Everyone involved in the governor-government tussle seems to be benefiting politically
IIn a memorandum to the President of India, Tamil Nadu’s ruling coalition led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has demanded the dismissal of Governor RN Ravi. In neighboring Kerala, the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) is locked in a fight with Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, but it has stopped calling for his dismissal. While the governors of Kerala and Tamil Nadu are playing in the Delhi gallery, from where the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) closely watches politics in the two southern states, the DMK and CPI(M) are playing in their home galleries. Here’s how it works to the benefit of the governors and both the ruling fronts.
As it turns out, the DMK widely publicized the contents of its memorandum to President Draupadi Murmu, but did not present it to him personally. The party clearly knows that it cannot do much other than trumpet the removal of the Governor, the favorite of the BJP government at the Centre. In fact, that is probably the reason why he did not seek an appointment with Ms. Murmu. In the normal course of events, petitions to the President that are meant to make a political point are presented in person, and are followed by a media appearance outside Rashtrapati Bhavan. In this instance, the outcome the DMK is seeking from its scathing rhetoric on the governor is not his removal, but the reinforcement of its politics within Tamil Nadu. To that extent Chief Minister MK Stalin’s approach seems to be succeeding. The difference between rhetoric and reality is a matter of detail; What matters is that such theatrics modify the premise. The Supreme Court’s order to release the Rajiv Gandhi assassination convicts also came as a shot in the arm for the DMK, although clashes between the chief minister’s office and the Raj Bhavan over the question have preceded the current occupants of both. The release of the convicts is expected to further the Dravidian politics of the DMK.
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On the other hand, Mr. Ravi Dravidian does not shy away from questioning the cultural politics of the parties. His question about Dravidian trivia is music to the BJP’s ears. The party hopes to carve out a niche in Tamil Nadu where one of the two Dravidian axes is on the decline.
Mr Khan’s clash with the LDF in Kerala appears to be over governance issues and transparency, but he has also invoked his political past as a Muslim reformist. As a Congress minister in Rajiv Gandhi’s Council of Ministers, Mr. Khan defended the Supreme Court’s decision in the Shah Bano case, which was later overturned by Parliament under pressure from clerics. Mr Khan is widely in demand as a speaker across the country for platforms leaning towards the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, where he dons the hat of a Muslim reformer. The clash with the Left in Kerala only embellishes Mr Khan’s image, though he may be at the receiving end of broad-spectrum criticism within Kerala.
For the LDF, which is facing several charges that tarnish its image, the ongoing tussle with the governor is a convenient distraction. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF), which was trying to corner the LDF on the basis of issues raised by the Governor regarding nepotism in university appointments, joined hands with it as the confrontation escalated. On one hand, the daily fight with the governor has strengthened the LDF; On the other hand, it has confused UDFs. Some leaders and parties in the UDF see the governor as an agent of the BJP, while others want to take advantage of the opportunity given to the LDF to ask questions. Those who see the BJP as a long-term existential threat call for a united opposition against it, even if it means ending enmity with local rivals. They see the challenge posed by the BJP at the national level, though it may not be in the immediate reckoning for power in the state. This is also true in Tamil Nadu, at least to some extent. Recently, Dravida Kazhagam President K. Veeramani called on the ruling DMK and the opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to be alert to the BJP’s plans for the state.
The tussle between appointed governors and elected leaders of the government may have affected governance in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, but the situation appears to be politically beneficial for all.