- The Constituent Assembly Members who framed the Indian Constitution had a wonderful foresight, vision, and understanding of the country’s diversity taking into consideration several aspects that continue to guide us even now. The unambiguous delineation of responsibilities between the three important arms viz. the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary ensured that the tenets of the Constitution are upheld in the true spirit. Thus, the rights guaranteed in the Constitution are not only sacrosanct for every citizen of the country irrespective of caste, class, creed, ethnicity, linguistics, and region but also for the three arms to ensure those tenets are not trampled. It is pertinent to note the higher judiciary is doing a fantastic job of upholding the same.
PC: The Wire
- However, trust the political class to behave with a sense of entitlement on certain matters that may not be aligned with the tone and tenor of the Constitutionally mandated rights. The custodian of the Constitution, the Supreme Court, steps in to address the matter with utmost intent, much to the relief of the common citizens. But who will stop our political leaders from asserting themselves to impress upon the assiduously built vote banks for their parochial considerations even if it goes against the tenet of free speech? In one such incident of late, Telangana CM has joined other leaders whose views on free speech are unmoored from the Constitution. Remember, women, and men too, are stripped and paraded with sickening regularity in this country.
PC: India Today
- Indisputably, it’s a crime as old as mobs, calculated to crush victims and their families with shame. Enough Indians still remember the backstory of 1981’s Behmai massacre. But Telangana CM seemingly wants to write this punishment into statute. Addressing the state assembly last week, he warned that anyone commenting on women in his family would be stripped and paraded. A sitting CM sworn to bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India – endorsing crimes as punishments is deeply troubling. Not less so when he places his family above the state. Moreover, in trying to protect himself as a strongman, the CM has done his state’s people a terrible disservice, as mobs will feel emboldened to dispense their brand of justice.
PC: The Column Of Curae – WordPress.com
- Further, he’s also done a great disservice to the cause of free speech – guaranteed by the Constitution but constantly attacked by the political class and police. For the uninitiated, the CM’s angry because two women YouTubers posted a video in which interviewees abused his family and him. They were arrested on March 12. Ideally, there should have been a defamation case, not an arrest. But the CM wasn’t even satisfied with the arrests. He seems to be using the case as a pretext to muzzle individuals posing as journalists. He wants organizations to define the word journalist, and submit lists of those who qualify. Others will be treated as criminals, he thundered. Circumstances under which free speech can be restricted will be determined by the application of judicial thought. Political leaders should trade cautiously here without breaching the thin line.
