Article 356: Law or a Stick?

Wikipedia says: President's rule is the term used in India when a state legislature is dissolved or suspended and the state is placed under direct federal rule. President's rule is enabled by article 356 of the Constitution of India, which gives the central government the authority to impose president's rule in any state if there has been failure of the constitutional machinery in the state. It is called President's rule as the President of India governs the state instead of a Council of Ministers who are answerable to the elected legislature. State governor is delegated executive authority on behalf of the central (federal) government. The governor normally appoints advisor(s), who are retired civil servants, to help in administration. Since governor is appointed by the President of India on the advice of the central government, in practice policies are controlled by the ruling party at the Centre.
Laws like article 356 are supposed to help maintain law and order. However in India, as we all know, laws often become a stick in the hands of the man in the seat to enforce his will. It becomes a tool to undermine Democracy rather than enforcing it. When a government assumes power, then appoint pliable babus and ex-politicos as governors of the state. These men are supposed to help the elected state government run the state. Mrs. Indira Gandhi became a master at this trick. Article 356 was used to topple non-Congress state governments.
The tradition seems to be continuing today. B S Yeddyurappa who is not the most competent BJP CM and seems to have been elected out of caste politics pressures, has been targeted by the Governor H R Bhardwaj. To give you a background, Wikipedia says the following about him:
A media shy minister, the old Gandhi family loyalist handled the most sensitive and controversial cases in the Manmohan Singh cabinet between 2004 and 2009. From Bofors to office of profit and the failed attempt to remove Navin Chawla as election commissioner, were all deftly handled by the Congress veteran to the satisfaction of the Prime Minister and party leadership. In March 2009, H R Bharadwaj was criticized for taking the initiative to de-freeze two bank accounts of Ottavio Quattrocchi, an accused in the Bofors Scam case, who is seen as a close friend of Congress president Sonia Gandhi. In particular, it appears he did not consult the investigating agency CBI which had gotten the accounts frozen.
This Gandhi family loyalist (seems like the only qualification he has), has done everything in his power to bring down the Yeddy government. He is still trying to make a case for his recommendation for enforcement of article 356. I hope that various branches of judiciary get involved and thwart this brazen attempt to undermine the voters / aam aadmi of Karnataka.

Bhardwaj wants a Congress govt in Karnataka: Yeddy

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Sunday took on Governor H R Bhardwaj alleging that he was trying to throw the Bharatiya Janata Party out of power and install a Congress government in the state.
The article can be read at: http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-bhardwaj-wants-a-congress-govt-in-karnataka-yeddy/20110123.htm