In recent times it is difficult to recall another session of Parliament that was as blighted as the just-concluded Winter Session. While the government managed to push through the essential business of appropriations and supplementary grants approved through voice vote in the noise and din relating to the Opposition’s demand for a
probe by a joint parliamentary committee into the 2G fiasco, it is clear that this is no way for our democracy to function. On many occasions in the past, the Opposition parties have staged walkouts to press their demands, permitting official business to go through unhindered. That too was hardly a satisfactory way: for after all, democratically-elected legislatures should not pass laws without discussion. The difference between the current logjam in Parliament and earlier occasions is this: this time the issue threatens to spill over into the next session. If the Budget Session, which begins a couple of months later, also comes under a shadow, the remaining three years of the House may well prove infructuous. The political class should then spell out if will be justifiable to have a fresh general election within two years of the last one instead of the usual five.
It is possible that as soon as the session ends, the BJP and its allies, as well as the Left and its friends, will begin organising mass rallies on the issue of corruption in the government. The clear implication will be that the government is not moved by wrongdoing by ministers and senior officials. That is, of course, not true: serious steps have been taken over the Commonwealth Games irregularities as well as the 2G mess. But this will not stop the faithful from responding to calls by the Opposition parties. It is quite another matter that non-partisans are unlikely to be swayed by the Opposition’s logic in this case. Nevertheless, there is no getting away from the fact that the government did not act rightaway when the smoke signals first became visible. In the 2G case, this was perhaps due to coalition management as it was a DMK minister who was allegedly involved. In the CWG affair, the scale of the malady wasn’t grasped in time. This has proved a large enough opening for both the Left and the Right. The Opposition’s demand for a JPC appears neither reasonable nor logical, although it might politically suit them. A thorough inquiry into the 2G scam by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament — suggested by the government — is indeed likely to be more fruitful since the PAC is chaired by a senior BJP leader. The position of the ruling alliance and the Opposition appear to leave little room for flexibility. The victim is likely to be the country itself if the situation ends up leading us in the direction of a fresh general election. This is not good for India. We are on a reasonably good track and a sudden election will be a needless disturbing factor.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had perhaps this in mind when he told journalists during his recent visit to Europe that he feared for the parliamentary system in the country. This was an unfortunate choice of words that will bring the government little credit in the wake of the mess in which it is mired. India has hardly rejected the parliamentary system, as the enthusiastic participation of voters shows in election after election. It is plain to see that it is our cynical politicians who are letting us down. In any case, when the Winter Session of Parliament was technically still on (even if plainly unproductive), the PM’s office ought not to have agreed to engagements abroad. According to our convention, that is a denigration of Parliament.