followed.Initially by an all-party consensus on April 8 it was decided that the first leg of the session would be adjourned on March 23 to reconvene on May 10. However in the meantime Sonia Gandhi’s status had become a very critical issue. Hence, most arbitrarily, the House was adjourned sine die and an escape route through an ordinance was contemplated. In fact the ordinance was almost ready. However, the Indian Express report exposed their designs. The abrupt termination of the House was necessary because an ordinance cannot be promulgated when the House was in session. An alert NDA along with hundreds of MPs rushed to the president to impress upon him the imperative need to uphold constitutional and parliamentary norms. Nothing should be allowed to be done in haste so as to repeat the embarrassment arising out of the dissolution of the Bihar Assembly; was also gently raised. The Left was also reportedly reluctant to back the ordinance route.As all options of escape were sealed, Sonia Gandhi was left with no alternative but to resign. No virtue can be made out this necessity. A sham on the Constitution stands exposed. It is not a sacrifice at all but a comical irony arising out of the theatre of the absurd. Our Congress friends still have the mindset of the ’70s, when the law could be bent to save Indira Gandhi, by imposing censorship and putting Opposition members in jail.We now live in the 21st century with a vibrant media, strong democracy and powerful Opposition. The Congress has yet to realise this great change.The writer is MP, Rajya Sabha, and national spokesman of the BJP
