People's Democracy

THE BJP’s euphoria and the UP chief minister’s reaction over the judgement of the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court confirms the fact that the law of the land will never be allowed to take its course till the Saffron Brigade holds governmental power. This is particularly so when the litigation concerns the Saffron Brigade’s violation, with impunity, of India’s republican constitution.

The BJP has interpreted the court’s ruling --- that union ministers L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharati, alongwith five other leaders of the VHP and Bajrang Dal, cannot immediately be prosecuted for the demolition of the Babri Masjid --- as an expression of their innocence and non-involvement in a criminal conspiracy. The fact of the matter is quite the contrary. The Lucknow Bench has made only a technical point --- that the prosecution is required to take the permission of the High Court chief justice every time it seeks to refer a case to the special court.

On the question of the Babri Masjid demolition, two separate FIRs were filed. The first against unnamed karsevaks and the second against the eight named leaders. While the permission was taken for the first FIR, it was not specifically taken for the second. This could well have happened on the assumption that the chargesheet filed by the CBI was based on a common investigation into both the FIRs. The Lucknow Bench, however, ruled that it was technically necessary to take the permission for the second FIR as well. Since this was not done, the accused could not be technically prosecuted.

At the same time, the High Court clarified that this "defect" in the notification is "curable." In other words, all that the government needs to do is to seek the chief justice’s permission regarding the second FIR as well and then issue a fresh notification on that basis. In a way, the High Court’s decision has, as a noted legal expert said, "the moral force of an order."

But here is where the process of subterfuge begins. Even some remote respect for the law of the land would warrant the UP state government to adopt the course suggested by the High Court. But, given the RSS-BJP’s attitude of justifying the demolition of the Babri Masjid and of decrying the secular, democratic content of the republican constitution, the UP government is trying to surreptitiously provide an escape route for these people who have been chargesheeted with a criminal conspiracy to demolish the Babri Masjid.

It must be noted that the Lucknow Bench has neither faulted the chargesheet nor has it delivered any judgement on the involvement, or otherwise, of these people in the Babri Masjid demolition.

It is the height of folly on part of the UP government to pompously declare that it shall abide by the High Court decision on this issue! This means that it will not do anything to undo a technical defect. In other words, it will uphold a court decision on a technicality to protect the criminals and let them go scot-free. The Lucknow Bench decision that the case against those mentioned in the first FIR will continue, means that it considers the Babri Masjid demolition a crime. If the UP government refuses to adopt the only course suggested by the court, then it would be tantamount to declaring the demolition of the Babri Masjid as a "crime without criminals."

Further, the suggestion that the CBI should file a fresh chargesheet against the eight accused is at best a dilatory tactic. Legal and procedural wrangles can delay the process of filing another chargesheet which is in any way absolutely unnecessary. This is so because the common chargesheet for both the cases continues to remain valid with regard to the first FIR.

The people of India will not tolerate such diabolic subterfuge to deny justice. Those involved in the criminal conspiracy of the Babri Masjid demolition must be brought to book. The UP government must immediately, after obtaining the permission of the chief justice, issue a fresh notification. Already over eight years have gone by since the Babri Masjid was demolished. Any further delay in delivering justice only means that the law of the land is deliberately being sabotaged by the Saffron Brigade.

Seen in this light, the Vajpayee government’s decision to extend the term of the committee for the review of the constitution, is ominous. This committee was constituted unconstitutionally, brushing aside the objections of the entire opposition. Clearly, in pursuit of their pernicious agenda of converting the secular democratic republic of India into a rabidly intolerant theocratic "Hindu Rashtra," the RSS and its outfits will spare no effort to subvert the law of the land.

The Indian people will not and cannot allow such a larger conspiracy to succeed. This shall surely be foiled.