Gobind Thukral

INDIA holds the ritual of elections every five years or even earlier if so required, and spends huge sums of money. This year is it going to cost Rs 10,000 crore. But if one observes these bodies even casually, one is disappointed. Most assemblies either meet for short durations, mostly to fulfill constitutional obligations or are mired by shouting, walk outs and fracas. Sometime the members beat each other and sometimes the staff. Ruling parties behave like dictators and throw out whole lot of opposition or their leaders for a full term.

The 14th Lok Sabha met for just for 46 days during 2008. It set another dubious record of passing eight important bills in just five minutes. No debate and no information for the public, the master that elects the parliament. The first Lok Sabha had met for on average each year for 150 days. The legislative work done by the parliament during the first decade was on an average 68 bills. Now it has come down less than 50. Parliaments across countries do much better.

There is surely time to think that a weak parliamentary system would hard Indian democracy and gradually there would be no difference between democracy and dictatorship. Our leaders are cutting the tree on which they sit.

Parliament is primarily a forum for the opposition. Through it can enforce government accountability. The main opposition party, the BJP appeared ill at ease in this role. In fact, the considerably consistent performer in Parliament, as well as the most active performer by far, was the CPM. It was neither fully with the UPA government, nor fully opposition, and yet deftly played both the roles. Also, the BJP had maximum of its members thrown out the parliament on various charges.

Even some regional parties out-performed the BJP in Parliament, the main opposition party now striving hard to win the elections. As the main Opposition party, the BJP certainly had more opportunity than most to intervene in and influence proceedings of the parliament. It failed in its primary duty. Smaller, regional parties which are most often accused of showing lack of interest in national issues id much better.

According to a study published by the Indian Express, during the full five year term, nine per cent of the Congress, 13 per cent of the BJP and 11 per cent from other parties did not participate in any debate.

The CPM MPs were most active and participated in all the debates. Each CPM MP spoke in 47 debates on an average. Every MP from the CPM was present in the house eight times out of ten times. 2008 was the most silent year and over one third MPs did not speak at all. What laurels are these for our honourable members of parliament?

Also, while the 14th Lok Sabha ended on a dubious record — in 2008, Parliament met only for 46 days. The house was interrupted 22 per cent of the time as against 21 per cent of during the 13th Lok Sabha.

Data compiled by PRS Legislative Research, New Delhi shows that the CPM’s activism was marked. At the end of the full term, no CPM MP had stayed away from debates in the 14th Lok Sabha or each of the party’s MPs had participated in some debate or the other in the last five years. Compare this to 13 per cent of BJP Lok Sabha MPs who did not participate in any debate.

Given that the figure for those MPs who did not participate in any debate at all is 11 per cent for “other” parties — parties other than the Congress, BJP and CPM — the BJP’s performance is even more dismal.

Similar is the story on average attendance. Here, too, the CPM had the highest at 79 per cent; “other” parties posted 68 per cent, with the BJP at 67 per cent. The Congress’s attendance was 73 per cent. On an average, the BJP Lok Sabha MP participated in 30 debates in the 14th Lok Sabha; the number is much higher at 47 for the CPM MP; and 33 for the MP from “other” parties. The average Congress MP participated in only 22 debates.

People of India are witness to the downgrading of Indian Parliament by the very members who constitute it. This puts a big a question mark over the working of democracy in the country. Imagine this UPA government did not did not convene the Winter Session and used the fracas on the last day of the session to push through enactment of a number of bills without any discussion.

Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, the two Houses of Parliament and the state assemblies are the basic units of political representation. Their relation with the other organs of state, the executive and the judiciary is basis of the working of the parliamentary system of democracy in India. The weakening of Parliament leads to accumulation of a disproportionate power with other institutions. This upsets the system of checks and balances, and creates distortions which ultimately weaken the organizations. We have been witnessing judiciary taking more powers than actually designed for it under the scheme of the constitution. Same way bureaucracy has become more powerful and is dictating the country.

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Government and Tamil Tigers should allow civilians to escape conflict area

THE Sri Lankan government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) should immediately agree to a plan of action to allow civilians trapped in the Vanni to leave the conflict area, Human Rights Watch said today. Some 150,000 civilians are at grave risk from fighting and aid shortages in the shrinking war zone in northeast Sri Lanka.

"A humanitarian evacuation of civilians is desperately needed right now," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Sri Lanka should urgently work with concerned governments to help civilians flee the fighting."

Human Rights Watch has called upon both the Sri Lankan armed forces and the LTTE to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law by taking all necessary steps to permit the evacuation of civilians and allowing humanitarian aid to reach the population in need. Over the past two months, more than 2,000 civilians have been killed in the conflict and thousands more injured.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which in the last three weeks ferried some 2,400 civilians from the combat zone, also called today for the evacuation of civilians and for more aid to be allowed in. Jacques de Maio, ICRC head of operations for South Asia, said in a statement that the situation was "one of the most disastrous" he had experienced. "Yet it would be possible to avoid further unnecessary suffering and death by allowing civilians who want to leave to get out of the area," he said.

Describing the situation as an "unfolding humanitarian catastrophe," the United Nations said today that civilians trapped in the war zone in northern Sri Lanka are dying because they lack food and medicine. "Deaths associated with a lack of food have become a reality," a UN spokesman, Gordon Weiss, told the media. "A shortage of medicine led to the deaths of nine children who had preventable diseases such as pneumonia and meningitis in late February."

The Sri Lankan government's decision in September 2008 to ban most humanitarian agencies from operating in the Vanni has exacerbated the plight of civilians. Humanitarian convoys cannot reach thousands of civilians in need. For instance, the international medical organization Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) has teams of doctors and equipment standing by to provide life-saving assistance, but the government has continued to refuse them access to the region.

Human Rights Watch has criticized both Sri Lankan government forces and the LTTE for serious violations of international humanitarian law during the recent fighting. In addition to preventing civilians from leaving combat zones, the LTTE has deployed their forces close to civilians, thus using them as "human shields," fired upon civilians trying to flee to government-controlled areas, and recruited children for their forces.

The Sri Lankan armed forces have repeatedly and indiscriminately fired artillery at densely populated areas, including unilaterally declared "safe zones" and hospitals. Government statements have suggested that all ethnic Tamils who remain in LTTE-controlled areas are combatants, effectively giving a go-ahead for unlawful attacks.

"The world is watching as a humanitarian disaster unfolds in Sri Lanka," said Adams. "The UN and concerned governments should step forward to help prevent needless civilian deaths in Sri Lanka."

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