Commentary/ Vir Sanghvi

The crisis of 1987 was about the legacy of Indira Gandhi and the damage she did to our system

Opinions will always be divided over who was more to blame for the constitutional crisis of 1987. Was Zail Singh merely a cynical, venal politician who was ready to dismiss a popularly elected prime minister only to obtain a second term for himself?

And even if he was a bumbling idiot who said the wrong things to world leaders, did Rajiv Gandhi really have right to flout conventions and to ignore him as completely as he did for all of 1986. After all, the issue went beyond Rajiv and Zail as individuals. It concerned the crucial constitutional relationship between the president and the prime minister of India.

I suspect that both positions have some merit. The manner in which he intrigued with the likes of Chandra Swami in his last days suggests that Giani Zail Singh lacked the stature to be President of India.

Equally, it is hard to deny that Rajiv Gandhi's lack of experience led him to make matters worse. If the office of President is occupied by a man who is unfit for the job then you must find a way to keep the individual in check without damaging the office itself. Rajiv Gandhi failed to make this crucial distinction.

But finally, the issue is not whether Zail Singh should have moderated his essential personality to behave in a more presidential manner or whether Rajiv Gandhi should have waited till he had some experience of government before becoming prime minister.

The key issue is this: Who made Zail Singh President? And who saw to it that Rajiv would become prime minister without ever having occupied any ministerial office at all? The answer is he same in both cases: Indira Gandhi.

She had worked closely with Zail Singh. She knew what he was like. Despite this she made him President, not because he was any good but because he was loyal. Similarly, she knew that Rajiv, no matter how good his intentions, was not ready for the job. But she wanted him to succeed her anyway simply because he was her son.

When the President and the prime minister both owe their jobs to considerations other than pure merit, such confrontations, and crises are inevitable.

The constitutional crisis of 1987 was not really about Rajiv or Zail Singh. It was about the legacy of Indira Gandhi and the damage she did to our system.