BJP never plays by the rules

Mail Today
March 28, 2009

THE puny little thing stuck into the mouth of a man in black running forward, backward and sideward, makes a match possible. Imagine football without the whistle. Every time the man blows the whistle, order is restored and rules enforced. In short, the whistle and its blower are symbols of fairness. Without the contraption, Zinedine Zidane and Marco Materazzi would have long ago been reduced to abusive, head- butting morons rather than enchanters weaving magic with their feet. Imagine cricket without the umpires upturned finger.

What the whistler is to sport, an Election Commission is to democracy, probably the greatest sport man ever invented. Election is a penalty shootout or sudden death where the referee ought to be more reflective than the shooter and the goalie. Then, this sport determines the fate of millions or even a billion, as in our case, and the winner rules the vanquished without drawing blood.

We, the largest democracy in the world, perhaps still have to come to terms with the referees whistle. As we do with the driving license, a traffic ticket or a defence deal, we try to fix even the Election Commission. Though our feudal instincts have not really worn out, 13 general elections and the defeat of Indira Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi in 1977 have more or less proven that this match cannot be fixed yet.

History

But every party in power tries to subvert the Commission. Former deputy Prime Minister LK Advani got his home secretary to head the Commission. At least he did not have a non- governmental organization seeking money from BJP Parliamentarians or a dubious Emergency- era track record. The Congress brazenly pushed Navin Chawlas controversial appointment despite his apparent proximity to the ruling party.

But the Varun Gandhi episode exposes the inherent apathy of the saffron party towards the Constitution and the institutions it founded. The BJP fielded an old hack, Balbir Punj, to thumb his nose at the Commissions collective non- partisan decision on Varuns hate speech. After the fight in the Commission, the body was coming together as one and not as Advanis nominee and Congress nominee to plead with the principal Opposition party not to nominate Varun from Pilibhit. But the BJP did not even deliberate the decision for a day before Punj came out to remind the Commission of its jurisdiction.

Article 324 of the Constitution says that “ the superintendence, direction and control of election to be vested in an Election Commission.” So, in plain speak, the Commission decides how to hold an election. Article 325 says that, “ No person to be ineligible for inclusion in, or to claims to be included in a special, electoral roll on grounds of religion, race, caste or sex.” Sure, the Commission draws up the electoral rolls, but if a candidate or potential candidate threatens a community and insists that he doesnt want that communitys vote, does that not amount to disenfranchisement? Doesnt it amount to virtually obliterating the voting right of a group of people? Doesnt it mean that by virtue of being members of a community their votes do not count?

The Commission upholding its own best practices gave Varun Gandhi an opportunity to prove that the recording was doctored as he had been claiming. But instead of proving his innocence, his party insists on his candidature, that too when he has clearly violated not just the spirit of the Constitution but the letter of law.

Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, seems to have be written with such venom- spewing politicians in mind: “ Promoting enmity between classes in connection with election — any person who in connection with an election under this Act promotes or attempts to promote on grounds of religion, race, caste, community or language, feelings or enmity or hatred, between different classes of the citizens of India shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both”. But the catch is that a candidate can be disqualified on these grounds ( which are, in fact an offence under the Indian Penal Code as well) only if he or she is convicted by a court for promoting enmity between two communities.

So, the BJP can celebrate Varun Gandhis candidature, get women- beating Sene leader Pramod Muthalik to campaign for him and even ask their veterans who were in jail during the Emergency to carry him around the country as the new Hindutva mascot. Not because Varun Gandhi has not violated a law, but his violation of the Indian Penal Code and the Representation of the People Act have to be proven in court, which is impossible within the next two months.

Endorsement

Now, the Commissions decision to ask the principal Opposition party poised to rule the country for a second term, not to consider Varun has been vindicated by the Allahabad High Court, which found prima facie case against the 29- year- old. Once a higher court establishes a prima facie case against a person, the trial court cannot obviously discharge him without a trial. But unfortunately, none of this would have a bearing on Varun Gandhi or his party.

The Sangh Parivar and its politicians never really admired Dr. BR Ambedkar or the Constitution he piloted. It is in fact sad that very few of the Parivar politicians where part of the Indian independence movement or the Constituent Assembly. Thus, to a large extent one could understand why the BJP wanted the Constitution to be reviewed when it set up a Constitution Review Committee as soon as the party came to lead a coalition government in 1998.

At one point or the other, the Parivars opportunistic politics has alternately hailed and abused Constitutional institutions. KR Narayanan, one of the best presidents in recent times who didnt write bad poetry, was extolled by the BJP when he refused to dismiss the BJP government led by Kalyan Singh. But when he applied the same standards for Mulayam, the same party found him wanting.

Indifference

The Comptroller and Auditor General of India is another body set up by the Constitution. The Parivar praised it to the heavens for the audit of the Bofors deal and the report TN Chaturvedi brought out. The BJP was so obliged to the Constitutional institution that the person who held the post was first nominated to the Rajya Sabha and then made a governor. But the same party when confronted with the Coffin Scam and the report on the Kargil purchases dismissed the CAG, saying that “ generals fight war, not comptroller general.” Later, one of its ministers called the CAG stupid when it audited the sale of Hotel Centaur by the NDA government.

Well, the BJP government in UP failing to uphold the orders of the greatest arbiter and guardian of the Constitution, the Supreme Court, in the Babri Masjid case only underlines the innate indifference to the rules of the game.

Every game has to be played according to some rules common to all the players. Either all candidates should be allowed to head- butt and call each other names. The Great Indian Electoral Circus would be more colouful and more close to ground, if they all begin abusing each other and threatening the other with sterilization. After all, poor Varun was talking about his sole legacy, his fathers forced sterilization drive.