How to form a
Government ?
Over the past 3 days , we watched a “ tamaashaa “
being played out in Karnataka
Neither BJP , nor Congress , nor JDS had a clear
mandate from the people ( meaning a simple majority as far as the number of
seats won is considered )
And this kind of fractured ( ? ) vote is more of a “
norm “ than an aberration , whether it is a State election or the National
election, since voters have a fundamental right to support and vote for those
candidates who, they believe will represent their concerns
This is natural when different parties having
different agendas , which appeal to different sections of the society , contest
elections
Just because a party got very few seats ( even just 5
% of the house ) , does not mean that the voice and concerns of those voters
who voted for that party can be totally ignored / bulldozed !
Unfortunately , this is exactly what is happening ,
again and again !
Under our current system, the Governor invites,
* the party with simple majority of seats won,
or
* parties with “ Pre-poll Alliance “ , failing
which,
* parties which have formed a “ Post – poll
Alliance “
Why is the post-poll alliance , “ unfortunate “ ?
Because it leads to horse-trading / purchasing members
with money or promises of minister-ship / flouting Anti Defection
Law etc
MY SUGGESTION :
In the next few weeks , the Supreme Court is expected
to hear the petition ( from Congress + JDS + Ram Jethmalani ), to decide
whether Karnataka Governor was right or wrong in his action
But , it would be highly desirable that the Supreme
Court lays down a simple protocol to be followed in future , whenever such a
situation arises in future ( although, I believe , some guide-lines do exist ,
albeit , not absolutely clear )
For the reasons mentioned above , I strongly feel such
a protocol should NOT at all include POST –POLL alliance , as an option
It should be as per following priority :
* “ Pre Poll alliance “ if the combined seats won by
the alliance exceed simple majority,
with provision for a Vote of
Confidence, within a week
* If there is no “ Pre Poll alliance having
simple majority “ , then the party with the
largest number of seats won ,
should be invited for forming the government
In such an event , there will be no
need for a Vote of Confidence by that party to
prove its majority on the floor of
the house
Even though I consider this suggestion as “ far less than the IDEAL “ , its merits are as
follows ,
* No scope of “ Opportunism “ by forming a “
Post Poll Alliance “ by warring parties
* No scope for horse-trading
* Likely acceptance by all parties concerned
* No scope for the Governor to play favourites,
by strictly defining his role
* Quick formation of a STABLE government in a
transparent manner
In case you want to know what could be that IDEAL solution , read the following ( without
expecting such a miracle to happen any time soon ! ) :
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