Author: Editorial
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: July 31, 2011
URL: http://www.dailypioneer.com/357328/A-threat-to-federalism.html
Jayalalithaa speaks out against a sinister
Bill
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa is
absolutely right in flagging the UPA's NAC-drafted Communal & Targetted
Violence (Access to Justice and Reparations) Bill, 2011, citing apprehensions
that the Bill could harm the country's federal structure. The Bill provides
for direct intervention by the Centre any time there is a law and order crisis
in a State provided that the Union Government can define it as an act of violence
against minorities. Yet, the fact is that while occasionally communal tensions
do flare up, State Governments are already equipped with various mechanisms
to effectively defuse the situation. By wanting to arrogate to itself that
responsibility, the Union Government has not just demonstrated its lack of
trust in democratically-elected State Governments but also prepared the ground
for undesirable interventions in State affairs. The Union Government can,
for instance, use the provisions of the Bill to justify its interference if
any critical situation arises in a State on the pretext that it amounts to
targeting the minorities. That intervention could open the doors for the Union
Government to dismiss State Governments and impose President's Rule under
Article 356 of the Constitution. In the present circumstances, imposing President's
rule is not easy, with political parties and even the judiciary disinclined
to allow the abuse of Article 356. Indeed, it is these checks and balances
that have kept the UPA regime from dislodging Governments in States not ruled
by the Congress and its allies. The Bill, therefore, seems perfectly crafted
to suit the interests of the UPA regime at the Centre. Moreover, everyone
knows that communal violence is easy to ignite, those who wish to bring down
a democratically-elected State Government can easily do so to provoke the
invocation of the provisions of the Bill. And these are not just Ms Jayalalithaa's
fears; various political leaders have repeatedly expressed their displeasure
with the Bill's provisions and have questioned the need for the proposed legislation.
Ms Jayalalithaa's other concerns are also
equally valid. The Bill is rightly seen as a desperate attempt by a discredited
regime that has lost the plot and gone politically adrift to woo minorities
across the country. In its defence, the Congress has pointed out that the
definition of 'minority' includes not just religious minorities but also the
majority community that may be in a minority in a particular State. But that
is only a red herring; the real purpose of the Bill is to provide religious
minorities with a false empowerment and win over their loyalty at a time when
the stock of the UPA, more so the Congress, is at an all-time low. Unfortunately,
the nation is being asked to pay a huge price for propping up the Congress,
for the Bill threatens to create rifts in society by labelling one community
as the perpetrator and the other as the victim, and then seeking to institutionalise
this absurd arrangement. Under the provisions of the Bill in the event of
communal strife minorities are entitled to protection, even if they happen
to be the perpetrators of the violence. How can such a prejudiced Bill decide
who is right and who is wrong? For all of these reasons, the Bill will undoubtedly
face vociferous opposition when it is introduced in Parliament, and it will
be in the fitness of things if it is dumped for good.