Almighty Allah designed the earth and handed it to humans to be developed into a heaven on earth. But alas! The wrong doers have been trying to turn it into a hell or, at least, a jungle. This is the tragedy of human arrogance and deviation from the right path of thought and action. Think about our beloved country India, its vast resources, both natural and human, the variety and vitality, the ethnic pluralism, the 138-crore population bestowed with best capabilities, and see how our politicians, suffering from narrowmindedness and communal thinking, are leading us towards a full-fledged jungle raj.
The perpetrators of jungle raj are not ready to make amends and can’t even tolerate the accusation that they have created a virtual jungle raj through their injustice and atrocities. The other day Allahabad High Court quashed an FIR against a person who had allegedly tweeted that “U.P. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has transformed the state into a jungle raj in which no law and order prevails.” The Honourable High Court has observed that the citizen was using his right to dissent, to criticise and comment on the prevailing situation. It further said that expressing dissent on law and order situation is the hallmark of a constitutional liberal democracy, like India, and is constitutionally protected under Article 19 of the Constitution. It is heartening that our courts are rising to the occasion and protecting the constitutional guarantees and human rights.
It is strange that in spite of knowing full well, or at least fearing that the ordinance against the so-called “love jihad” will not stand the legal scrutiny, they are moving at full speed and taking questionable and explicitly illegal steps. Take a fresh case. A Muslim youth in Bijnor in UP has been booked under the month-old anti-conversion ordinance and sent to jail. His crime! He was returning with a girl of another faith, after attending a birthday party at 11:30 pm on December 15. Allegation is that the youth “induced the girl to elope with him with the intention to marry and convert her. The girl told the magistrate that she went out of her own free will. The girl’s father also said that he trusts his daughter fully and she did not do any wrong and asked if it is illegal for a boy and a girl to walk together.
It is unfortunate that our police force is ill-trained to take correct steps in the light of the Constitution. They are proving to be more loyal to the king than the king himself. It gives the impression that they have neither brains nor conscience. The rot lies at the highest level and things would not improve unless the high-ups reform themselves.
Innumerable cases of police high-handedness and misuse of laws are coming to notice. Usually, the Muslims and Dalits are being victimised. If these trends continue, no one would be safe. First it is Muslims and Dalits, next it would be Christians and gradually all others. Primarily it is the responsibility of our courts to take cognisance of the deteriorating situation and interfere. It is high time the civil society acts otherwise the jungle raj would turn India into a Jahannam raj. May God save us from that nightmare!