Category: News Analysis

News analysis for scholar to understand the issues in a better way.

Set Up Panels To Curb False Dowry Cases: SC

To begin with, in a big relief to husbands and their families facing false dowry harassment cases, the Supreme Court on July 27 in the matter of Rajesh Sharma and Ors v State of UP and Anr (2017) sought to restrict the untrammelled powers of the police to arrest those accused under IPC Section 498A till such time a Committee comprising legal service volunteers explores the possibility of a settlement. The Supreme Court said that such Family Welfare Committees will be constituted in each district. However, it was made clear that the order of the Apex Court will not apply to cases where the wife has died or sustained “tangible physical injuries”. 

                                                 To put things in perspective, a Bench of Justices Adarsh Goel and UU Lalit passed the order while dealing with a case of dowry harassment filed in Uttar Pradesh against the husband, his parents, unmarried brother and sister. No doubt, the Supreme Court has done well to explicitly direct the authorities to not arrest people or apply coercive means over complaints of dowry harassment without first conducting a preliminary inquiry. It is quite ostensible that the latest directive has come in the wake of many complaints that the police are quick to arrest not only the husband or the in-laws over dowry related first information reports but also their all other relatives including small children without even conducting a basic probe into the allegation as should be done always in all such cases! This is what is most troublesome and loathsome!
                                                Let me hasten to add here that there is no ambiguity over the indisputable fact that the application of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code has no doubt been grossly misused in so many cases all across the country. This is what compelled Supreme Court to step in and make sure that in future such gross misuse is checked right at the very beginning. While laying down guidelines to ensure that the random misuse of IPC Section 498A stops, the Bench of Apex Court minced absolutely no words in making it crystal clear that, “It is a matter of serious concern that large number of cases continues to be filed under Section 498A alleging harassment of married women. Many such complaints are not bona fide. At the time of filing of the complaint, implications and consequences are not visualized. At times, such complaints lead to uncalled for harassment not only to the accused but also to the complainant. Uncalled for arrest may ruin the chances of settlement. Certain safeguards against uncalled for arrest or insensitive investigation have been addressed by this court. Still, the problem continues to a great extent. To remedy the situation, we are of the view that involvement of civil society in the aid of administration of justice can be one of the steps, apart from the investigating officers and the concerned trial courts being sensitised.” There can be no denying it.
                                              Truth be told, the Bench felt that in many cases chances of a genuine settlement can be examined by the Committee by giving them a month’s time. If settlement is reached, the concerned Magistrate shall close the case and even consider granting bail. It merits no reiteration that what the Bench has felt and suggested is highly commendable which needs to be implemented without any further delay!      
                                               As things stand, while quoting the National Crime Records Bureau’s 2012 data, the Bench said that a quarter of all arrests were those of women – mothers and sisters of husbands – and while chargesheets were filed at an “exponentially high 93.6%” of cases, only 14.4% ended in convictions. This itself is the biggest testimony to the gross abuse of anti-dowry laws in our country! What more should I say on this?             
                                        To be sure, it also must be revealed here that the report projected that out of the 3,72,706 cases pending trial in 2012, 3,17,000 would lead to acquittal. This begs the question: What more bigger proof is required to substantiate the irrefutable fact that anti dowry laws are grossly abused in our country? It needs no rocket scientist to conclude that the Bench of Supreme Court in this case very rightly decided to finally take steps to prevent the future misuse of anti-dowry laws!
                                       Be it noted, the Bench of Supreme Court ordered that trial courts must decide bail applications in such cases on the same day as far as possible. It was also held that, “Recovery of disputed dowry items may not by itself be a ground for denial of bail if maintenance or other rights of wife/minor children can otherwise be protected.” This was considered imperative to check the abuse of anti dowry laws. It also directed that a designated police officer should be appointed to deal with complaints filed under Section 498A. It granted states and Union Territories a month’s time to appoint such officers.
                                    It must be highlighted here that in this latest landmark judgment, the Apex Court broke away from the dominant perception that woman is always the victim to rule that in dowry cases, the account of the alleged victim need not be taken at face value, undercutting the innocence law enforcement agencies had so far assigned to complainants. It directed States to set up family welfare committee (FWC) in each district and tasked it with testing the veracity of every dowry harassment complaint.
