Undo this hijacking

What the governor of the state did, by swearing in Sibu Soren as chief minister, is one of the most blatant violations of Constitutional norms in recent years.

Coming after funny goings on in Goa and the sacking of state governors whom the UPA government did not approve of, and then replacing them with old party stalwarts, many fear that the Congress may be going back to its bad old days, when it rode roughshod over Constitutional niceties.

But this is not like the old days, and no one will tolerate the hijacking of a government. So, even if the story is not repeated in Bihar (where there is still no new government, five days after the election results), the fall-out of this thoroughly retrograde development will be in Parliament and in street action across the country.

Ordinary people who are not political activists will uniformly believe that a certain line has been crossed, and that the will of the people of Jharkhand has been subverted.

It is hard to see how the Congress thinks it can gain from this unfolding scenario, when all that it will get is ignominy.

The President has done well to summon the governor of Jharkhand, and will presumably ask him for an explanation. But executive action can be taken only by the Cabinet, and the reality of the situation is that the lead will probably have to come from the party headquarters and Sonia Gandhi.

There is widespread suspicion that the Jharkhand governor did the quiet bidding of the Congress, especially since Ajit Jogi (whose recent history does not bear recalling) and Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi have been camping in Ranchi.

If that is not true, then Ms Gandhi should make it clear publicly that she and her party had no hand in the governor's decision. After that, the Cabinet will have a free hand in dealing with the governor, who should be dismissed or transferred forthwith.

That still leaves Mr Soren, who should be dismissed and President's rule imposed till matters settle down. If that is not possible without the risk of legal challenge, since he has already been given till March 24 to prove his majority, the Congress should be expected to distance itself publicly from the horse-trading that may be the focus of action between now and March 24.

In effect, therefore, it will allow the Soren government to fall. After that, a new governor can safely invite the leader of the BJP combine to form a government, and give them as many days to prove a majority as has been given to Mr Soren.

Fundamental questions will also have to be addressed, such as the role of the governor and whether there is the need for such a functionary.

The Constitution can be amended to specify clearly who should be invited first to form a government, and the task can be performed by either the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, or even by a suitably empowered Election Commission.