Is Politics involved behind Kamla Beniwal’s sacking ?
August 9, 2014
Kamala Beniwal presents a queer study in political career. From being the first female minister in Rajasthan at the age of barely 27 years to being an 87-year-old governor of Mizoram – ‘sacked’ unceremoniously following charges of partisan politics and corruption – she has seen it all, politically. She was also the first female governor of any state of Northeast India when she became the governor of Tripura in October 2009.
Now, the Narendra Modi government cited the following major reasons for sacking her –
1. She caused a loss of Rs 1216 crore in central funds to Gujarat, when she was governor of the state, by keeping Lokayukta amendment bill pending for ‘prolonged period’ in 2013.
2. Her “unethical” involvement in the affairs of a cooperative society in Jaipur as cited in a June 27 report from the Rajasthan government.
2. Her “unethical” involvement in the affairs of a cooperative society in Jaipur as cited in a June 27 report from the Rajasthan government.
President Pranab Mukherjee took the final call after seeking the attorney general’s opinion.
As it is, there are two aspects of the whole episode – one is seemingly political in nature and the other rather criminal!
Dubious Past Haunts Beniwal
Let’s start with the criminal aspect first. Beniwal is accused of shady land deals in more than one case. In one such case, she is charged to be an accused in a Rs 1000 crore land scam of the Jaipur Development Authority. She produced false affidavits and documents to get expensive land at throwaway prices. The basis of the allocation was the records of Kisan Samuhik Krishi Sahakari Samiti Limited, a cooperative body in Jaipur, which showed her as a farm labourer putting in 16 hours of work every day for the past 41,000 days.
In 1992, in yet another incident of abuse of public office, a Rajasthan Lokayukta report had indicted her on the anomaly in Lal Kothi Scheme of the Rajasthan government and stated : “It is prima facie established that Smt Kamala, the then Hon’ble Minister, Urban Development and Housing Department, Government of Rajasthan-cum-Chairman, JDA Jaipur… misused their official position to favour a few influential and highly placed individuals and have also thereby caused wrongful gain to them and loss to the Jaipur Development Authority and the public at large.”
Yet, such shady deals are well acceptable norms in the political echelons and could never be construed as a negative factor. Beniwal’s political career soared and she was appointed the governor of Tripura in 2009 before being shifted to Gujarat and then to Mizoram.
Yet, such shady deals are well acceptable norms in the political echelons and could never be construed as a negative factor. Beniwal’s political career soared and she was appointed the governor of Tripura in 2009 before being shifted to Gujarat and then to Mizoram.
Her past came to haunt her only when a supposedly hostile government came to power.
Waging Undeclared War on Modi
We all know that Beniwal, as the governor of Gujarat, had a running battle with the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who is now the Prime Minister of the country. Her showdown with the state BJP government even made her detractors term her as a Congress’s stooge. More than once she had rubbed Modi the wrong way then. As Governor she lent ears to Modi’s detractors by asking about Modi’s spending on his much-publicised public relations exercise – the three-day Sadbhavna fast. Thereafter, she decided to appoint her own Lokayukta in the state when Modi declined to give her his concurrence. In 2011, she appointed Justice R.A. Mehta as the Lokayukta without the consent of the Modi government in the state. The Beniwal-Modi clash was at the peak now and the governor had all powers to make the appointment if there was a delay in the process. Yet, this was not all. In 2013, she returned the Gujarat Lokayukta Commission Bill, objecting ‘giving whole power to the state government head to appoint the Lokayukta head and to eliminate the state Governor as per the requirements.’
Obviously, there has ever been an undeclared war between Modi and Beniwal. His government built the case against Beniwal but with the UPA government at the helm at the Centre, Modi only had to bide his time. Now once the Prime Minister of the country, he got his opportunity. While a governor cannot be impeached, Beniwal could be removed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister on grounds of gross delinquency, namely corruption, bribery and violation of the Constitution.
Debate over Governor’s role
Very often, there is a debate over the governors – that how the Constitutional position is relegated to that of political appointment and that how the governors have been keener on serving the purpose of their political affiliations than the Constitution. Examples galore in this regard as more and more governors are found indulging into the practice of serving their political masters.
It is more blatant now. When the UPA came to power in 2004, it removed all the governors appointed by the previous NDA government. Now when the NDA returned to power, it unceremoniously dropped the UPA-appointed governors. Beniwal was the last in the line.
Actually in a parliamentary system of government, a governor enjoys a vast range of discretionary powers. Beniwal’s stint as the Gujarat governor amply demonstrated such powers. And it is in this light that the political aspect of this case needs to be examined.
Shield to the Corrupt?
Yet, the Beniwal issue involves rather serious issues of propriety and misuse of official position and cannot be construed as a simple open-and-shut case of political opportunism.
Ever since the 1970s, Governors’ appointments have been based on considerations that in essence go against the spirit of the Constitutional intent. They have been appointed even if they are defeated politicians (from the ruling party at the centre), politicians who need to be ‘retired’ or sent far away from their home state (also from the ruling party at the Centre) or retired ‘loyal’ bureaucrats.
Now add another category. Doesn’t the latest Beniwal case also reflect a deplorable trend of offering Constitutional shield to politicians to avoid trials and prosecution under the garb of gubernatorial position?
Another case in point was the appointment of former Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit as the governor of Kerala hours after Aam Aadmi Party leader and the Aam Aadmi Party government forwarded files relating to the Commonwealth Games scam to the anti-corruption bureau and asked it to file an FIR against the former chief minister.
Governors play an important role in multi-party democracy where Cabinet instability is inescapable. It has been evitable time and again (The President’s rule in Delhi is one such latest example). In the past, various committees and commissions, notably the Sarkaria Commission, have made several recommendations on ways to uphold the dignity of the position. Isn’t this the time now for implementations of such recommendations? But it requires good intent!
Nicely put
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