The supreme court may be supreme, but isn’t infallible
Ganesh is the deity in the pantheon of Hindu gods revered by the devout as remover of obstacles ensuring auspicious beginnings and is offered ritual worship before others. It’s ironical that the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations jointly by the Chief Justice of India and the Prime Minister of India at the former’s official residence has triggered exceptional turbulence.
Eminent lawyers and former judges of the Supreme Court have expressed their shock and sorrow at what has happened. ‘Unfortunate’ and ‘unforgivable’ are some of the words used to register protest at the breach of the code of judicial conduct by the CJI that threatens to erode the separation of powers enshrined in our Constitution. Irreparable damage may already have been done to the institution by the one at the helm and no denting and painting job, however expertly executed, can restore its image and credibility.
On the other side, the ‘defenders of the faith’—the staunchly devout plus those who are at times referred to by the Opposition as andhbhaktas of the PM—have dismissed the event as ‘making a mountain of the mole hill’ another despicable outburst of left liberals frustrations who can’t countenance the resurgence of long-suppressed Hindu culture that the majority in this land take pride in. The critics of justice, Chandrachud and NaMo, are accused of rank hypocrisy and pushing a divisive anti-national agenda at the behest of conspirators in the shadows.
Unfortunately, the matter is much too grave to be left to the analyses of the ‘optics’ of the aarti and choral singing of bhajans or the attire donned to suit the occasion, and dare I add, the forthcoming elections in Maharashtra by one of the most gifted quick-change artistes of all times.
It’s been almost half-a-century since Justice Bhagwati wrote his infamous panegyric to Indira Gandhi and greeted her with a bouquet of flowers during the dark days of Emergency, tarnishing his own—till then—impeccable record and diminishing the majestic aura of the apex court. He lived to regret his indiscretion that washed away all the goodwill he had acquired over the years spent in higher judiciary and setting in place the innovative PIL.
Other learned judges have misjudged the sharp line between propriety and popularity, but no one had anticipated that the razor-sharp jurist would commit a foot fault on the eve of his retirement. Bewildered admirers keen to give him the benefit of the doubt argue that the good man was lured into a trap. It is difficult to buy this explanation. The wily spider may hum seductively ‘come into my parlour’ to the fly, but the wise who have lived their lives among creatures who dance like a butterfly but sting like a bee know better than to accept.
More serious issues than personal lapses are involved. There is a substantial section of equally eminent senior advocates, and cabinet ministers, authors who have welcomed the ‘bonding’ between the PM and the CJI. They suggest that if there is bonding between the PM and the CJI, aligning the judiciary and the executive India’s journey will be accelerated.
A mutation of the ‘Double engine ki sarkar’? The project to dismantle the colonial edifice—the supremacy of the Constitution and parliamentary democracy with foundation of separation of powers between legislature, executive and judiciary—has been underway for some time. It is not restricted to demolishing old buildings or renaming roads and streets, cities and airports.
True, this hasn’t been without hiccups. Revision of school textbooks and legal codes have evoked mixed reactions, and at times resistance, necessitating a step back. The debate should focus not on who bent or bonded but on the need for independent institutions and individuals with integrity in contemporary India.
Before we conclude it needs to be underscored that the rot certainly didn’t start with the NDA-BJP or NaMo, nor does the blame lie with INC alone. Witness what is happening under Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal, where the ‘bonding’ between bureaucracy and the political supremo has played no small part in creating dangerous conflagration. Manipur has been ablaze for months and the flames can’t be doused because the bureaucracy and political party ‘aligned’ are totally out of touch with the ground reality. The igniting spark was provided by a judicial verdict.
This raises another distressing question. The Rule of Law can’t survive the repeated and continuous onslaught of partisan politics and whipped-up populism, feeding ethnic strife to divide and rule, yet the judiciary should not overreach.
It has been said before, the Supreme Court may be supreme, but isn’t infallible. The honourable lordships pressing over the most powerful court in the world would do well to remember that their thundering words can in a blink turn into feeble echoes if they can’t be enforced like the ‘stern ultimatum’ issued to protesting doctors in Kolkata.
Pushpesh Pant
Former professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
pushpeshpant@gmail.com