Throw open the House

Amid the tumult set off by Governor Syed Sibtey Razi, as weighty constitutional and political issues thicken the air, a conviction is settli...

Amid the tumult set off by Governor Syed Sibtey Razi, as weighty constitutional and political issues thicken the air, a conviction is settling in: Parliament will remain paralysed by developments in Jharkhand. This Budget session, P. Chidambaram8217;s just-presented Budget is highly unlikely to be subjected to any semblance of alert scrutiny by the representatives of the people. There is another side to this conviction. Just as the Budget will not be accorded the discussion and the questioning it merits, the momentous questions thrown up by developments in Jharkhand will not become the subject of serious deliberation either 8212; be it the partisan role of the governor or the culture of a ruling party that wantonly disregards all rules of the game. The impropriety in Jharkhand will only be the pretext to adjourn and disrupt and to stage walkouts by parliamentarians on all sides. Public debate, such as it is, will dodge in and out of television studios, eluding a firmer grasp by a bewildered nation.

This is as tragic as it is predictable. But most of all, it need not be so. There is still time for seniors in all parties to come together to search for a way out of the looming deadlock in the nation8217;s highest forum of debate. This is not to say that the disturbing events in Jharkhand should be turned away from its portals. Rather, it is to say that ways must be found of ushering them into the two Houses in meaningful, problem-solving ways. This is, admittedly, far easier said than done in a political moment when positions are so sharply polarised along party lines. Yet, if the crucial Budget session is to be salvaged in national interest, if the institution of Parliament is to recover its meaning and relevance in the life of the nation, that effort must be made. The responsibility for ensuring that the impropriety committed by the Governor of Jharkhand becomes an issue in Parliament instead of one that noisily passes it by, while keeping some parliamentary time and space free for other crucial deliberations, rests firmly on the government.

It is time for some shrewd manoeuvres and some large-hearted gestures from the UPA8217;s floor managers. It is time for its top leadership to swing into action to ensure that the whole nation does not have to pay a price for the actions of one partisan governor. This moment of scepticism and disbelief calls for a daring act of rescue in Parliament.