Political Crisis in Rajasthan

In the midst of a raging pandemic, Rajasthan finds itself in a political crisis that has once again shown how little political leaders care for constitutional norms and niceties. The Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government has been destabilised by a group of Congress members of legislative assembly (MLAs) led by former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot who have refused to attend legislature party meetings and have holed themselves up in a resort. Depending on who one listens to, the source of troubles are either Pilot’s reckless ambition for the top post or Gehlot’s manoeuvring to sideline Pilot and his coterie of MLAs. Either way, it is the last thing any state attempting to address a pandemic and economic crisis needs.

Attempts to bring some sort of stability and certainty to the situation have been stymied by the Rajasthan High Court and the governor of the state. When Rajasthan Assembly Speaker C P Joshi issued disqualification notices to the 19 MLAs in Pilot’s group, the Rajasthan High Court stepped in to stay these notices. When the Rajasthan cabinet resolved to call a session of the state legislative assembly, the governor simply refused to do so, raising trivial, technical objections to the exercise. Worse still, the governor seemed to want to dictate how the assembly session would be carried out, ­something that is well outside his limited constitutional mandate, given that he has not questioned the Congress’s majority in the assembly. Although he eventually relented and has agreed to call the assembly to session on 14 August, it once again highlights how the office of the governor can be easily used for partisan ends.