Desecration of the temple

Once hailed as a temple of democracy Maharashtrarsquos Vidhan Bhavan now resembles a battlegroundOn Thursday the lobby of the state legislature premises Vidhan Bhavan where rules and regulations are framed was transformed into a wrestling arena plumbing the image of the state legislature to a new lowAn extract from Dr BR Ambedkarrsquos speech in the Constituent Assembly ndash lsquowhere constitutional methods are open there can be no justification for these unconstitutional methods These methods are nothing but the grammar of anarchy and the sooner they are abandoned the better for usrsquo mdash sounds like an appropriate indictment of the current political situation in MaharashtraBesides clashes between supporters of two MLAs there have been numerous occasions where members on the floor of the House engaged in heated verbal exchanges commonly heard on the streets be it members from the ruling party or Opposition benches indicating a deeper rot and need for a deep cleansing of the system and of some political personalities tooOn many occasions members of the Legislative Assembly or Council MLAs and MLCs were seen passing comments like lsquokombadi chorrsquo chicken thief lsquopannas khoke ekdum okrsquo 50 crore is absolutely ok lsquobaby penguinrsquo and lsquomangalsutra chorrsquo necklace thief at their counterparts Both the Opposition and ruling party members are often seen at their misbehaving best which many in the corridors of power believe is nothing but a live case study of declining decorumSuch scenes and visuals were unusual in Maharashtra especially since the state has produced political leaders regarded as torchbearers of democratic valuesThe state legislaturersquos image took another hit in May 2025 when Shiv Sena UBT leaders protested outside a Dhule guest house alleging R18 crore in cash was found in a room booked under the name of Kishor Patil said to be the aide of MLA Arjun Khotkar chairman of the Estimates Committee UBT claimed the money was contractor bribes a charge Khotkar vehemently denied Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an SIT probe into the matterThe disillusionment has deepened further with a series of controversial videos coming to the fore during the ongoing monsoon legislature sessionShiv Sena UBT member of parliament MP Sanjay Raut shared a video of Minister Sanjay Shirshat Shinde Sena sitting next to a bag Raut alleged that the bag was filled with cash a charge Shirshat has denied claiming the video is morphed and the bag contained clothes Similarly another video captured MLA Sanjay Gaikwad Shinde Sena physically assaulting MLA canteen workers over inferior food qualityForget the Vidhan Bhavan lobby steps or premises at times even developments during the proceedings are not optimal For instance this week tensions flared during proceedings where a verbal spat broke out between Shinde faction minister Shamburaj Desai and UBT camp MLC Anil Parab Desairsquos and Parabrsquos spat resembled a street fight more than a debate within a democratic institution Parab apparently referred to Desai as lsquogaddaarrsquo traitor to which Desai replied ldquoWho are you to call me a traitor Come out and I will show yourdquo Such was the embarrassment that the Deputy Chairperson of the Council Neelam Gorhe had to order the controversial words to be expunged from the proceedingsThe irony is stark as it is the same Vidhan Bhavan that recently felicitated Justice Bhushan Gavai a son of Maharashtra for being elevated to the topmost judicial post mdash the Chief Justice of India CJI In his address to legislators members of the Assembly and Council the CJI then mentioned ldquoPosts are not power they are power coupled with dutyrdquo Yet days later that solemn message was seen drownedThe decline is not new In 2009 allegedly within the Assembly premises Maharashtra Navnirma Sena MNS MLAs manhandled Abu Azmi for taking oath in HindiFreedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkarrsquos famous line says ldquoHistory is a witness of the past a lamp for the present and a hope for the futurerdquo If these lines are seen in the context of todayrsquos political situation the lamp once burning brightly in Maharashtrarsquos political chambers now flickers weakly The Vidhan Bhavan referred to as a temple of democracy a place where accountability is upheld and legislation is made with the aim of serving the public today is at risk of becoming a marketplace of opportunismIt is high time we return to the famous words of Yashwantrao Chavan the leader who helped shape modern Maharashtra mdash lsquoHow the state is run is more important than who runs it or which party it belongs torsquo With Fadnavis who also heads the home department Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Rahul Narwekar a lawyer by profession and Chairman of the Legislative Council Professor Ram Shinde all three stalwarts at the helm of affairs it is expected that a concrete and a longterm plan to address the growing concern over the declining image of the Vidhan Bhavan and the political class at large is foundAfter all it is not about a brawl it is about the soul of our democracySanjeev Shivadekar is political editor midday He tweets SanjeevScribeSend your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper