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MATTERS AROUND US

Indian political scene : Government and opposition on collision course

ZAGLUL AHMED CHOWDHURY
***It is Jharkhand that is staging the government-opposition confrontation. The opposition is sparing no effort to keep the pot boiling, charging that democracy has been "killed" in the world's largest democracy. Not surprisingly, the government shrugs off the accusation and says the opposition is seeking to make an issue out of "non-issue". Arguably, no side would probably budge from its known position but the situation is raising a lot of dust in the political arena of India.***
THE otherwise not much excited political scene in
India suddenly seems heated up with activities
bringing the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government on a collision course with the opposition National Democratic Alli-ance(NDA).Since the ruling alliance took over in May last year, following the national elections, this is the first major development that engaged two sides in a bitter brawl with the opposition accusing the government of "murdering democracy" in India with its whimsical decisions that ran contrary to democratic norms. The ruling alliance led by Sonia Gandhi's Congress denies the charge of having taken any step that subverts democracy, but two sides seem inexorably moving towards a confrontation. Both houses of parliament -- the Loksabha and the Rajyasabha -were adjourned several times with the vociferous opposition causing pandemonium over the government's "undemocratic steps". The opposition is now seeking to launch a countrywide anti- government agitation. The governmentopposition relations have taken an unprecedented low turn since the change of rulers in New Delhi.
At the heart of the crisis is the just concluded assembly elections and the formation of the government following the results. Three states that went to polls were Haryana, Bihar and Jharkhand, but the political tensions are brewing mainly on Jharkhand since the UPA government that has been formed there is being accused by the opposition as "undemocratic" because it alleges it is the NDA and not the UPA that emerged winner. The post-polls
situation in Jharkhand is certainly murky as no side won an absolute majority in the 81-member assembly with the BJP-led NDA bagging 36 seats followed by Congress-led UPA securing 26 seats. Support of a minimum of 41 members is needed for forming a government which no side has and hence the "horse trading" luring independent members and engineering defections from rival alliance.
NDA claimed it should be given the first chance to form the government as it won more seats, a contention contested by the UPA which said the side that had minimum support required for a government be given the chance regardless of which side won more or less seats. As the pendulum swung from this side to that, the governor Syed Sibte Razi finally invited UPA and Shibu Sharan, leader of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM),a constituent of the UPA, was made the chief minister. This angered the NDA not only at the state level but to the extent that its central leaders including former prime minister A.B.Vajpayee, leader of the opposition in Lokshaba Lal Krishna Advani and former defence minister George Fernandes met president
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to lodge the protest against formation of the UPA government, which they alleged did not have majority. They accused the governor, who is a seasoned Congress leader from Uttar Pradesh, of being partisan and acting at the dictates of the UPA leaders from New Delhi.
Proceedings in both houses of parliament were disrupted following adjournment and other programmes were initiated against the government in New Delhi as well as the new one in Jharkhand. Law minister Ghulam Nabi Azad denied that democracy was trampled by the decision of the state governor, who said he did not act against the constitution and was convinced that the UPA can provide a stable government. The Shibu Sharan government has been asked to prove its majority in the house by March 21. Sonia Gandhi's son Rahul Gandhi, in his maiden term as a lawmaker, has criticised the frequent adjournment of the houses by the opposition, saying "temple of democracy" should not be desecrated in the name of protests. He also mentioned how much money is being spent for the parliament and this will not be worth if the houses cannot
function. The opposition reacted by saying that the "murderer of democracy" is shedding crocodile tears and charged that the UPA government did the same thing about government formation in Goa.
In Haryana Congress had a clear sweep by dislodging the Lokdal government of Om Prakash Chautala while the scene in Bihar is not clear as no sides won majority. The electoral scenario in Bihar, one of the most important and populous states in India, was interesting. Rather paradoxically, major partners of the UPA at the federal government fought against each other in state polls here. The Congress, Rastriya Janata Dal (RJD) of senior central minister Laloo Prasad Yadav, the key figure in the state politics, and Lokshakti of another central senior minister Ram Vilas Paswan fought against each other while the NDA was very much in the field. In Bihar RJD of Laloo was the single largest party followed by the BJP but all were well short of absolute majority. Paswan's party did not have too many seats but is in a position to play vital role in formation of the new government. Congress won only ten seats in the 243-member house not unexpectedly
since the party is a weak force in Bihar for sometime but it is otherwise important. The situation in Bihar was unclear till writing this as Laloo was trying to form a government with support from Congress and others. But Paswan was unwilling to support either RJD or the "communal" BJP. Congress sided with Laloo but not Paswan. Their differences created chances of rupture within the UPA at the centre unless steps were taken to heal the wounds.
The state assembly elections have not been a happy experience for the ruling UPA as far as Bihar is concerned. The NDA was also exploring chances of forming a government there but felt that the governor would give preference to UPA. The formation of a government in Bihar was proving difficult.
But it is Jharkhand that is staging the government-opposition confrontation. The opposition is sparing no effort to keep the pot boiling, charging that democracy has been "killed" in the world's largest democracy. Not surprisingly, the government shrugs off the accusation and says the opposition is seeking to make an issue out of "non-issue". Arguably, no side would probably budge from its known position but the situation is raising a lot of dust in the political arena of India. The UPA government headed by prime minister Manmohan Singh is facing the political heat on the Jharkhand issue, but is unlikely to bend although it is a minority relying on the outside support of the leftists, who appear to be siding with the government on this controversy. The non-partisan president of the country has summoned the Jharkhand governor but he is not expected to take any hard line even if he is convinced about any wrong doing in asking the UPA for formation of the state government. The opposition is likely to make every use of this opportunity to embarrass or trouble the ruling alliance even though less possibility exists about the chances of the crisis snowballing into a development leading to the collapse of the government. However, it is also unlikely that the problem would die easily as many Indians seem not convinced that things went fine in formation of new government in Jharkhand.
Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury is a senior journalist.