                                    According to the ruling, the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) will form the Committee comprising three members who could be para-legal volunteers, social workers, retired persons, wives of working officers or citizens who may be found suitable and willing. A dowry harassment complaint to the police or Magistrate will be referred to the Committee that can interact with the parties personally or through electronic communication. Grant exemption from personal appearance or allow it by videoconference. Don’t make passport impounding or red corner notice routine for people residing out of India. The Committee must submit its report to the authority, which refers the complaint to it within a month.
                                     It was also stipulated that till the report is received, no arrest should be effected. Also, after considering the report on its own merit, the police or Magistrate will proceed with further action. The Apex Court also directed that only a designated Investigating Officer of the area shall investigate dowry harassment cases. Such designations must be done within a month. Referring to the National Crime Records Bureau report of 2013, it noted that conviction rate of cases registered under Section 498A was very low at 15.6% which highlighted that complaints were not backed by evidence.    
                                       Not stopping here, the Apex Court further added that these officers must be trained, which the court held must be completed within four months. Also, it was held that in cases where a settlement is reached, it will be open to a District and Sessions Judge or any other senior judicial officer nominated by him in the district to complete the proceedings. Trial Judges should close Section 498A cases based on matrimonial disputes once parties reached a settlement.
                                         The Apex Court also directed that bail applications of husband and inlaws should be decided expeditiously by trial courts, preferably the same day it is filed. It must be recalled here that in 2014, a separate Bench of the Apex Court had criticized the law’s misuse. It held that, “The fact that Section 498-A is a cognizable and non-bailable offence has lent it a dubious place of pride amongst the provisions that are used as weapons rather than shield by disgruntled wives.”
                                         It may be recalled here that a Bench headed by Justice Chandramauli Kr Prasad and Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose had given a landmark judgment in Arnesh Kumar v state of Bihar & Anr on July 2, 2014 where the Supreme Court gave certain guidelines to be followed. They are as follows: –
1.  All state governments have to instruct its police officers that they cannot automatically arrest a person under Section 498A of IPC but and under parameters of Section 41 of Cr PC.
2.  These police officers should be given checklist specifying the Section 41(1)(b)(ii).
3.  Then these officers should fully add in the reasons which made them to arrest a person and then produce him before Magistrate without delay for further actions.
4.  Magistrate can then authorize detention of such person only after perusing the reports produced by police officer and then record the same.
5.  If a decision has to be put for not arresting the accused, then it must be done within 2 weeks from the institution of the case.
6.  It has to be in writing to the Magistrate.
7.  Under Section 41A of Cr PC notice of appearance should be served on the accused and it should be done within 2 weeks from institution of the case in writing.
8.   If any police officer fails to comply with these directions then he can be liable for departmental actions and these directions of court will apply even to Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act along with Section 498A of IPC.
                                          All said and done, the Supreme Court itself in last few years has candidly acknowledged that a women too can now misuse antidowry laws for varied reasons. She too is not now above suspicion. The earlier belief that a women would never come out wrongly in the open against her husband or her in-laws has now been discarded as we see for ourselves that there are so many instances of false reports of dowry harassment.
                                             All States must now follow the latest directive by the Supreme Court in Rajesh Sharma case as also the earlier case of Arnesh just mentioned above! One earnestly hopes that after the latest landmark judgment of the Supreme Court in Rajesh Sharma’s case, there will be now at least some check on the gross abuse of anti dowry laws as a very potent blackmail tool against not only the husband but also his parents and relatives! Of course, a woman can no longer randomly misuse anti dowry laws so easily and yet get away after ensuring jail for not just her husband but also his parents and other relatives! She can now use anti dowry laws but cannot abuse them to falsely implicate her husband, her in-laws and her husband’s relatives because from now onwards there will be proper verifying by a Committee comprising of three Members and the chances of lies being exposed after careful scrutiny are now more than ever before!
Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi,
A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera,

Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.

