As May 6 approaches, Surrindar Singh Gill is becoming increasingly restive. On that day, the ordinance that secured him the coveted post of chief executive officer (CEO) of the Prasar Bharati Corporation lapses.If the original Act of 1990 then comes into force, it automatically nullifies Gill's appointment on one important count: the age limit of a CEO is 62. Gill is 72. The I.K. Gujral government had made Prasar Bharati the only public-sector undertaking without an age limit for its CEO. It was done, say critics, to accommodate Gill. Even as Gill contemplates his own future, intense lobbying has begun for his chair. It is easy to understand why. With autonomous charge of Doordarshan (DD) and AIR, the Prasar Bharati CEO runs India's most formidable information empire. In terms of official hierarchy, the CEO ranks alongside the cabinet secretary.So intense is the lobbying that it is not just Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Sushma Swaraj who is running scared of wannabe CEOs but also Home Minister L.K. Advani and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Candidates are not just presenting their cases before the power centres, even RSS ties are being invoked. If Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is to believed, "every second journalist with BJP leanings wants the job and I believe it is their right to try for it". LEASE EXTENSION: Surrindar Singh Gill is banking on divided legal opinion to stay on as CEOIf journalists are getting excited, it is because the BJP leadership has indicated its preference for a media person "not hostile to us" as the next CEO. It is also clear that the stakes are too high for Swaraj alone to decide Gill's successor.Advani will be consulted and the prime minister will give the final nod. That is why the hopefuls have been making a beeline for Vajpayee's 7 Safdarjung Road residence. The prime minister seems undecided on the candidate. Preference would apparently be for someone who keeps the dignity of the office and an element of political even-handedness. Naqvi puts it differently: "The BJP does not want to end the autonomy of Prasar Bharati. But wouldn't a Congress or United Front government have been annoyed with some of the language used by Gill to challenge us? There has to be autonomy with some accountability."Even as the search for the next CEO continues, the Government knows it could be putting the cart before the horse. Particularly as there remains an element of doubt over Gill's post-May 6 status. "I will not go to any court," insists Gill. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}At the same time, he is not inclined to make life easy for the new establishment. Gill has apparently secured the opinion of former solicitor-general Dipankar Gupta that the incumbent is not covered by the 62-year age limit. The only way the BJP can remove Gill, in Gupta's opinion, is by introducing an amended Prasar Bharati Act in the session of Parliament starting on May 27. Gupta's opinion raises an important question: can provisions of an ordinance, not subsequently ratified by Parliament, become good law?On its part, the Government too has consulted its lawyers, including Attorney-General Soli Sorabjee who believes Gill's appointment is void after the ordinance lapses. All the same, the Government is preparing for three possible scenarios. First, that Gill might yet surprise everyone by going quietly on his own or when asked. "A t his age, he may not really want a fight," says a minister. Second, Gill could take the matter to the courts. Three scenariosSoft option: Gill goes voluntarily after ordinance lapses on May 6. Vajpayee, Advani suggest new CEO.Legal tangle: Asked by the Board to leave, Gill argues in court that he can't be eased out if ordinance lapses.Last recourse: In a political move, government gets Parliament to endorse 1990 Act which makes Gill's case legally untenable.If the judiciary stays his removal, the Government plans to move a bill to restore the 1990 Act. Preparations are already on for such a bill that also restores the 22-member parliamentary committee to oversee Prasar Bharati. This would also be in line with the BJP election manifesto and the National Agenda that commits making Prasar Bharati "an effective instrument accountable to Parliament".A new bill, however, presents a small problem: at present, the BJP-led coalition does not have the requisite numbers in the Rajya Sabha to pass a bill. That is why the Government is moving cautiously and is yet to list a Prasar Bharati amendment among the bills for the Budget session. "Moving a bill is the last option. We would prefer Gill to go on his own," says a senior BJP minister. That is why the process of reactivating the three-member selection committee to choose a new CEO has begun. The committee consists of Vice-President Krishna Kant, Press Council Chairman P.B. Sawant and the President's nominee (in reality the Government's) who will either be Sorab-jee or journalist Arun Shourie.There is another crude option, as yet only whispered, in case Gill stays put and the Government shies away from going to Parliament. The Government proposes to induct two additional directors (member finance and member personnel) to the Prasar Bharati Board. In addition, it could replace two of the six part-time directors , who have indicated their willingness to resign if asked by the Government, with its own nominees. Then, blessed with a majority, it could strip the CEOof his powers and turn him into a mere figurehead. The Government is categorical that Gill must go. It is merely undecided as to who will replace him and whether a post-Gill Prasar Bharati will be autonomous or a subtle extension of the I&B Ministry.-with Namita Bhandare Published By: AtMigration Published On: May 11, 1998--- ENDS ---
