On November 26, we celebrated Constitution Day. At the end of this week, the country will commemorate December 6, the death anniversary of B R Ambedkar. The Winter Session of Parliament started on December 1. These dates are more than a sequence — they form a lens through which to examine the health of our republic, the erosion of legislative functioning, and the urgent need to reclaim accountability.

When the Constituent Assembly debated the structure of the future republic, Ambedkar’s clarity in rejecting a presidential system was unmistakable. He argued that India required a system where the executive remained continuously responsible to the legislature, ensuring that no single individual could claim untrammelled authority. He envisaged that India embrace a model of collective responsibility rather than vest power in one supreme leader or institution. The parliamentary system was chosen because it was inherently more accountable, deliberative, and reflective of the people’s sovereign will.

Yet, the space between the ideals he articulated and the reality unfolding before us has grown wider.

Nowhere is this drift more evident than in the........

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