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Reactions to Kerala HC judgment shows politician-people chasm

M K Venu in Thiruvananthapuram

The Kerala high court judgment on July 28, banning bandhs (general strike) highlights the clear divide that exists between the political establishment and the general public.

After the verdict, the Communist Party of India-(Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front said it would appeal to the Supreme Court against the judgment. Kerala Chief Minister E K Nayanar declared, "The people of the state hold the view that the court ruling infringes upon the freedom of expression as well as the right to organise and protest."

The remark has drawn titters all round for the politicians' poor perception of the public pulse and how far removed are political parties from popular sentiment. A public survey conducted by a local paper shows that 90 per cent of the people are in favour of the court ban, a clean indication that bandhs lack popular appeal. Since the LDF government assumed power in May 1996, Kerala has witnessed 11 bandhs till the court verdict. In addition, there have been numerous district-level and subdistrict-level bandhs during this period.

These localised bandhs are a relatively recent phenomenon. Kollam, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod have witnessed district bandhs in recent weeks to focus attention on the spate of political killings. There was even a panchayat-level (village-level) bandh to protest the fact that the particular village, Cheranalloor, had turned into a garbage disposal yard for the Cochin Municipal Corporation.

The judgement has already had a salutary effect in disciplining the political parties. It came smack in the middle of plans hatched by the Peoples Democratic Party to picket trains across the state in support of the demand to dismiss the Maharashtra government for the deaths of Dalits in police firing. Similarly, a state-wide bandh proposed to be clamped an August 15 by the Adivasi Action Council to press for the restoration of lost tribal lands was dropped.

The high court verdict has brought cheer to the public but put the political parties in a state of shock. The bravado of the CPI-M is tinged with a degree of unease. Political groups committed to the use of bandhs as a means of self -assertion are now wary of attracting the more severe provisions of the verdict such as such as contempt of court and the payment of compensation for losses incurred by the public.

Attempts are on to arrive at a consensus within the political community on how best to meet the new challenge posed by the judiciary. Congress, Kerala unit, President Vayalar Ravi said: "Bandhs inconvenience only those sections of the public who can afford to possess cars. The poorer sections, especially in the rural areas, are not affected."

A fitting reply to politician's view is provided by former Supreme Court judge V R Krishna Iyer: "I have always stood against bandhs. Bandhs put people to great inconvenience, depriving them of the freedom of movement and expression. Bandhs go against the very right to life, denying people access to health care and hospitals. What political parties mean by a bandh is paralysis of the life of the people and that to my mind is contra-constitutional."

The Kerala high court ban on bandhs by political parties or any other organisation has become the talking point in the state. The order, which was passed by a full bench on writ petitions filed by the Ernakulam Chamber of Commerce and others, has been hailed by the intelligentsia and the general public. Yet again, the political class finds itself at the receiving end of a judicial diktat.

EARLIER REPORT:
Outfits call off bandhs after Kerala HC judgment