Sindh minister's resignation

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It is not rare in democracies for ministers to acknowledge responsibility for tragic incidents involving loss of life on their watch, and resign. Not so in Pakistan, though. Creditably for him, the Sindh Minister for Industries Abdul Rauf Siddiqui, took the first step in that direction when he resigned from the provincial cabinet following the fire in a Karachi garment factory in which 289 lives perished under most horrific circumstances. Siddiqui said that he found himself "helpless and with no authority to move against the people responsible for the deadly factory fire." Contending that the two relevant departments, civil defence and labour, "responsible for safety measures and labour rights are not under my authority", Siddiqui averred "I was compelled to see people dying in the fire." His detractors might argue that in taking the step he has while pointing a finger at others, the minister tried to shift the blame and earn political mileage. That though would be unfair, considering that in the absence of any precedence he was under no pressure to give up the ministry. Besides, Siddiqui said he was quitting so as to allow the investigations to be conducted in a transparent manner. Whatever the reason, his decision sets a good precedent. There are numerous examples from other democracies, including our neighbour India, wherein ministers have given up office after tragic incidents involving loss of life. The first such resignation in India was tendered by railways and transport minister Lal Bahadur Shastri as far back as 1956 after a train accident in Tamil Nadu in which 114 people were killed. The then prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, accepted the resignation citing constitutional propriety. The precedent has since been followed, the more recent example being that of Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, who took "moral responsibility" for an Air India plane crash during landing at Mangalore in May 2010 that resulted in the deaths of 160 people - Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh though rejected the resignation. We have had two devastating plane crashes in Islamabad during the last two years alone (Air Blue and Bhoja Air accidents in Islamabad claimed 202 lives in August '10 and 127 in April this year, respectively) yet no one at the top received as much as a rap on the knuckles. The present example therefore is an important assertion of the principle of accountability. The buck must stop at the office of the minister in charge. Of course, when Indian railways and aviation ministers resigned they were not driving or flying the machines involved in accidents, yet they felt answerable for the conditions that might have contributed to accidents and the consequent loss of life. It is about time ministers in this country, too, begin doing the honourable thing and take the fall for any such loss.