Stooping to conquer

Every Indian feels happy and proud whenever his country is referred to as the largest de­m­o­cracy in the world. However, it is not the size of the population of India that should cause us pride; it is more the fact that we have be­en able to keep the institutions of democracy without serious di­l­­ution or distortion. There have be­en deficiencies in the functi­o­n­ing of the institutions but we ha­ve succeeded in retaining the main elements of a genuine de­m­ocracy in spite of adverse factors like high rate of illiteracy, la­ck of democratic traditions in the country, absence of a good pa­rty system etc. According to the survey conducted by the New York-based Freedom Ho­u­se, a watchdog organisation for as­sessment of the quality of de­m­ocracy in different countries, only 90 of the 193 member co­untries of the UN have been found eligible to be described as democracies and India is one of the 90. However, certain develo­p­ments in recent years in the fu­n­ctioning of our democratic inst­i­tutions have started giving serious cause for concern about our ab­ility to retain the legacy of de­m­ocracy given to us by great le­a­ders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.
Among the various causes for concern about the future of our democracy the most serious one is the distortion that has been allowed to take hold of our electoral system. Very soon Assembly elections are to take place in Bihar and po­l­itical parties seem to be vying with each other to make use of the time to discredit their political rivals by making various all­e­­gations in order to mislead voters. No holds seem to be ba­rred in this effort and what happened in the Bihar Legislative Assembly recently is one of the most sh­ameful chapters in the history of the functioning of legislatures in the post-Independence era. The hurling of slippers and throwing of chairs within the legislature by members at their colleagues, and even at the presiding officer, the exchange of abusive words and the pandemonium that was allowed to prevail have shocked the people. Bihar is no stranger to violent pr­otests and demonstrations ins­i­de the legislature. But even judging by past records, what happened in the last few days in the legislature and its premises can be said to have ma­rked a new low that can hardly be exceeded by any other state.
The most distressing feature of the protest is the reason advanced in its support by the protesters and the intensity of bitterness and fury exhibited by some of the leaders of the Opposition. The nauseating scene of a lady member throwing dozens of flower pots on the floor in front of an array of photographers will not be forgotten whenever the failure of our electoral system is mentioned in future. The ordinary people, who have watched these incidents on television or seen photographs in the newspapers, cannot easily digest the fact that the middle-aged lady member of the Upper House could behave in this obnoxious manner for no greater reason than a pre-electoral plan to discredit the chief minister and the ruling coalition in the next few months of campaigning. There have been violent demonstrations inside the House in some state legislatures in the past also, but very often they have been because of sudden provocations. But in the present case the bedlam created by the honourable members of the Opposition parties makes the protest look ridiculous and has exposed the representative system of democracy to shame and contempt.
Let us look at the facts of the so-called scam alleged to have been perpetrated by the present government and see how low the legislators had sunk to create the impression of improper conduct on the part of the chief minister and his colleagues. In the first place many people outside the group of legislators do not seem to have realised that the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) about certain un-reconciled contingency bills on which the protest was being made relate to the period April 2002-March 2008, when Rabri Devi was chief minister for as long as three years. Ironically, the loudest protest seems to have come from her own party for the so-called scam which the present state government is alleged to have committed. Secondly, the CAG report itself has been with the government since July 14, 2009, but the protesters started making a noise about this report recently as though it had come to their knowledge only now. Thirdly, according to the rules on the subject of the CAG’s report, it has first to be examined by the Public Acco­unts Committee (PAC) of the legislature. The PAC is already seized of this report and it is natural for the government to take the stand that the legislators sho­u­ld await the recommendations of the PAC. Finally, the so-called scam alleged against the present government of Bihar is not a new case of “irregularity” because many state governments have been guilty of this practice in the past and the CAG has been bringing this to the notice of the legislatures for corrective action. The Opposition parties seem to be bent on getting a decision from the Bihar high court to have the whole case examined by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) though the state government has already presented its case against any reference to the CBI before the high court and is awaiting its decision.
I am not justifying the action of the Bihar government in allowing un-reconciled bills amounting to Rs 11,412 crores. Nor am I saying that similar irregularities in other state governments, or even by the Central government, are adequate justification for its own lapses. I am only saying that it would be fair if all parties waited for the decision of the Bihar high court on the issue of referring the case to the CBI. However, the Opposition parties appear to have seized upon the present “scam” as they could not find any other worthwhile issue to ta­r­nish the reputation of the chief mi­nister for trying to provide go­od governance in the state. This has exposed the protesters’ lack of seriousness in making allegations against the government and the scant respect they have for the institution of legislature.
If legislators continue to use the sacred forum of the legislature to indulge in hooliganism in the hope of gaining a few seats in the forthcoming elections, it may not be long before the largest democracy in the world loses its reputation as a genuine democracy.

P.C. Alexander is a former governor of Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra