These are by no means the best of times. Most nations across the globe are today facing problems of varying magnitude. The real danger, however, is a pernicious trend in favour of autocracy and trampling on democratic sensibilities — even in countries deemed to be democratic. Chaos is bad enough, but the reckless disregard for democratic norms and behaviour is leading to a serious breakdown in constitutional proprieties.
One need not be in today’s U.S. under President Donald Trump to savour how topsy-turvy the world has become. Tampering with common verities that usually define democratic norms has become a practice in many countries. “Reasoned discussion and debate” (to quote our Hon’ble President) and ‘objective truth’ are becoming casualties today. What we witness in place of ‘free thought’ is the rise of ‘alternative facts’. In the second decade of the 21st century, ‘fake news’ and ‘post-truth’ have become not merely the principle characteristic but also the defining aspect of politics in many situations. Few countries remain insulated from this pernicious trend. Politics in Tamil Nadu today is a flag-bearer in this respect. ‘Orwellian logic’ is the new norm in the State.
It would be unfair to single out Tamil Nadu or believe that it is the only place in the country that is witnessing the glorification of ‘post-truth’. Events in the University of Hyderabad a couple of years ago involving the ‘martyrdom’ of Rohith Vemula triggered an avalanche of both ‘post-truth’ and ‘alternative facts’. More recently, the coverage of events in Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University has again demonstrated the extent to which ‘alternative facts’ and ‘fake news’ dominate the spectrum of news. The kind of ‘bald’ truth the world was previously accustomed to is no longer to be seen. The new ‘art of the possible’ is built on the edifice of ‘alternative facts’.
A coterie in charge
The rest of India may strongly condemn the train of events in Tamil Nadu since the demise of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, but it is the people of Tamil Nadu — and those committed to democracy and democratic traditions — that have the most to fear. The State currently confronts a highly anachronistic situation, in which a ‘cabal’ wields power. Unwittingly or otherwise, social media has become a kind of accessory to their deeply laid plans. Exploiting, via social media, the emotional distress of vast segments of the masses in Tamil Nadu yet to come to terms with the demise of their ‘Revolutionary Leader’, the cabal has sought to consolidate its position.
Politics in Tamil Nadu today epitomises ‘post-delusion’ antics. This is obscuring the objective reality, viz., that of ‘remote control’ by a person currently in jail (following the verdict of the Supreme Court) and the exercise of power by unelected individuals.
Notwithstanding comparisons drawn with what previously took place in Bihar in the 1990s, when Lalu Prasad was forced to step down in the wake of his conviction in the fodder scam and his wife installed as Chief Minister, the situation in Tamil Nadu is different and more dangerous. Remote control under any set of circumstances in any instance is untenable and intolerable.
What makes the present situation even more unacceptable is the flawed logic that long and close association of a ‘different kind’ imparts a kind of divine right to step into the shoes, and don the mantle, of the mentor. This is in contravention of all democratic principles, and a travesty of democracy.
Aggravating this situation is that the coterie representing the new ‘power elite’ comprises a narrow alliance of caste interests, superimposed on to which is family control over the levers of power. It means, in essence, the deconstruction of the ‘Administrative State’, making it subservient to a family-cum-caste combine. These are dangerous portents. If perpetuated, it would only drive another nail in the coffin of democratic politics in the country.
Topsy-turvy events
If the first task of any democracy is to create a ‘just’ majority, then the present dispensation in Tamil Nadu has further denigrated itself, and perpetuated a hoax on the Constitution by contriving the myth of a ‘pre-existing majority’. This in itself is worrying. Making matters worse is that while according to the Constitution, a Chief Minister is lawfully created through due process, nothing of the kind has happened here. The system of checks and balances itself smacks of a web of mutually compromising interests. What we are witnessing is a ‘palace coup’, rather than an instance of ‘passing the torch’ (in the John F. Kennedy mould).
The sequence of events confirms this. Jayalalithaa passed away on December 5. Exactly two months later to the day — on February 5, 2017 — her associate, V.K. Sasikala, is elected leader of the Legislature Party Leader by AIADMK MLAs. The incumbent Chief Minister, O. Panneerselvam, is compelled to step down, and thereafter forced to resign as CM. Two days later, while still the acting Chief Minister, he revolts alleging that he had been forced to resign. On February 14, the Supreme Court finds Ms. Sasikala guilty in a disproportionate assets case and awards her a jail sentence. Immediately thereafter, and without even the pretence of holding a formal party meeting, she expels Mr. Panneerselvam and names Edappadi K. Palaniswami as the leader of the Legislative Party. She also reinducts two of her close family members (who had previously been expelled by Jayalalithaa) into the party and gives them key positions. On February 18, the faction led by Mr. Palaniswami wins a so-called ‘trust vote’ in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.
Lacking legitimacy
The battle lines between the rival AIADMK factions are clearly drawn as of now. The faction led by Ms. Sasikala has the support of a larger number of the MLAs, but this hardly invests the faction with any legitimacy. Many of the crucial issues pertinent to a democratic transfer of power remain to be addressed. Lacking in legitimacy and burdened by legacy issues, the pro-Sasikala faction has convinced itself that the wisdom of one individual is superior to that of the collective wisdom of the party legislators, as also the party hierarchy — let alone the electorate. The group’s decision to endorse without any demur Ms. Sasikala’s decision to appoint her previously expelled relatives to key positions in the party is symptomatic of this.
It could be inferred, given the current make-up of the majority faction, that those in charge would be most unwilling to allow any contrary points of view to prevail, or emerge, in determining the future course of the group. It aims to be completely ‘knowledge-proof’, limiting itself to tampering with the system and confronting the bureaucracy. If the Internet is turning out to be largest ungoverned space, it will only be a question of time before the Sasikala dispensation seeks to operate in a similar void.
The future of the State thus appears to be in jeopardy. Those who value democracy must recognise that a takeover of this kind by a small cabal poses a grave threat to democracy. This has far greater significance than the question as to who actually occupies the Chief Minister’s chair in Fort St. George.
Our Constitution does not contain a provision for the ‘right of recall’ in the event of an apparent disconnect between the voters and those whom they voted in as their representatives. This makes the present situation all the more problematic, for if scepticism — of the actions or steps taken by a legislature controlled by a cabal —intensifies, it could lead to a flashpoint. It is important for those who have ‘grabbed’ power — and are confident that they could hold on to it — to heed Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev’s warning: “Confidence without clarity is a disaster.”
M.K. Narayanan is a former National Security Adviser and former Governor of West Bengal .
