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Rule 184 vs 193: government could lose face or heart

Amberish K Diwanji in New Delhi

The Bharatiya Janata Party faces its first major political crisis in the coming days over the Gujarat government order enabling state government employees to join the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. This issue has already seen the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha adjourned time and again, with the Congress party insisting that the issue be discussed and voted upon, a demand that the government has so far refused to comply with.

On Tuesday, the various allies within the ruling National Democratic Alliance categorically refused to support the government if the issue was put to vote in the Lok Sabha, forcing the BJP to withdraw on the issue. It also led to the hardening of the stance on the part of the government, which realised exactly where it stood if the motion were to be discussed under Rule 184.

On the other hand, the Congress is once again upbeat, at having finally found an issue on which it has managed to floor the government consistently, and is naturally refusing to compromise. It is demanding that the issue be discussed under Rule 184 of the Parliament's Code of Rules and Procedure, while the BJP is now only aiming to discuss the matter under Rule 193. What is the difference between these two rules?

The critical one is that Rule 184 calls for a vote at the end of the discussion while Rule 193 only allows for a half-hour discussion sans any motion.

In Parliament, there are three types of censure voting. At the highest level is the confidence vote, which the government has to win to stay in power. Next comes the adjournment motion, a severe censure motion in itself that does not enjoin a legal obligation to resign but is severely embarrassing for a government to lose. Since 1991, there have been four censure motions, all during the P V Narasimha Rao government, and all of which was staved off with some nifty parliamentary footwork.

The third is the motion under Rule 184, ranking slightly below which is Rule 193. Again, even if the government does lose under Rule 184 it is not bound to resign, even though it is a loss of face.

Thus, the political aims are clear. The Congress hopes that through a voting motion, it can call for Prime Minister Vajpayee's resignation should the government lose the vote. And if the government does win the vote, the Congress can then show up publicly which parties had openly aligned themselves on the RSS's side.

"The allies have told us clearly that while they support the government, they would not like to be seen voting in favour of the Gujarat order," said sources in the BJP. "And that, for a variety of reasons, mostly to do with the state level politics."

For instance, in Andhra Pradesh, local government elections are to be held on March 8, and the Muslim vote in the state is crucial. The Telugu Desam Party would not like to be seen supporting the BJP on a pro-RSS issue, since it that could seriously jeopardise its chances in the local polls.

Other political leaders too have their own fears. Mamta Banerjee of the Trinamul Congress has her eye on the West Bengal elections due next year, while Ram Vilas Paswan is apparently miffed at being passed over for a possible stint as Bihar chief minister and is in no mood to oblige the BJP.

Sources say even Prime Minister A B Vajpayee's threat that he would resign if the government lost the vote did not deter his allies, who have insisted that the government must ensure that the issue is discussed only under Rule 193. They have warned that if put to vote, they may vote against the government.

"Any chance of a compromise between the BJP and its allies was lost after the Budget which has upset everyone," said sources.

The government's line is that the issue should be discussed under Rule 193 since it is a state government order and Parliament has no right to debate the issue.

However, the Congress has countered that Parliament is not merely a discussion forum but also a policy-making body and hence it must make its views on the issue clear for the benefit of the nation.

"We already agreed to the government's decision that since this is a state government order, an adjournment motion is not called for and climbed down to Rule 184. But there is no way we will agree to Rule 193. Now it is for the government to move one step up from Rule 193," Congress sources said.

Meanwhile, the Congress plans to hold a massive rally on Sunday, March 6, to protest against the Gujarat government's order.

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