21st Session Of Parliament
Many Achievements

By Prem N. Kakkar

THE 21st Parliament session has concluded and with it 15 bills have been endorsed. This is a remarkable achievement. And in the situation that the country is facing at present the session business must be appreciated.

Speculation

What was speculated during the time the session was that some work would commence on the amendment of the constitution. In this the opposition had talked much about the amendment. But talking about amendment without any homework does not mean much. Just shouting hoarse about an issue does not mean that it is worth staking note of.

The amendment issue cropped up with the escalation in Maoist related violence and the declaration of the State of Emergency. Why didn’t the issue come up earlier? This is a relevant question in the context that the country is in. If the constitution had been at fault, which is not the case, hue and cry should have been raised at an earlier date. But this did not happen. The constitution as such is very fit and fine, it is only the interpretations that go wrong. For this the Supreme Court is there to define the gray lines, if any.

Maybe the opposition thought it the right time to strike for a bargain in lending support for the ratification of the State of Emergency. The State of Emergency had not been declared without considering the implications. The country as it was suffering from the Maoist initiated violence, a passage had to be found to bring peace and security in the country. By going on a rampage of violence, the Maoists had committed a grievous mistake. They did not realise that violence does not pay in the end. The violence has only added to the misery of the ordinary people.

To come into the mainstream of national politics would have the fittest of things but this has not taken place so far.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, as soon as he assumed the high office, had opened up doors for talks with the Maoists. Instead of coming to an amicable understanding, the Maoists took this as an opportunity to strengthen their strategy. this was the reason for the peace talks between the government and the Maoists breaking down.

The liberal attitude of the government was to see an end to the spree of Maoist violence. This was what led to the declaration of the State of Emergency. Herein the issue of constitution amendment came up. It was as if, according to the opposition parties, no other way to resolve the problems facing us. This was a rather wrong way of looking at the issue. The Constitution has every provision within itself. It is for all to follow it. The question of any amendment must be debated to the fullest possible extent and then only necessary steps be taken.

There has to be concrete base for going for the same. Of course, every person has the right to express his/her views regarding anything in a democracy. But this does not mean asking for anything one feels like. A ground has to be prepared before one embarks on a crusade. The opposition has the right to seek amendment in the Constitution but it has to be clear as to what changes they seek and the reason to back it up. Prime Minister Deuba may have agreed to talk for this but he knows well that nothing in the constitution can be amended just for the asking. The main opposition party in the House too knows that highlighting the issue would be good ploy to stay in news.

All the talks hinged on the fact that this would probably bring the Maoists into the mainstream. No one knows how this idea came into the mind of the opposition that once the Constitution is amended everything would turn out to be fine. There is no guarantee to it. If the Maoists had been reasonable, they would not have gone on the path of destruction. They would have seen that the country remained intact. Violence cannot be the panacea for peace.

The killings and destruction of property seen in the past several months does not indicate that the Maoists favour peace and stability. The infrastructure that the country if destroyed would take ages to build up. Whether they understand or not such activities must stop. Without being serious for the country’s development all activities are futile. Instead of building the country, if evil intentions prevail then it is rather unfortunate.

Realisation

So, though the much talked about constitutional amendment was not tabled in the Parliament much success was recorded. The united stand of all the parties on the question of tackling terrorism was a landmark event. The lawmakers are aware that they have to work for the welfare of the people. They have also realise that achievements can be made reamining within the bounds of the present Constitution.

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