- Right from childhood, Indian citizens have been brought up on a narration that emphasizes adhering to the law of the land which is not only sacrosanct but also provides us with a sense of security if complied diligently. Law enforcement agencies are tasked to ensure the law of the land is followed to the letter and spirit. Yes, every political party assures the citizens about their efforts to uphold the Constitutionally mandated responsibilities that also include the democratic form of governance thrives without any hindrances. The legislature formulates the law, the executive executes, and the judiciary interprets the same as per the Constitution. There is no room for ambiguity here. Sadly, this doesn’t seem to be followed in the country.
PC: OpIndia Staff
- Undoubtedly, if the executive initiates unlawful measures, the judiciary must step in to ensure citizens’ rights are not compromised by providing desired relief expeditiously. Unfortunately, the judicial delivery system in the country is too slow for one’s comfort leading to excruciating delay that only helps further exacerbate the common citizen’s woes. We know how the Yogi Adityanath-led government in Uttar Pradesh goes about demolishing the illegal buildings/structures by using a bulldozer. Something similar is happening in Madhya Pradesh too. The entire nation was outraged when a Brahmin recently peed on a tribal in Madhya Pradesh. The outrage all of us felt was inexpressible since a fellow human being was dehumanized in such a despicable manner.
- And what did the MP administration do? The state responds unconstitutionally through its action leaving us equally disbelieving. When the first incident happened in MP, the government simply had to apply the SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and then pursue the prosecution zealously. That extra effort would have been required because convictions under this Act are rare and investigations are usually shoddy. The Supreme Court diluted the law in 2018 but upheld the amendments to overturn the dilution in 2020. The Union Government had argued Dalits and tribals continued to encounter indignity, harassment, and as seems to be the case in MP, intimidation aimed at shutting up victims.
PC: File
- But the appalling nature of the offense doesn’t call for forgetting the law. MP first booked the person under the National Security Act – an extraordinary misapplication – and then, as seems to have become regular affairs in UP and MP, demolished the house the accused and his family called home. A family is homeless now, through an official action that has no grounding in law. But then, Yogi Adityanath got popular support in UP for bulldozing houses, so Shivraj Singh Chouhan facing polls in a few months had copied that playbook. The law doesn’t appear to be relevant to those holding constitutional offices. Since politicians won’t stop bulldozing illegally, the SC must step in and call what is it – unconstitutional.
