SC's Arunachal verdict is mega embarrassment for BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party in general and Arun Jaitley in particular are becoming masters in scoring self-goals.

After facing political embarrassment when Supreme Court virtually restored Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat’s job, it’s in for another blow with the apex court now saying that all that has happened in Arunachal Pradesh since December 2015 is “unconstitutional and illegal”.

The government headed by Nabam Tuki, which was unconstitutionally dismissed, now stands restored. Whether the chief minister proves his majority and runs an efficient administration is secondary.

Once again the elaborate scheme prepared by the Centre to usher in “Congress-mukt Bharat” through the backdoor has backfired.

Tuesday's verdict will sting the BJP not just in Arunachal Pradesh but will also have impact in poll-bound states. Manipur (because it is in the same region) will particularly view the BJP's attempt at installing a puppet government in Arunachal with concern.

People in Uttarakhand too will see this judgment as double vindication of the verdict that restored the elected government in the state. The legal pronouncement will resonate in the Monsoon Session of Parliament also as the Congress will lose no opportunity to rub the humiliation in really deep.

Supreme Court’s judgment will also come as a respite for other Congress governments, especially in Himachal Pradesh, as a clear message has been sent to the BJP: hands off elected state governments.

The ruling party at the Centre better learn and fast that if it wishes to install either their own “client” governments, like the one in Arunachal, they need to do this through the “proper route” as specified in the Bommai judgment.

It clearly spells out that the floor of the House is the only place to determine if an elected government commands a majority or not. The subjective assessment of the governor is not the correct procedure.

But for all the gloating that the Congress and other non-BJP parties have indulged in since the judgment, the episode has lessons for the Congress too.

Both Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi need to introspect after the verdict and ponder if they could have played a part in minimising the embarrassment to the respective parties.

To understand why the Arunachal drama holds a tutorial for Rahul Gandhi, one has to step back to parliamentary elections in 2014 when state polls were held simultaneously in Arunachal.

The Congress swept to power and Nabam Tuki, chief minister since November 2011, was re-elected.

But as it often happens in states in the northeast, the Congress faced a political crisis when Tuki sacked an important minister, Kalikho Pul.

Sensing an opening to install a puppet regime, the BJP installed JP Rajkhowa, former chief secretary of Assam, and considered close to several BJP leaders, as governor.

The development should have alerted Rahul Gandhi that it was important to guard the party's flock but he had no time for such small tasks.

Congress dissidents gathered ground and pressed for a change which the governor facilitated. Overruling the Speaker, he advanced the Assembly session and allowed this farce to be enacted outside where the presiding officer was “removed”.

Central rule was finally imposed by citing the ludicrous excuse of “cow slaughter” and to ensure that NSCN(K) terrorists did not get a toehold in the state.

This was not the first time that the region witnessed such a political script being written and enacted to the last word. But the moot point was that the BJP, too, did what the previous regimes had done.

BJP had truly become just another Congress and it was first displaying its ugly face before exhibiting the benign facade.

After Kalikho Pul was hastily sworn in to avoid facing Parliament to secure its nod for Central rule in the state, Arun Jaitley boasted: “Modiji once called for a Congress-free India. Congress has already gone out of Arunachal Pradesh....”

His silence after the apex court judgment speaks volumes.

There is need to recall that Jaitley laid an elaborate basis for justifying Central rule in Uttarakhand in a Facebook post.

Like the events in Uttarakhand, the goings-on in Arunachal Pradesh also establish that Modi is not genuine about ushering in cooperative federalism.

Because the governor is the Centre's direct nominee, what the apex court said about his action is particularly damning.

“Governor was obliged to adhere to and follow the constitutional principle, that is, to be bound by the advice of the council of ministers... but chose to ignore it... Governor, despite being the ‘first citizen’ of the State, chose to take no steps to break the impasse caused by a collapse of communications between him and the chief minister; finally, the governor took no steps to resort to the breakdown provisions and obtain impartial advice from the President. Instead, the governor acted in a manner not only opposed to a rule of law but also opposed the rule of law...”

In its judgment the Court further argued: “Executive functions of the governor, whether relating to governance issues or issues pertaining to the legislature, are required to be performed by him on the aid and advice of the council of ministers and the rules framed by the House. No discretion is available to him in these matters.”