Written by K Nageshwar
C P Radhakrishnan will now assume the august office of the Vice-President of India, who also officiates as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha. The result was a foregone conclusion, as the ruling National Democratic Alliance has a decisive majority in the electoral college. Still, the Opposition entered the fray to voice certain legitimate concerns that have been accentuated in the recent past, especially due to the dubious legacy of the former Vice-President, Jagdeep Dhankhar.
First, Dhankhar waged an unsolicited battle against the judiciary in a bid to placate his political bosses. Despite being a lawyer, Dhankhar often hit out at the Basic Structure of the Constitution in the name of parliamentary sovereignty. He accused judges of becoming a “super Parliament”. He even termed Article 142 of the Constitution, which gives special powers to the Court to render complete justice, “a nuclear missile against parliamentary democracy”. But the Constitution, through the separation of powers, clearly defines the relationship between the three pillars. Neither Parliament nor the judiciary is supreme. The Constitution alone is supreme. Radhakrishnan is now endowed with the sacred responsibility of restoring the delicate balance between the legislature and the judiciary.
Second, under the Narendra Modi dispensation, the nation has witnessed the preponderance of the executive over parliamentary institutions. Radhakrishnan, being a political veteran, must be able to stand up to the party that nominated him to office and remain accountable to parliamentary institutions. The presiding officers of legislatures should cease to be members of the party they once belonged to and remain equidistant from both the ruling and Opposition benches. In fact, parliamentary traditions call upon the chairperson of the House to be lenient towards the Opposition, which represents views other than those of the government. Dhankhar behaved as if he were a political representative of the ruling party. Paradoxically, he lost his job after incurring the wrath of the very political formation whose interests he assiduously protected as chairman of the Upper House, where the ruling alliance faces relatively greater resistance. Radhakrishnan’s political and ideological loyalty is well known. However, as he enters this high constitutional office, the new V-P is expected to act responsibly as the presiding officer of the Upper House and perform his functions in a bipartisan manner.
Third, the obnoxious manner in which Dhankhar insulted Opposition members in a frantic attempt to silence adversarial voices has dented the image of the Parliament. Parliamentary institutions have been witnessing an unprecedented decline in standards. Civilised debate is being replaced by pandemonium. Key legislation is passed without parliamentary scrutiny. Political expediency is eroding the legitimacy of these institutions. Radhakrishnan is expected to restore the sanctity of parliamentary institutions.
Finally, unlike the Lok Sabha, which is the House of the People, the Rajya Sabha is the House of the States. Thus, federal concerns deserve a forceful expression in the House of Elders. Unfortunately, gubernatorial offices are increasingly functioning as agents of the ruling party at the Centre. The fiscal and legislative space of the states is being steadily squeezed. The ensuing delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies has raised fears of further political marginalisation in South India, from where the new Vice-President hails. The people of the southern states have immense hope in Radhakrishnan to guard their legitimate interests.
The writer is a former professor of journalism at Osmania University, Hyderabad, a former MLC and a political analyst