All States Must Emulate Maharashtra’s Law Criminalising Social Ostracism

Coming straight to the nub of the matter, let me begin at the very beginning by pointing out that in a very bold decision with far-reaching consequences, the Maharashtra state government has enacted a new law titled “The Maharashtra Protection of People from Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2016. This new law explicitly prohibits the social boycott of individuals, families or any community by informal village councils which otherwise had become very common and pervasive. Social boycott of anyone under any circumstances can never be justified. This alone explains why even media and all leading newspapers have hailed this as a template for other States to follow!
Criminalising Social Ostracism

                                                It is most gratifying to note that this landmark law has received Presidential assent thus paving the way for its implementation. Doubtless, this new Act will help save many people from being boycotted socially by a majority of people. To be sure, this new historic law expressly disallows social boycott in the name of caste, community, religion, rituals or customs.
                                      Truth be told, Maharashtra is the first state in the country to formulate a law to punish social boycott. This is truly historic from all angles. This new Act stipulates punishment which includes a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh and imprisonment of up to three years or both.    
                                                 To put things in perspective, while stating the aims of the landmark Bill, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis while endorsing it very strongly in the State Assembly said categorically that, “There cannot be any compromise on human dignity which is supreme. In a progressive state like Maharashtra, which has glorious legacy of social reforms, there cannot be any tolerance of a social menace that attacks the very basic fundamentals of humanity.” It is tragic that even after more than 70 years of independence we still see many parts of our country totally mired in casteism, communalism, social boycott and a plethora of other social ills that plagued our nation before independence. This has to end now and for this to happen we need a strong national legislation like the one enacted recently by the Maharashtra State Government recently.
                                                   It must be added here that before introducing the Bill for debate and passage in the state legislature, he had held a series of deliberations with various social organizations and political leaders across parties to evolve a broad consensus. According to the Act, social boycott of any person will be treated as a crime and individuals or groups or families or communities indulging in such activity would invite stern action. No one would be spared who indulge in social boycott!
                                                 Needless to say, although there are provisions in existing laws, social boycott was not clearly defined which often saw perpetrators using loopholes to escape punishment. The Cabinet had unanimously approved the draft Bill on March 1, 2016. However, it must be mentioned here that initially, several Cabinet Ministers representing the Shiv Sena party had raised vociferous objections as they were unduly worried that it would interfere with the age-old traditions or ritual and religion.
                                                     But it must be added here that several such misplaced apprehensions voiced by leaders from different political parties were clarified in the subsequent meetings before it was adopted in the Cabinet and the legislature. The new law very explicitly disallows social boycott in the name of caste, community, religion, rituals or customs. It is most pleasing to note that Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis minced absolutely no words in making it crystal clear that, “A progressive state like Maharashtra cannot allow social evils in the garb of caste panchayat diktats or rituals. However a law alone is not enough to stop such practices, social awareness is also necessary.” He told the House that a couple was outcast by a Panchayat in Cidco area of Aurangabad and fined with Rs 1.45 lakh for marrying in the same ‘gotra’. He said 11 persons have been arrested in this connection.
                                            Before proceeding ahead, it is imperative to answer some very elementary questions that are directly connected with this new Act that has been enacted in Maharashtra. This will banish all misconceived notions about this new Act. They are as follows: –
1.   What amounts to social boycott under the new law?
