“Its a suicidal future move of the Congress,” said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley about the principal opposition's plan to go to Supreme Court against the rejection of impeachment motion by Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu.
Jaitely, himself a lawyer-turned-politician, attributed the impeachment motion against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra to the lawyers-politicians in the opposition. Though he did not name anyone, the oblique reference could be aimed at Kapil Sibal, who is providing the lung power from the Congress side on the issue of the impeachment. Sibal is also appearing in a number of cases in the Supreme Court, and till recently in the Ram Janambhoomi case as well.
“Most political parties have given nominations to some of them (lawyers) since their value, both in court and Parliamentary debates, is significant. The incidental impact of this has been a growing tendency of lawyer Members to drag intra court disputes into the parliamentary process. The misconceived motion for the impeachment of the Chief Justice of India is just one example of this,” the senior BJP politician said in a blog.
Jaitley's blogs are often interpreted as articulating the party line on the complex issues. By imputing ulterior motives to the Congress’ impeachment motion, the finance minister has given a clear line of attack for his partymen as this political battle is likely to escalate in the coming days. In all likelihood, when the matter goes to court, this will be the line taken by the government in the case.
His main argument against the Congress' plan to approach the Supreme Court to challenge the order of the Rajya Sabha chairman is that such exercise of the discretion by the chair of either house is not justiciable in the court of law. “For the Congress Party to carry forward its mistake of subjecting legislative processes to judicial review would be a blunder. The Parliament is supreme in its own jurisdiction. Its process cannot be subjected to judicial review,” he added.
Jaitley goes on to demolish the Congress' arguments in bringing the impeachment motion.
“The present impeachment motion has been filed on untenable grounds. It has been filed for collateral purpose to intimidate the Chief Justice of India and other judges of the highest judiciary. The Congress Party is capable of dragging the judges into an unsavoury controversy and make them controversial, should their judicial opinion not appear favourable in the cases in which the Party has an interest.
To any political analyst it was clear that the impeachment motion would never get support of two-third majority in both Houses of Parliament. The Congress Party knew this. It’s object was not the passage of the Motion but intimidation of India’s judiciary,” he argued.
He said the impeachment motion was poorly drafted. “The Congress Party’s argument that they are making vague allegations which can only be proved in an inquiry is not tenable. Vague and unsubstantiated allegations can never be a basis of a roving fishing inquiry against the holder of a high office.”