More than three years back, Indian Supreme Court’s renowned advocate Prashant Bhushan was accused of contempt of court. The case dragged for some time and then the Supreme Court took a lenient view and Mr. Bhushan was fined just one rupee, which was promptly paid on the spot by another renowned legal luminary Rajeev Dhavan. The Supreme Court of India is held in high esteem. It is regarded as the final arbiter of legal matters and disputes, upholder of rule of law and protector of our democracy.
Prashant Bhushan, it appears, is still worried about the freedom of our judiciary. His views in this regard are in public domain. He feels that the judiciary is still under great stress. No doubt the Supreme Court should be praised for its perseverance and resoluteness in upholding the highest standards of rule of law.In TV debates also, some prominent intellectuals and participants are saying that judges are not divine;they are subjected to pressure. Intellectuals also speak from time to time that all is not well with our judiciary and governance. They quote several cases in this regard. For example, they refer to former CJI Mr. Gogoi, who was accused of moral turpitude or sexual misconduct. When this case came to the Supreme Court, he himself sat in judgement. There was much criticism in the press in this regard.
People are talking about the recent case of rape-and-murder in Kolkata. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of the case and issued orders. People ask why there was no intervention in the case of two 4 and 6 years old girls in Palghar, near Mumbai, who were sexually tortured repeatedly. They also quote the case of a nurse in Uttarakhand who was reported missing on the night of July 30. The police could trace putrefied and rotten body of the hapless victim only after 8 or 9 days. The relatives of the victim allege that some bodyparts of the victim were taken out and the rotten body bore the marks of extreme torture. They also allege that the Uttarakhand police has shown a person as the accused who was a known drug addict and who was already in police custody. There is constant demand from all quarters that this case also should be transferred to CBI. In spite of persistent demands there is no response from the Dhani government. People demand that the Supreme Court should take suo motucognisance of this heinous crime, too. It cannot be denied that this case deserves the attention of the honourable Supreme Court.
Justice should be done and it also should be seen by one and all. It should be even-handed and as the saying goes, justice must be done even if the heaven falls. All instances of discrimination in justice require serious consideration and prompt attention. If we fail in dispensation of justice without fear and favour, it would amount to opening the gates of social unrest and jungle raj, which may lead us towards disintegration of society. It is also the responsibility of common citizens to desist from injustice and oppression in their day-to-day affairs.