                                 It is quite palpable that if any individual or group tries to prevent or obstruct another member or group from observing any social or religions, custom or usage or ceremony or from taking part in a social, religious or community function, assembly, congregation, meeting or procession, the act amounts to social boycott. So is the case of challenging the freedom of individuals in the name of jati panchayats, religion, customs, or denying them the right to practice a profession of their choice. Freedom in this case includes the freedom to marry outside one’s caste, visit places of worship, wear clothes of one’s choice and use any specific language. Discrimination on the basis of morality, political inclination or sexuality also qualifies as social boycott. As does stopping children from playing in a particular space or disallowing access to crematoria, burial grounds, community halls or educational institutions with mala fide intentions.    
2.   How does the Act seeks to prevent social boycott?
                               A Collector or District Magistrate, on receiving information of the likelihood of unlawful assembly for imposition of social boycott can, by order, prohibit the assembly. Conviction of the offence of social boycott will attract a prison term of up to three years or a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh or both. Abetment by an individual or group will invite the same punishment. The offence of social boycott is cognizable and bailable and will be tried by a Metropolitan Magistrate or a Judicial Magistrate First Class. To ensure speedy justice, trial would have to be completed within a period of six months from the date of filing the chargesheet.  
3. Why it was felt imperative to have such a law in Maharashtra?
                             No prizes for guessing that the radical decision to enact such a strict law was primarily a reaction to unrelenting pressure mounted from growing incidents of atrocities on individuals by jati panchayats or gavkis wielding extra-judicial powers. The highest number of incidents were reported from the districts of Raigad, Ratnagiri and Nasik and the largest number of cases of social boycott were attributed to inter-caste marriages. In 2013-14, Raigad reported 38 such cases. It must be added here that prevailing laws are frequently challenged in the court, or loopholes are exploited by the accused to escape punishment. This new Act also facilitates the framing of charges under IPC Sections 34, 120-A, 120-B, 149, 153-A, 383 to 389 and 511 if there is concrete evidence to substantiate an accusation of social boycott.
                                  It must be appreciated here that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who took the great initiative to do the cumbersome job of working out a consensus among political parties, argued that Maharashtra which is a state with rich legacy of social reforms, could not allow social boycotts. He very rightly pointed out that, “The Act was required in the backdrop of prevailing atrocities inflicted on people in the name of tradition, caste and community. Social boycott will be dealt with an iron hand. The atrocities inflicted by a handful of people in the name of jati panchayats or groups citing caste and community traditions will not be tolerated if it questions the dignity of a human being.”  
4. What role did social organisations play in the passage of what is essentially a social reform legislation?
                                   It has to be always borne in mind that social organisations played a stellar role in the passage of what is essentially a social reform legislation. It may be recalled here that four years ago, a campaign against the social boycott gained huge momentum and received widespread public support following the so-called “honour killing” of 22-year-old Pramila Kumbharkar. Pramila who belonged to a nomadic tribe and had married Deepak Kamble from a Scheduled Caste was allegedly killed by her father when she was nine months pregnant. The slain rationalist Narendra Dabholkar who had months before his murder, initiated a protest against social boycott and had fought against all sorts of superstition was killed cruelly by the social groups resisting any change of any type in society of ours! Earlier in May 2012, Rahul Yelange aged 30 years who was part of a team from Pune that conquered Mount Everest, faced social boycott in his village Budruk in Raigadh district because his wife wore jeans instead of sari and did not wear the traditional mangalsutra or put bindi on her forehead. In Roha taluka of Raigadh, there have been 22 cases of social boycott since 2010. Some 22 families of Dongri village had faced social boycott for varied reasons. In Raigadh, 34 cases of social boycott have been registered, out of which chargesheets have been filed in 28 cases and investigations are on in rest of the cases.    
