By Dr. Gyan Pathak
Democratic compact between chief minister and Lieutenant Governor of Delhi has broken in the last ten years, LG VK Saxena has admitted in his opinion piece published in Indian Express on August 28, which is just an expression of the fact existing in all states and UTs where the opposition political parties or alliance rule.
“Somewhere down the line, this democratic compact was broken. Today, the elected government is positively hostile towards every other administrative agency,” wrote LG V K Saxena, adding “The Chief Minister in judicial custody. Citizens are held hostage. Governance is in a free fall as ministers obsess over press conferences while the real aam aadmi (literally common people, but used in consonance with an allusion to Aam Aadmi Party that lead the elected government). It is high time for introspection and course correction.”
It is really a high time for introspection and course correction, that has evolved in the last 10 years, for which LG VK Saxena blames the elected government of Delhi. The allegation may be at best only partially true, since he himself is the administrator of Delhi under the amended Government of NCT Delhi Act of 2021 with absolute power, and government in Delhi means LG not the elected chief minister. He has the real power over the officials, and if his officials do not properly perform, he must gracefully shoulder the blame rather than shifting the blame in entirety on the elected government.
When LG VK Saxena says “a high time for introspection and course correction” the connotation is that barring himself, and those ruling at the Centre who have chosen him to the administrator of Delhi holding the post of Lieutenant Governor. He talks about the period “10 years ago” making allusion to the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP’s) rule as cause of deterioration in Delhi.
It leaves no one guessing – it’s clearly political. Lieutenant Governor has reduced himself from a constitutional head to mere an agent of PM Narendra Modi and the Centre’s ruling establishment led by BJP, who have been ruling the country for over 10 years now. It is precisely the period during which Delhi suffered deterioration, that he has summed up as “democratic compact broken”.
LG has blamed opposition for the broken democratic compact, which is just in contradiction to the allegations of the opposition political parties. Opposition alleges that under the PM Narendra Modi’s rule all democratic institutions have been subjected to degenerate, including the Governors of states and Lieutenant Governors of the Union Territories in all opposition ruled states’ LGs and Governors. “Democratic compact broken” phrase used by LG VK Saxena is just a reminder of how constitutionally provided “federal structure has broken” not just in Delhi but across the all opposition ruled states under just over last 10 years of Modi rule.
Since governors have been acting as political agents of PM Narendra Modi led Centre, while they ought to have behaved as constitutional heads of the states and the UTs, the introspection and course correction about which LG VK Saxena talks is not limited to only the opposition political parties and their elected governments. All LG’s, Governors, and the ruling establishment at the Centre must introspect and correct themselves. LG’s playing politics on behalf of BJP from behind a constitutional post, especially at a time when Delhi is going to polls soon, is a worrying development.
Even on August 27, Governor of West Bengal CV Ananda Bose played politics on behalf of BJP. It should be noted that BJP is leading an agitation against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress (TMC) on the issues of Kolkata doctor’s rape and murder. Governor Bose said that state government can’t suppress peaceful protestors. “Stop this murderous game”, said Bose on crackdown at agitators. He even reported saying that the police action on the protesters left “the national flag, national sentiments and the nation insulted,” adding “What we saw on the streets of Kolkata is the worst one can expect from a democratically elected government.” It smacks politics on behalf of the BJP in West Bengal, the state which has seen a long tussle between the Governor and the elected TMC government in the state.
It is a well-known fact that PM Narendra Modi has been following a strategy of using hostile governors in opposition ruled states. All opposition ruled states have already complained about their governor’s hostility towards them and obstructionist behaviour. In case of Delhi, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala the matter even went to the Supreme Court of India that made very adverse observation against the governors.
In November last year, the Supreme Court of India had noted the obstructionist behaviour of the Tamil Nadu governor which it said a “matter of serious concern”. The Tamil Nadu government had complained that governor was sitting on as many as 12 bills passed by the state assembly, some dating back to 2020.
Last year, Telangana, Punjab and Kerala also approached the Supreme Court with allegations that the governor was stymieing legislative and executive work. It was only in October last year the Supreme Court had restrained the governor of West Bengal from appointing vice chancellors of state universities. Delhi government also went recently to Supreme Court against the obstructionist behaviour of the LG.
Governor’s role in Maharashtra in bringing down the opposition government in 2022 has also been criticised. Governors have been used by Modi government to bring down several elected governments in states in the last 10 years.
Governors have been seen following confrontational path in dealing with the opposition ruled state governments. Jagdeep Dhankhar’s highly confrontational attitude towards TMC led government in West Bengal has been a starker example.
Tamil Nadu’s DMK government had accused the Governor RN Ravi of acting as a stooge of BJP and the RSS, while constitution provides for a provision that says the Governors of state are expected to act as the custodian of constitutionalism and only as per “the aid and advice” of the Council of Ministers.
PM Modi’s governors are found to have been following confrontationist ways of dealing with the elected opposition led governments. If “democratic compact has broken” the responsibility of repairing lies also on LGs and Governors, who must act according to the constitutional provisions, and must not play politics on behalf of the BJP. (IPA Service)
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