Sunday, September 23, 2018

Editorial, "SONS OF THE ZONES! – UGLY CHAUVINISM," in LAW ANIMATED WORLD, 31 August 2018 issue, Vol. 14, Part 2, No. 16 issue

SONS OF THE ZONES! – UGLY CHAUVINISM

The disease of regional chauvinism, which, of course, always manifests through ‘popular’ sentiments, and which in case of Telangana resulted in the undermining of some constitutional provisions/conventions even, to create a separate state by bifurcating a well-developing first post-independence linguistic state of Andhra Pradesh, that without any wide discussion on the generally accepted linguistic reorganization of the country, let alone any consensus to upset the same, mainly to further the narrow partisan interests of the then and the now ruling parties – has not died down but the madness has reached to its peaks as manifested in the recently passed Telangana Public Employment (Organisation of Local Cadres and Regulation of Direct Recruitment) Order, 2018, obtained by the clever manipulations of the opportunistic chief minister of Telangana, perhaps through a secret deal with the ruling party at the centre. Strangely, this is achieved through a Presidential Order – and not any statute passed after any debates in the Parliament – issued by the powers given to the President under Article 371D, which in fact was a contrivance made as an exceptional measure to keep up and promote the unity of the [undivided] State of Andhra Pradesh! So now, 95% of all government employment except in some state headquarters offices are reserved for the sons of zones created by KCR, after earlier dividing Telangana into some 31 districts in the name of administrative convenience – but which in fact leads to more of an administrative mess. Actually, how far the bifurcation of the State of AP itself is constitutionally valid – that too without a constitutional amendment either removing or materially altering this Article 371D - is yet to be decided by the Apex Court which is still sitting pretty on several 2014 writ petitions filed challenging the same. This openly flies in the face of Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution which basically assert the fundamental rights of non-discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth and of equality of opportunity in matters of public employment, through a presidential fiat under Article 371D - an exception carved out for a very different purpose. Well, then, India can/may also be divided into hundreds of zones by such exceptional measures overriding the basic provisions, and a multi-zone India, with no linguistic/ethnic community-wise provincial autonomy, may be the dream come true of the religious fanatic unitary state-mongers ruling the country now. Well, let all progressive, democratic, and the left and liberal sections too applaud such moves as the necessary and proper means to establish ‘political correctness’ and promote ‘multiculturalism’! §§§

No comments: