The tentative date for the panchayat polls that has been suggested is May 21, as the term of the panchayats ends by the end of that month. Hardly will the State have returned to normal governance after the protracted election code of conduct due to the Legislative Assembly elections, before the code of conduct for the panchayat polls will bring a halt to decision making, policy announcements, new initiatives, taking Goa back to a state of what can be called ‘governance slumber’. The year had hardly begun, when on January 4 the Election Commission of India announced the Election schedule and the election code of conduct was imposed. Over two months later, and though Goa voted on February 4, the code is still in force and will be lifted only later this month.
The continuance of the code of conduct, even after voting has taken place appears to be illogical as no decision that the government takes can affect the voting process that has already taken place. While the code of conduct is appreciable in the run-up to the polls to provide for a level playing field in the elections, so that the party in power does not take any advantage of being in government, the five-week long period between the polls and the counting in Goa has served only to delay decisions that could have been taken by the government. Few ministers have even bothered to attend office in this period, which also effectively reduces the term of the government by a couple of months. No doubt a government in power after polling is a lame duck, and one where every one of its decisions will come up for scrutiny and criticism, but the long period of the code of conduct does affect the smooth functioning of the administration.
Between the lifting of the ongoing code of conduct and the imposition of the code for the panchayat polls, the new government will have just a month and a few days to announce any new policies or take decisions, and will have to do so hurriedly at a time when it is still finding its feet. It will, therefore, be the month of June before the government will be able to start any major works, which means that almost five months of the year will have been lost in the code of conduct for the two elections. In the meantime, decisions on various issues affecting a wide number of people will probably remain without being taken.
While, it is not expected that a government that is waiting for an election result would take any major decisions, there are some decisions that are almost routine in nature that could have been taken. In the case of the medium of instruction issue, even the extension to the committee that was formed to study and matter has remained pending, with the committee yet to hold many of its meetings with the stakeholders. Had the extension to the term been given the government nod, the MoI committee could have continued with its meetings and perhaps even had the report ready to be presented to the government.
Even as all eyes are now on the results of the elections that will be out in two days, the resurrection of the governance that has been in slumber for the past over two months will depend on there being a clear mandate to any one party or at least the possibility of party being able to form a government with the support of other smaller winners. Should that not happen, and the election throws up a very fractured mandate, Goa may well have to brace up for a long period of governance inactivity.
