Role ReveRsals

Television debates suddenly became highly confusing during the Karnataka legal stand-off, with the Congress quoting BJP leader Arun Jaitley (who had tweeted post the Goa and Manipur elections in 2017 that “in case of a hung Assembly, if majority of the elected MLAs form a coalition, the governor would be constitutionally right in inviting the leader of the majority coalition to form the government and prove their majority within a short period”). But those looking for irony would do better to study the Shibu Soren vs Arjun Munda floor test drama in the Jharkhand Assembly in 2005. That Assembly, too, had thrown up a hung House, after which a UPA government appointed Governor, Syed Sibte Razi, had overlooked the claims of the NDA’s Arjun Munda (41 MLAs) and instead invited the JMM’s Shibu Soren (who had 36 MLAs, but claimed support of 5 independents as well) to form the government. The case went to court—with Abhishek Manu Singhvi arguing for Soren—and yes you guessed it right—Mukul Rohtagi appearing for Munda. This time, the roles were reversed as Rohtagi questioned the long time frame given to Soren to prove his majority on the floor of the House, arguing that it could lead to, ahem, “horse-trading”; while Singhvi requested the court not to tinker with the constitutional powers vested in the Governor and the Speaker for conducting the Assembly. He had even argued against the court appointing an observer for the floor test, commenting wryly that “the court would not like Parliament to appoint an observer to watch the hearing in a case.” Oh dear!