It is time to wonder why the tribals of the north-east remain so maladjusted to the idea of India. What made them take up arms against the Indian state, view the Army as an occupation force, and refer to fellow countrymen in the plains as `Indians'?Blame must go to the inherent faults of our parliamentary democracy, where the House of the people honours only numbers, making the seven sisters of the north-east with their 24 MPs irrelevant. The tribals of the north-east have reciprocated by deciding that `Indians' are irrelevant for them.
The system of more populous states sending in more MPs to the Lok Sabha is, on the whole, fair. Nevertheless UP sending in 85 MPs and Nagaland one contradicts the constitutional assumption that all states are equal. Writing in The Federalist in 1788, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay and James Madison concluded that a system which honours the strength of numbers cannot be referred to as a democracy, but should be called the ``tyranny of the majority''. The founding fathers ofthe American Republic ordained that another House -- the Senate or Council of States -- be created to act as a check on the House of Representatives. They decided that each state would have equal representation in the Senate. As The Federalist says, ``It does not appear to be without some reason that in a compound Republic, partaking both of the national and Federal character, the government ought to be founded on a mixture of the principles of proportional and equal representation.''
The founders of our Constitution were perhaps influenced by the American model in creating the Rajya Sabha. But when it came to the election of members, it again opted for proportional representation. Thus the seven north-eastern states account for only 13 members. UP and Bihar, with 34 and 22 members respectively, top the list here as well. This is patently unfair.
To give our founding fathers the benefit of the doubt, they went to work in the immediate aftermath of independence when nationalist sentiments were high andassumed that divisions in Parliament would take place only along party lines. Also, little did they anticipate that states would soon be reorganised along linguistic lines, accentuating parochial sentiments.
Whatever the case, a proper system of checks and balances did not ensue.Public memory is short and everybody seems to have forgotten Rajya Sabha members' shameless conduct during the last winter session. A House created to correct the Lok Sabha's inherent infirmities has degenerated into a madhouse. Instead of considered opinions on measures passed by the Lok Sabha, we witness the same fractious debates, the same passions and disorderly conduct. Any reform of India's democracy should begin with the Rajya Sabha. The House should be immediately dissolved and reorganised on the principle of equal representation for all states. Selection of members should be organised to recruit the best minds. The power of the Rajya Sabha can be expanded to include rejection and amendment of money Bills as well.Once thesereforms are in place, the stage will be set for tying up some loose ends in representation to the Lok Sabha. Uttar Pradesh and Bihar electing a disproportionate number has led to the belief that capturing these states, half the battle is won. There is an all-out war to secure power in these states by any means. Electoral malpractices in these states are to be seen in this context.
The popular demand for an Uttarakhand state in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand in Bihar presents an opportunity. Smaller states should be the norm and, as a rule, the maximum number of MPs from any state in the Lok Sabha should not exceed a tenth of the total strength of the House.
The alienation of the north-eastern states will not be automatically reversed by these steps. But it will assure them of their voice being heard in Delhi. Putting them on an equal footing with other states will send out a powerful signal that they matter and their people will understand that the Indian republic is the true guarantor of their fundamentalrights.
Such reform is, however, different from the one envisaged by the BJP, which has a different agenda, aimed not at celebrating diversity but at creating one nation, one culture, one religion.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
