No matter how Narendra Modi’s many supporters spin it, the fact remains that the Gujarat high court verdict endorsing the appointment of the lokayukta by the governor is a setback to the chief minister. The Gujarat government as well as senior BJP leaders tried to invoke the principle of federalism and have challenged the ruling in the Supreme Court. But Justice V.M. Sahai’s indictment of the Modi administration’s “apathy” and the CM’s “questionable conduct” in stonewalling the appointment shows that the high court did not buy this claim.
Describing Mr Modi’s tactics as “pranks”, Justice Sahai also blamed him for triggering a “mini-constitutional crisis”, noting that the governor had in fact been forced to invoke her discretionary powers to “protect democracy and law”. These are strong words, and as far as the judges were concerned, it was Mr Modi and his government who were responsible for Gujarat not having a lokayukta for eight long years.
Legal and constitutional arguments apart, the verdict is a political blow to the chief minister and his party. The fact that one way or the other a lokayukta could not be appointed makes a mockery of his self-proclaimed commitment to good governance. The BJP gets hit even more, at least in terms of perception. It made common cause with Anna Hazare’s crusade, where the attempt was to paint the ruling UPA-2 government as corrupt, and it even declared its total support for a Lokpal at the Centre. Now the BJP will find it difficult to explain why it is all for a Lokpal at the national level but balks at appointing one in a state ruled by one of its most prominent leaders.
Coming on the eve of elections in five states, including the crucial one in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP must find ways to fend off criticism of its double standards and hypocrisy. For most people, legal minutiae won’t matter: an impression has been created that the BJP has no real interest in fighting corruption and had supported Anna Hazare only for political convenience. Recall how long it took to get Karnataka CM B.S. Yeddyurappa to step down after the state lokayukta came out with a report on illegal mining?
One way to counter the negative fallout would be to accept the high court’s verdict and install the lokayukta rightaway. This will salvage not only some political capital but also restore the party’s credibility. But that is not the way Mr Modi operates. He would prefer to fight it out, unmindful of the damage it will do, and even if there aren’t many takers for his claims of standing up for the federalist principle. Gujarat will have to wait for its lokayukta for some more time.