Will Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik sack the tainted Ministers from his teamIJ This question is being legitimately asked now after the Supreme Court’s judgment that the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers are not to make criminally charged persons Ministers. However, the apex court has not given any direction and has left the issue to the ‘wisdom’ and ‘good sense’ of the PM and CMs to decide in this regard. This is in fact a question of ethics.
As noticed from the Election Watch reports, there are 22 BJD MlAs (2014) who have serious criminal charges against them. From among them, Pradeep Maharathy, Prafulla Kumar Mallick, Pratap Jena, Sudam Marandi and Snehagini Chhuria have been included in the Council of Ministers. Some Ministers have charges of criminal offences like dacoity (Sec 395 IPC), rioting, armed with deadly weapons (Sec 148 IPC), obscene acts and songs (Sec 293 IPC) and criminal intimidation (Sec 506 IPC).
The Supreme Court in its judgment has very categorically observed that a democratic republic polity hopes and aspires to be governed by a Government which is run by the elected representatives who do not have any involvement in serious criminal offences or offences relating to corruption, casteism and societal problems affecting the sovereignty of the nation.
A genuine democracy demands that criminals be purged from representative politics. A good governance desires that the persons with criminal antecedents are to be out of the governance process. Strangely, so far, the Odisha polity lacks it and perhaps rests on the principle of classical jurisprudence that an accused is innocent till he or she is not convicted.
This time in the Assembly Elections (2014), as many as 93 persons with criminal charges have become winners and 76 crorepati MlAs adore our temple of democracy, the Odisha Vidhan Sabha. Many of them belong to the invincible Biju Janata Dal. (BJD).
The BJD has an impressive popularity in Odisha under the monolithic leadership of Naveen Patnaik. The Odisha people too have huge craze for Patnaik. Taking shelter under Patnaik’s popularity, BJD nominates win elections, no matter how criminal, corrupt or communal the candidate is.
On being asked, BJD decision-makers explain that it is the winnability criterion alone that is taken into consideration while offering party tickets to a candidate to contest. As observed, winnability does not comprise any good and positive quality of a person worth to be a legislator. Instead, the money power, the muscles power and the manipulation power of a candidate help decide the winnability factor. The so-called modern day Robin Hoods masquerading in the election fray, therefore, manage to ensure victory.
Our electoral politics is by far polluted. Although attempts are on through the different poll reforms panel to decriminalise the electoral system in India, these are still found insufficient. Unholy nexuses between the politicians and criminals are not brought to an end. Criminalisation of politics and politicisation of crime coexist. The Vora Committee has referred to a sordid picture of this ugly relationship. And, therefore, the criminals dare to fight elections through their money and muscle powers and occupy the seats in the legislature.
In view of the Supreme Court’s advice on induction of criminally charged persons in the Ministry, it is time now for the ‘clean’ Chief Minister Patnaik showed the country that there is no place in the Odisha Council of Ministers for the legislators with criminal backgrounds. And he also had the reputation in the past when he had sacked Ministers from his Cabinet on ground of ‘shadow of corruptions’.
That shadow now looms larger. When a charged Minister is heard by the court, there would be shadow on the innocence and integrity of the Minister. This would be a disgusting stage for both the Government and the State as well. Moreover, this country is ruled by the rule of law. Hence, it would be imprudent to give executive power to a criminally charged legislator to govern who has conflict with law. In the National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014, there is a provision that a person with doubtful integrity will not be appointed as a judge in the higher courts. Ministers are no exception like the exclusive clubs that will make their own laws.
Hopefully, the ‘clean’ Chief Minister will cleanse his Cabinet and demonstrate distinctly that an accused bears the stigma of a criminal till he or she is not acquitted.
(The writer is an advocate, an author and a columnist and a former national President and Secretary General, National Audit Federation under CAG. E-mail Id:gcparida@gmail.com)