Against the grain

On many occasions the point is made that the Supreme Court of India is the most powerful court in the world. The ways in which its powers of judicial review and intervention have been widened in scope are a fascinating study. And this power has been based on the higher judiciary’s credibility to be an institution of last recourse in matters relating to the functioning of the executive. Credibility is an unquantifiable thing,and the Supreme Court has been careful to preserve that credibility by not doing anything that could invite rebuff. In fact,just a few weeks ago the Chief Justice of India was firm in saying that the courts were not getting into the business of running the country.

This is why there’s concern over the Supreme Court’s “order” on distributing foodgrain free “to people who deserve it”. A bench of the court,hearing a case related to corruption in the Food Corporation of India,took strong exception to Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s recent remark that it would not be possible to distribute foodstock free instead of allowing it to rot. The bench asked the Centre’s law officer to tell the minister that it had not made a “suggestion”,as Pawar put it in his August 11 comment,but an “order”. On the face of it,the main point is unexceptionable. There is grain rotting in FCI godowns. Surely it’s heartless and unconscionable to use the pretext of bureaucratic procedure to resist giving this grain to the poor. Surely! Opposition MPs in Parliament certainly thought so. One MP brought a packet of grain to Parliament House,while for some others it was just a logical step to call for Pawar’s dismissal. Pawar,for his part,clarified that he would honour the court’s decision.

Lost in this din is detail. There is confusion about what grain could be distributed. Also,the court makes a larger point on the FCI’s storage problems. And the court’s observation that the government procure what it can store and that the government conduct a fresh survey to determine the population below the poverty line is taking it into the executive’s domain. India’s food procurement,storage and public distribution record is problematic. It’s bad in policy and execution. Fixing it is not just a complex undertaking,it is also bound to be political. Therefore,is it advisable for the court to get into that terrain?