Congress vice president Rahul
Gandhi’s criticism of the government effectively put the controversial
ordinance on convicted legislators on hold: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, away
in the United States on a
bilateral visit, was forced to issue a statement from Washington
Earlier, the Congress and the
UPA government were caught completely off-guard when Mr. Gandhi “dropped in” at
a Meet-the-Press programme addressed by party general secretary Ajay Maken,
only to denounce the ordinance cleared by the Union cabinet — and on which
President Pranab Mukherjee had sought a government briefing.
With this outburst coming in
the wake of Mr. Mukherjee having made his discomfort with the ordinance known
to Law Minister Kapil Sibal and Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde — when they
met him for well over an hour at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
For both the party and the
government, nothing could have been more embarrassing than the Congress vice
president’s bombshell minutes after Mr. Maken had defended the ordinance.
Worse, virtually at the same moment, at another venue, unaware of the drama
unfolding at the Press Club of India (PCI), Minister of State for Information
and Broadcasting Manish Tewari and Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s
Office V. Narayanswamy, too, were explaining the need for the ordinance. Earlier,
minutes after Mr. Maken began to speak, he received a phone call from Mr.
Gandhi, who asked whether he could join him at the PCI.
In the
less than 10 minutes Mr. Gandhi was there, he proceeded to give what he
repeatedly described as his “personal opinion.” The ordinance, he said, was
“complete nonsense” and it “should be torn up and thrown away.” He said the
“arguments” made in his own party in favour of the ordinance were that there
were “political considerations,” arguments that he said were being made in all
other parties. “It is time to stop this nonsense, political parties, mine and
all others,” Mr. Gandhi said as he rolled up his sleeves, “if we want to fight
corruption, we can’t continue making these small compromises. Because if we
make these small compromises, then we compromise everywhere.”
As he got up to leave,
members of a suddenly galvanised press wanted to know whether Mr. Gandhi’s
views had been shaped by the flak the ordinance was getting from the
Opposition. He returned to his seat to say: “I’m not interested in the
opposition, I am interested in what the Congress party is doing and what our
government is doing.” And then came the punchline: “I personally feel what my
government has done is wrong,” before he made a dramatic exit. Mr. Maken
retracted all that he had said earlier in the press meet to declaim: “Rahul’s
view is that of the Congress party.”
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“The ordinance is
complete nonsense. It should be torn up and thrown away. What the government
is doing with this is completely wrong”
à Mr. Rahul Gandhi, Congress
Vice-President
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“The Country is waiting
to see whether the PM has any self-respect left….Whether he accepts the
decision of his cabinet being called nonsense, or doe she react for the
honour of his own government”
à Mr. Arun Jaitely, BJP
(Opposition leader, Rajya Sabha)
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Enough is Enough. The PM should quit. This
type of blame on the government for a decision that was obviously taken in
consultation with the party amounts to insubordination”
à Mr. Sanjay Baru, former
adviser to Dr. Manmohan Singh
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Set to GO?
(i)Mr. Rasheed Masood (Congress)
(ii)Mr. Lalu Prasad
Yadav (RJD)
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SC
Order & Ordinance
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Law prior to July 2013: Sitting legislators could
hold onto seats while their appeal was pending, even if convicted for crimes
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What SC ruled in July 2013?: Sitting legislator
convicted for such a crime to be immediately disqualified
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What Ordinance says?: Sitting legislator so
convicted would be allowed to continue pending an appeal. He wouldn’t be
allowed to vote in the House or draw a salary
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