One need not be conversant with the precise provisions of Article 194 of the Indian Constitution to fear that the Tamil Nadu assembly has grossly abused its powers. By invoking it to order the arrest of journalists belonging to a national and a Tamil daily, Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa and her MLAs have reiterated her government’s dictatorial streak. The charge against the publications: breach of privilege. Their stated crime: commenting on the conduct of the Speaker and other members of the Assembly. This is confirmation, if more was needed, that in her second stint in power, Jayalalithaa is determined to harness all legal resources and powers at her command to impose a culture of quiescence in the state. Once she threw tantrums, now she puts tiresome folks behind bars.The latest developments in Tamil Nadu shock, but they do not surprise. In recent months, Jayalalithaa has brandished the Prevention of Terrorism Act against political opponents. She has regularly grandstanded against the institution of the press. It almost seems as if the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister is using all the force at her command to stanch any lingering skepticism about her claim to power — the Tansi land deal case that temporarily disqualified her from chief ministership still looms, after all. She could, of course, cite copious provisions of the law in support of her latest display of arbitrariness. Her supporters in the assembly could point to the procedures followed before ordering the arrest of journalists belonging to The Hindu and Murasoli. But they would only be reminding us of the continued danger posed by the lack of codification of privileges: it allows the state assembly to wield immense powers under the broad cover of Article 194. The irony is certain to escape them: that the legislature, the very embodiment of the people’s will in a democracy, should be galvanised to impinge on the most basic democratic right, the freedom of speech.The real trouble in Tamil Nadu, however, is not simply what Jayalalithaa does. It is that she gets away with it. Whether it be the midnight arrest of her predecessor or the long incarceration of her opponent, she is answerable to none. In this abuse of the provisions of the Constitution pertaining to breach of privilege, too, the Opposition has been rendered impotent. They may protest that in the House it is a numbers game. Yet, the Opposition is a moral force. By meekly walking out of the House, they too have failed a democratic test.
