New Delhi, August 30
Accusing Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal of violating the federal structure of the Constitution, the BJP today demanded her recall both inside and outside the Parliament. They said that party leaders would meet the President to press for the matter. Beniwal had on August 26 appointed Lokayukta in the state without consulting the council of ministers.

Rage within the saffron ranks over the Governor’s unilateral act against the Narendra Modi government in the state spilt over in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha today with party members giving notices for the adjournment of Question Hour to discuss the matter. Disallowed, they disrupted proceedings four times in both Houses which were finally adjourned for the day at around 3 pm.

In the Lok Sabha, BJP veteran LK Advani, MP from Gandhinagar in Gujarat, used the Zero Hour to invoke the Keshavnand Bharti judgement where the Supreme Court outlined the basic structure of the Constitution, federalism being one.

“The Centre and the states must honour the federal principles enshrined in the Constitution. What happened in Gujarat is in utter violation of the federal structure where the sitting Governor went ahead and appointed the Lokayukta without taking the Council of Ministers into confidence.

“She has directly attacked the Constitution and we seek her recall and will meet the President to formally demand so,” Advani said amid sharp reactions from Congress members from Gujarat who questioned the acquittal of Haren Pandya’s murder convicts by the state High Court. The BJP created a ruckus and didn’t allow the Congress to raise the issue. Advani said the state had enacted the Lokayukta Act way back in 1986 and started the process of appointing the Lokayukta. A candidate - former Chief Justice of the High Court - was selected in consultation with the serving Chief Justice and the Leader of Opposition.

“But by the time he could be appointed, he was offered some other position.The process was restarted by the CM who completed the same in 2006, but it could not be finished. Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly failed to cooperate and boycotted meetings held for selection of the Lokayukta. Then the Governor went on to unilaterally appoint the Lokayukta. This is against the Constitution,” Advani said.

In the Rajya Sabha, Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley raised the matter at the start of Zero Hour only to be interrupted by Chairman Hamid Ansari who quoted rules to say the House could not discuss matters related to people holding high offices.

“There are precedents when even the recall of a Governor has been discussed in Parliament,” he said, adding that the constitutional crisis in Gujarat had been created at the behest of the people in power in New Delhi.