| Published on 25-03-2007 In National |
| Viewed 1114 times |
| The angry, majestic aside |
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Written by
Cho Ramaswamy |
"The only way to prevent corruption in the nation is to hang those who are corrupt from [the nearest] lamp post....The law does not permit us to do that. Else, we would prefer to hang corrupt people like you from a lamp post. Only then would the others develop a fear and avoid indulging in such practices.."
The above was the opinion of a judge of the Supreme Court Justice Markandey Katju. The pronouncement came during the hearing of a bail application filed by an accused in the Rs.1,000 crore [Bihar] fodder scam.
Let us face it. No corrupt person can be awarded capital punishment according to existing laws. But, the bigger issue is whether the stringent punishment prescribed in the statute has ever been used against the corrupt. Let us take the fodder scam itself as an example. The "lamp post curse" was uttered against an ordinary government servant who couldn't have benefited in a big way at all in this scandal. Worse, the person who ought to provide answers for all the tough questions is in the Union Cabinet and he has been left untouched by the laws of the land.
No government will intensively pursue any legislation to enact any law to quickly complete the prosecution of the accused. On the contrary there is an invisible, [unwritten] agreement between all political parties in this regard. Governments will apparently act seriously only when a vehement political opponent is cornered. Otherwise, the silent agreement will remain in vogue. And because of that, notorious crimes are never "recognised" by governments and will never figure in any sort of prosecution.
But the judiciary is in hot pursuit of the corrupt. The "lamp post opinion" is a mere manifestation of judicial activism. But at the same time, few cases filed against the corrupt end in conviction in the courts.
The reason for this anomaly is a never-ending process called 'adjournment' which in turn breeds delay. Countless interlocutory petitions are bound to be filed in such cases and turn the prosecution into a circus because the government of the day (the present Union government is a good example in this case) will attempt to come to the aid of the accused.
If a sentence has to be handed down in spite of all this by the courts, the simplest way out is to refuse adjournments.
In all cases of corruption involving big shots, adjournments are available for the asking. Such adjournments last months together. This results in the cases dragging on for several years. Change of governments, witnesses' somersaults, withdrawal of support, electoral victories of the accused et al, take place during the interregnums.
Meanwhile other scandals grab the attention of the press and the public resulting in collective amnesia of the first one.
The courts can prevent this from happening. Let the judges of the Apex Court decide to the effect that they will not grant any adjournments in corruption cases and conduct them in continuous sessions. Nothing prevents this. Neither fresh legislation, nor needs for leave from politicians, nor interventions by governments can stall the process.
If the Supreme Court judges take such a decision and put it into practice, High Courts [in various states] will fall in line. All these can trigger quick judgements in a few cases which in turn will be deter corrupt politicians because their easy way out – time wasting tactics – will simply not work any longer. This may not end corruption, but will greatly reduce its incidence.
Unless such proactive decisions are taken by the Supreme Court, its recent comment will have no effect. One keeps hearing asides such as "the nation will progress only if all politicians are at the wrong end of a firing squad" at the hairdressers, tea shops and the odd verandah. The metamorphosis of the majestic opinion of the highest court of the land into an idle, sterile, impotent, angry banter doesn't augur well for the nation.
(Translated from Thuglak by TSV Hari) |
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