That political acrimony can sometimes spell good tidings for people-instead of being cause for bother and more concern-has been the case in Maharashtra. A state in a country known for its tendency to delay, deny and skirt justice has, to great amazement, thrown up an instance where not only justice but even right may be done, all thanks to bitter politics.
The changed guard in Mumbai-Vilasrao Deshmukh-led Congress-ncp coalition-may revive the Srikrishna Report on the '92-93 Bombay riots which its predecessor, the Sena-BJP dispensation, had rejected. The commission's findings are at last being accorded the credibility they deserve. The Congress-led government has now formally declared that it intends to refocus on the commission's findings. "As a show of good faith we have moved an affidavit in the Supreme Court, cancelling the one filed by the previous Sena-BJP regime rejecting the commission's findings and we've declared that we are in complete agreement with it. The case went to the Supreme Court precisely because of the Maharashtra government's denial of the recommendations. We have done an about-turn on that," chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh told Outlook.
Deshmukh was being snowed under with petitions seeking the resurrection of the commission's findings almost every other week in the six months that he has headed a coalition government in Maharashtra. There may be many issues which divide the eight parties in the coalition. But one thing they all have in common and which was writ large in their manifestos was the implementation of the Srikrishna Commission recommendations.
The new pcc chief, Govindrao Adik, has warned that the Congress is not to be trifled with on this score. "We have forced the BJP to retreat on the RSS issue. Our party president, despite all the criticism to the contrary, has shown that we mean business. There is no reason why we should now back down against the communal forces in Maharashtra." No small assurance given the Sena's formidable street-fighter reputation. Adik's view is echoed by both the ncp as well as the Samajwadi Party. The latter's state president Abu Asim Azmi is under attack by the Sena for seeking Bal Thackeray's arrest time and again.
The Manohar Joshi government had chosen to ignore the commission's findings at its peril. When the first BJP government, which lasted all of 13 days, found it difficult to woo the secular parties, it instructed the Sena government to revive the Srikrishna Commission. The Sena had earlier abolished it in 1995. Later, the commission ran into trouble when in August 1998 Justice Srikrishna accused Thackeray of being one of the main architects of the riots. Manohar Joshi had rejected the findings and even defended the Sena chief in the assembly.
The Congress was reluctant to take to the streets in protest. For, by the time the findings were presented to the legislature, it was obvious that the Sena would lose the next elections. Indeed, Congress workers even pleaded with their top leadership to do nothing untoward which would bring the divided Sena together again. So, even though the findings of the Srikrishna Commission did figure in the election campaign it was not taken up as a major issue.
With the Congress back in power, it has been waiting to make its move. However, with no action after six months in governance, questions were being asked about whether the party was serious about the implementation of the commission's recommendations or merely using it to keep an unusually-subdued Thackeray on a leash by removing some of his security staff. Deshmukh denies this. "We have not downgraded Thackeray's security. Merely knocked off some excess staff unnecessarily tagging on to him. We are not using this to cow him down. We will do whatever and exactly what the Supreme Court directs us to do."
This is a clever stand since it is now well known that the Sena chief has learnt the hard way that it does not pay to be held in contempt of the courts. As a result, Thackeray has been silent on the issue although he is aware of the moves being made by the Deshmukh government.
So, will the Congress-led regime in Maharashtra finally make history by arresting Thackeray? Deshmukh still flinches slightly at the word 'arrest'. But, after barely a moment's thought, says if that is what the Supreme Court directs, he will comply. Is that passing the buck? No. For, had it been so, his government would not have resuscitated a dying issue. Deshmukh means business and that certainly is no good news for Thackeray.
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