Exclusive Interview: Saryu Roy
The ruling coalition’s legislators of Jharkhand are camping in neighbouring Chhattisgarh apprehending poaching by the Bharatiya Janata Party. Chief Minister Hemant Soren is facing prospects of disqualification from the State Assembly in connection with an office of profit case. The Election Commission has sent a report to the Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais on the alleged involvement of Soren in mining lease to himself.
Independent MLA Saryu Roy, a prominent Jharkhand politician who defeated the sitting Chief Minister Raghubir Das at the hustings in the last Assembly elections and played a leading role in BJP’s fall in the State after he was denied a BJP ticket, claims the present crisis is “much ado about nothing”. He told this to Vivekanand Jha* in an exclusive telephonic interview with Global Bihari today. Following are the excerpts:
Question: How do you look at the present political turmoil in Jharkhand?’
Saryu Roy: It is much ado about nothing. In fact, an extraordinary situation is sought to be created out of an ordinary situation.
Q: What makes you say so?
Saryu Roy: Look, nobody even knows what is there in this report. The Governor [Ramesh Bais] has not mentioned a word on it, yet so much hullabaloo on it. Why should there be so much hype given to an issue when nothing tangible has yet come from the Governor’s side?
Q: Don’t you think the Governor has been unreasonably sitting on the communication by way of decision conveyed to him by the Election Commission?
Saryu Roy: No, one should not be impulsive to jump the gun. You never know what the Governor is doing. There might be hypothetical situations, for instance, the Governor might be in consultation with the Home Ministry pertaining to certain parts of the decision with which he might not be satisfied. Again, the Governor might be examining the legal perspective to send back the decision to the Election Commission for its reconsideration. I mean to say, you never know what the Governor has actually been doing. Therefore, to impute a motive for the Governor’s silence on this issue is irrational and unjustified. Also, the Governor is within his own Constitutional rights to take his own time. There is no Constitutional compulsion on him pertaining to the time frame.
Q: What do you say about the shifting of MLAs from Jharkhand to Raipur, and other political shenanigans being unleashed by the ruling coalition?’
Saryu Roy: This is what is intriguing. Why would a Government, enjoying the brute majority in the House –49 out of 81 –would be so much scared of the Opposition which stands no chance of invading it? This is why I think that there is much ado about nothing. Besides, if the Chief Minister thinks he is disqualified from holding the position of a chief minister, he should resign and appoint someone else. There is reason to panic; to paralyse the functioning of the government by enacting the ongoing theatrics. Unfortunately, people are made to feel that situation is extraordinary, while in reality, it is an ordinary situation, sought to be given the sense of an extraordinariness’.
Top Photo: The scenic beauty of Jharkhand’s capital, Ranchi
*Vivekanand Jha is the author of the book The People’s Leader, based on the life of Saryu Roy. He is an author, academician and public intellectual. He is also the Convener of the online show on YouTube, Education pe Charcha.
