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The night before Christmas
View(s):Mrs Anumaana was recovering from the usual overdose of Christmas music that is inflicted on listeners over the airwaves during the festive season. At the same time her head was full of the news that dominated the media these days. Every news broadcast and newspaper was focused on nothing but the impeachment motion brought against the Chief Justice, it seemed. She could not very well be blamed for getting a tad mixed up, as she went about chores in the house with the radio on.
“Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house; Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse …” So went the lyrics of a familiar song. Mrs. Anumaana in her confusion imagined that the singer was referring to the House of Parliament, which was in recess after the Budget. All was quiet in the House now, wasn’t it? Not an MP was stirring, not even a mouse. And talking about mice, Mrs. Anumaana’s thoughts drifted to ‘The Mouse’s Tale,’ from ‘Alicein Wonderland.’
“It is a long tail, certainly,” saidAlice, looking down with wonder at the Mouse’s tail; “but why do you call it sad?” And she kept on puzzling about it while the Mouse was speaking, so that her idea of the tale was something like this:
“Fury said to a mouse, That he met in the house, `Let us both go to law: I will prose-cute you. Come, I’ll take no de-nial; We must have the trial:
For really this morn-ing I’ve nothing to do.’ Said the mouse to the cur, `Such a trial, dear
sir, With no jury or judge, would be wast-ing our breath.’ `I’ll be judge, I’ll be jury,’ Said
cun-ning old Fury; `I’ll try the whole cause, and con-demn you to death’.” – Lewis Carroll,Alicein Wonderland
Coming out of Wonderland and back into reality, Mrs. Anumaana realised with some regret that the House and its activities, that she always found so entertaining, would not resume till January next year. So there would be no more theatrics to keep her riveted to the TV till January 8th. The debate on the troublesome Divineguma Bill was to take place first, followed by the debate on the impeachment resolution on the 10th and 11th, she learned. As required by Standing Orders, this timetable would allow for one month’s interval between the handing over of the Parliamentary Select Committee’s report on the CJ, and any further action being taken relating to the impeachment.
Making a mental note of these dates, Mrs. Anumaana could not help noticing how the pronouncements on the CJ’s matters and the announcements on the Divineguma Bill always seemed to go in lock-step. Earlier, the impeachment resolution supported by 117 MPs was handed over to the Speaker on the same day that the Supreme Court conveyed its ruling on the Divineguma Bill. Then the contents of the impeachment resolution were made known the same day that the Speaker read out the Supreme Court’s determination on the Bill.
Was there some inexplicable design in this, she wondered. Was there a hidden hand orchestrating the show? Was it the same invisible force that made the government MPs of the PSC rush to wind up their investigation of the CJ and hand over their report by December 8? This would result in the ‘grand finale’ of the impeachment drama coinciding with the triumphant passage of the Divineguma Bill, she noted. Hmmm….
These were the mysteries she pondered on as the year came to a close. Sunil was convinced that it was all an ‘international conspiracy,’ but Mrs. Anumaana had her doubts.
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