Governor as conspirator - The Pioneer
Editorial
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12 May 1997
Title : Governor as conspirator
Author : Editorial
Publication : The Pioneer
Date : May 12, 1997
It is a veritable game of snakes and ladders being played in Bihar.
Every time the CBI moves a step closer to nailing the Bihar Chief
Minister, a conspiracy is hatched to push the agency back to the first
square. The misfortune, in that sense, of Bihar is no longer just its
recalcitrant Chief Minister, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, but also, lately,
its arriviste Governor, Mr AR Kidwai. The Governor is showing an
obdurate refusal to instantly approve the CBI's request for sanction to
prosecute Mr Yadav, and thereby proclaiming his partisanship. By
stating that he will take a full month to examine the merits of the CBI
request to seek prosecution of Mr Yadav in the Rs 950 crore fodder seam,
Mr Kidwai is provocatively dragging his constitutional office into a
controversy. The period of one month that he seeks itself suggests that
he is prevaricating; whether or not this is with the ultimate aim of
benefiting the political masters of Bihar is, under the circumstances,
an open question.
It needs to be gently pointed out to Mr Kidwai that it is not his brief
to chew the cud over the how and the why of the fodder seam; the final
arbiters in this regard necessarily have to be the courts. His efforts
at dilly-dallying will, therefore, only bring the Governor's role and
office into disrepute. The CBI has outlined four clear charges against
the Bihar Chief Minister. The first is Mr Yadav's patronage to those
involved in the fodder seam. The second is his approving withdrawal of
funds from the State treasury without the money reaching the intended
beneficiary-the cattle. The third is Mr, Yadav himself benefiting from
these withdrawals. And the fourth is his extending the services of
seam. tainted officials. It is a bit mystifying, therefore, that the
Governor should turn a blind eye to such gross abuse of the State's
principal executive office and, instead of asking the Chief Minister to
step down, actually behave in a manner that seconds the absurd statement
of Mr Yadav that the charges framed by the CBI against him are a "pack
of lies".
The Centre, on its part, cannot be absolved of a part of the blame for
ensuring a slow-down of the process of prosecution of Mr Yadav. Had the
Prime Minister reacted with alacrity and sacked the Union Food Minister,
Mr CP Verma-his veiled threats to destabilise the UF Government
notwithstanding - it is doubtful if Mr Kidwai would have had the
gumption to try and enjoy his fifteen minutes of fame. By not acting
against Mr Verma, the UF Government has betrayed its culpability to
political blackmail by Patna. It is still not too late for the
powers-that-be to realise that what the CBI is seeking is the mere
formality of the assent of the Bihar Governor; nothing more, nothing
less. He is not supposed to arrogate to himself the responsibility that
legally and constitutionally vests with the judiciary. But the
Governor, it appears, is yet to learn how to discern his role from being
a fly on the wall to a fly in the ointment.
