Chapter 29:
"One cannot organize a coup in this day and age Malvika especially in a country like ours. However with enough chaos, it becomes impertinent for military to come in and take control of governance. Head of the state will still remain a representative from the government but will be working under the directives of a board constituting of personnel from military and diplomats. If everything goes according to plan, that's what will happen." Arnav said nonchalantly.
"Every time there was a military rule in a country they have had history of social unrest with the government for a considerable length of time. Sure there is dissatisfaction here and there have been protests in country…"
"Is it just dissatisfaction here and there, Malvika?" Khushi asked before Malvika could finish. "Almost every state has a group of people protesting against government for not getting their voices heard. Be it tribal or ordinary civilians who have been flummoxed because of underdog treatment they have been receiving for decades. North eastern states want a complete out from this democracy all thanks to the government turning a blind eye towards them for decades." Khushi replied.
"Khushi, please don't talk about those states as if you have been there; at least not when an ex-cop from ITBP is sitting right in front of you. There is already enough military presence in those areas and people are unhappy with it as it is. If there is a strong military influence at the center, these states will start an open rebellion provoking other groups in the country which have been dormant till now. States which are looking for separation, group of people concentrated on a specific geography elbowing an out from their state. There won't be time for central government to sit and chat with these people so they will react. If there weren't any social unrest before, then there will be one during this induced chaos of yours." Malvika replied harshly.
"Alright that's enough." Shukla said seeing Arnav ready with a response. "This is not a time for debate." He said looking pointedly at the three. "Tell us what are your plans and we will see what we can do," he said nodding at Malvika. She replied him with a hesitant shrug.
After several moments of silence, Khushi said, "First we have to find people. Well we have to find two sets of people – the ones who have left the country and the ones who are running the second part of the show."
"Are you going to bring the ones who have left the country back?" Shukla asked.
"I don't think they will come back Shukla but we will have to try to get them back. They have been priced according to their ability and must be offered job that offered both security and monetary gains. All we can do is finding out who contacted them and try to persuade them to reconsider their decision." Khushi said bleakly.
"You sound as if you blame them for the choices they made," Malvika noted sardonically. Khushi looked at the woman and locked eyes with her.
"I don't blame them. They were just ordinary people trying to survive," she replied. Malvika couldn't help but chuckle mirthlessly at the honesty of the statement. The days of men and women fighting for their country, for their children's future was long gone. Now it was a time of self-fulfillment and keeping the legacy alive in most plausible safe ways. No one cared what happened to governance anymore. Malvika had seen various instances of detachment from reality. Young people getting lost in fake world of entertainment and partying without knowing the kind of tribulations people were going through on the other side of the road. She couldn't blame them. She couldn't blame the kids' parents' either. It was how life was; bitchy at best.
"During hung parliament, president will be under tremendous pressure from both the houses. The upper house cannot make a decision without lower housing passing it but in cases like these, they can come up with a temporary solution like they did back in Emergency," Khushi said.
"What kind of solution are we talking about?" Shukla asked.
"Every government distills the basic concepts of democracy and embraces it with a mixture of oligarchic or monarchic elements. What we have to do is expand this idea a little and remove the fuzzy sections and make it more…federal. So when hung parliament prolongs, President and the upper house can come up with an agenda to run the country with as much normalcy as possible with already functional government bodies, military and diplomats. Government agencies and different government organizations fall under a specific ministry and since the ministry acts only as a guidance counselor, these agencies can still operate without any hindrance under a federal rule. With the slight difference here the government, or what's left out of it, will work closely with military with few or many of the governance positions filled by military personnel. In all technicalities current government will hold the office nominally till the formation of next government. That's really a commemorative position than a realistic one so it is not something we will be worrying out," Arnav explained.
Malvika and Shukla were speechless.
Pati Patni Aur Panga
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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