End the stalemate

Reports say the all-party meeting, called by the Leader of the House, Pranab Mukherjee, has made some progress on resolving the impasse following the Opposition’s insistence on a Joint Parliamentary Committee ( JPC) probe into the 2G spectrum allocation issue . Indications are the government might agree to the demand after a debate on a motion it moves in Parliament , with the Budget session due to start on February 21. There is an immediate need for a compromise so that Parliament can function, given that core issues of governance and democracy are at stake. To that end, the Opposition must act on its stated commitment to ensure Parliamentary functioning. That said, it is the Opposition’s right and responsibility to raise issues to make the government accountable. Indeed, in this instance, the Opposition can take some credit for mounting the kind of political pressure that led to the ouster of A Raja from the telecom ministry. But to further obstruct the functioning of Parliament would mean subverting the very idea of a participatory democratic system and the role of the House itself. The government, on its part, must acknowledge the depth of the trust deficit that has emerged after the spate of scams, and must take even more unambiguous steps to punish the guilty.

It is clear that the tussle over the JPC, and the stalling of Parliament, are part of a political battle on managing public perceptions over corruption. But there also is logic in the argument as to just what a JPC might achieve, given that any report from such a body has no penal consequences . The fate of the last two JPCs, on the Bofors and Harshad Mehta scams, is testimony to that fact. In any case, the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General, looking into the 2G allocation, is to be examined by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, headed by senior BJP and Opposition leader Murli Manohar Joshi. It is as much of a presumption to assume the JPC will succeed as the idea that the PAC will fail. It is critical that India is rid of systemic corruption. But that can’t be a plank to be used politically while trampling all over Parliament. Let there be a debate on the JPC in Parliament , a genuine one, not displays of obduracy.