5. How many types of social boycotts have been provided under the Act?
                                  The Maharashtra Protection of People from Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2016 provides 15 examples of social boycott. These include obstructing individuals from following their religious practices or customs, severing social or commercial contacts, imposing discrimination within the community and expulsion from the community.
6. Who all can be punished under the Act?
                               The Act makes it abundantly clear that who all can be punished under the Act: Those who directly practice social boycott, instigate others to do so, or participate in any meetings with the agenda of imposing a boycott.    
7. When was the first FIR filed under the Act?
                         The first FIR was filed on July 18 under the Maharashtra Protection of People from Social Boycott (Prtevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2016, at Kondhwa Police Station, Pune, against those who ostracized Rudrap and others like him in the past, including the community-head.
8. When was the Bill passed and when it received the President’s assent?
                                The Bill was passed by the Maharashtra State Assembly on 13 April 2016 and received the President’s assent in July 2017.
9. Has such a law been made for the first time?
                              No. Earlier also Bombay had enacted a law against excommunication in 1949 which aimed to remove any legal disabilities that may be suffered by a person who had been excommunicated from their community, religious or otherwise. But it was struck down by the Supreme Court in 1962 as being contrary to Article 26 of the Constitution after the Dawoodi Bohra community convincingly argued that it violated the community’s constitutional right to manage its own religious affairs.
10. In how much time should the trial be concluded under the Act?
                                      To ensure speedy justice and facilitate time-bound results, the law stipulates for conclusion of trial within a period of six months from the date of filing of the charge sheet.
11. Who would be viewed as a caste panchayat?
                                    Any organisation that delivers a judgment or issues fatwas based on caste, would be viewed as a caste panchayat, even if unregistered, the Act says.
12. Can victim file complaint directly with Magistrate or with police only?
                             There is a provision for victims or any member of the victim’s family to file a complaint either with the police or directly to the Magistrate.    
13. Does the Act provide any monitoring mechanism?
                                Yes, a monitoring mechanism has been provided through social boycott prohibition officers to detect offences and assist the Magistrate and police officers in tackling cases.                            
                                               All said and done, the Act will pave the way for the State to strictly enforce it with a larger objective of uprooting social evils in the name of caste panchayats. According to the Act, social boycott will be now treated as a crime in Maharashtra and individuals or groups or families or communities indulging in such activity would invite stern action which includes jail term and fine also! All States must emulate Maharashtra’s law criminalizing social ostracism! We all know how Khap panchayats in northern States like Haryana and Uttar Pradesh among others are running a parallel government and this is especially more visible in villages where very few defy their unchallenged authority and those who dare to do so are stringently punished and all this goes mostly unreported. This too must stop and even the Law Commission too has recommended enactment of a suitable law by Parliament but fearing loss of votebank no party has openly espoused the noble cause of banning social ostracism perpetrated by such khap panchayats! Narendra Modi being our Prime Minister must take a bold decision on this just like his junior Devendra Fadnavis who is also from BJP and is Chief Minister of Maharashtra has done as soon as possible so that the social boycott of the poor, deprived, marginalized and powerless hailing from the weaker sections of society too are saved from social ostracism just like we now see happening in Maharashtra! No delay and no excuse! Do it just like notebandhi! But the billion dollar question that arises here is: Will Modi act now decisively?
Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi,
A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera,

Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.

Varun Rightly Questions MPs Right To Hike Own Salaries

Let me begin at the very beginning by expressing my full solidarity and unstinted support for BJP MP Varun Gandhi very rightly questioning a plethora of practices including the lawmakers power to hike their own salaries and pass crucial Bills like the Aadhaar legislation without much debate and discussion. Why only MPs and MLAs have the right to hike their own salaries? Why Army officers or others have no such similar right?

                                              Let me be direct in asking few unpalatable questions: Do only MP and MLAs perform their duty with supreme dedication that they alone have been conferred with this exclusive privilege? Why this raw discrimination? When will this raw discrimination end? Why has this raw discrimination continued for more than 70 years without being questioned?
                                          While craving for the exclusive indulgence of my esteemed readers, let me inform them that raising the issue of MPs right to hike their own salaries, Varun Gandhi who is also an MP very rightly pitched for an external body to determine their remuneration and said that it was “shameful” that the number of sittings in the Lok Sabha had dropped from 123 days a year in 1952 to 75 in 2016. The lawmakers had raised their salaries 400 percent in the last decade, Varun Gandhi said while wondering whether they had earned this massive increment?
                                              Let me be upfront in saying:  What I find most shameful is that our Prime Minister Narendra Modi while vowing to extract each and every paise of illegitimate money from all those who garner it is absolutely maintaining a deafening silence on it! Why Modi is endorsing the reprehensible position that MPs have the full right to time and again hike their own salary even if they do just no work or very little work and keep on just shouting whenever Parliament meets? Why is Modi not speaking out on this like Varun Gandhi?
                                       Let me also be upfront in asking: Why Modi in his three years of rule not lashed out against this malpractice of MPs raising their own salary 400 percent in the last decade even though he declared war against corruption and wasteful expenditure of money? Why Modi feels strongly that in India only MPs and MLAs have the right to hike their own salary? Why is Modi not paying attention to what Varun Gandhi has so rightly said? Why MPs and MLAs waste taxpayers money by shouting so much inside House yet they receive full salary? Why their salary is not deducted for their unparliamentary behaviour? Why rowdy MPs and MLAs are not fined?
                                                To put things in perspective, Varun Gandhi very rightly said that, “The Winter Session, 2016, hit a low-point of 16 percent. It is shameful. Taxation Bills, as significant as Aadhaar were passedwithin two weeks without being referred to a Committee”. What wrong has Varun Gandhi said? Why is Centre not deliberating on it?
                                                 Be it noted, while Varun Gandhi hit out at the practice of lawmakers too often raising the demand for a salary hike, he also very rightly pointed out that the Jawaharlal Nehru Cabinet at its first meeting had taken a collective decision not to avail salaries for six months in view of the people’s sufferings at the time. But what we see now is just the opposite. Our PM Narendra Modi has just no compunctions in putting the common man at inconvenience by ushering in notebandhi but under no circumstances is he is prepared to question MPs right to hike their own salaries whenever they want and that too without working much! Is it fair?
                                                 As things stand, we all know how just recently Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah had expressed their displeasure at MPs being absent from Rajya Sabha despite a whip! Nearly 17 BJP MPs including Ministers were missing from the House when a united Opposition determinedly pushed for certain changes in the Constitution Amendment Bill to set up a National Commission for Backward Classes with Constitutional status! Do they still deserve full salary? Yes, this is what they are getting even after bunking without any valid reason whatsoever!
                                                   It must be revealed here that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar himself told reporters that, “When the party issues a whip, members must be present in the House. The party president has taken a serious view of the absence of members. It should not have happened and must not be repeated.” But we all know that it will be repeated again and again! Why? It is because whether they attend Parliament or not or whether they show up Parliament once in a blue moon like we see in the case of Sachin Tendulkar or Rekha or others still they will get full salary and there will be no deduction of their salary!
                                                Needless to say, I must express my utmost disgust at the manner in which Members of Parliament (MPs) repeatedly misbehave with the Speaker and still get away with either very light punishment or no punishment at all! This must end now once and for all. No more condoning of such unruly behaviour by MPs who are a disgrace to the entire nation! At the first place, why is there so much of tolerance for such a shameful behaviour?  
                                      Truth be told, it may be recalled here that Samajwadi Party lawmaker Akshay Yadav was censured last year after he threw bits of paper at Speaker – Sumitra Mahajan as Opposition parties continued their protests against the old 500 and 1000 notes ban by the Centre when the Parliament convened. We all saw how an angry Ms Mahajan adjourned the House. She was visibly upset by such atrocious conduct!
                                              Truly speaking, when the House reassembled, the Speaker Sumitra Mahajan reprimanded Akshay Yadav for his conduct. Sumitra minced no words in saying that, “This conduct is not proper on the part of the member and also for the dignity and prestige of the House.” He was let off lightly after a warning from Speaker to refrain from such activities in future.
                                                Let me not shy away from asking: Why should MPs be let off even after they misbehave with Speaker? Why are they being encouraged to indulge in such reprehensible acts by letting them off very lightly? Why should they not be permanently barred from entering Parliament or at least barred for the remainder of their term?
                                          Let me also ask some more unpalatable but pertinent questions here: Why in other services like Army or Civil Services are the officers immediately dismissed if they dare to throw papers at their seniors as it is deemed to be “gross misconduct”? Why only are politicians who become MPs or MLAs exempted from it? Why are they treated in such a VVIP manner even though they never tire in calling themselves “public servants”?
                                                    Why are they also not immediately barred from entering Parliament or State Assembly again? Why should they be let off after a mere warning or expulsion for just a few days which has just no effect on them which alone explains why Speaker has to repeatedly face insult and humiliation from MPs? Why Centre is not making any strict law in this regard? Why is it taking all this for granted?
                                      Let me be upfront in asking: Why if Speaker refuse to concede to the demands of MPs which is the exclusive prerogative of Speaker to concede or not to concede do they start throwing papers at Speaker? Why can’t MPs be more civilized in their behaviour? Why do they have the liberty to insult Speaker as and when they like and yet continue to enjoy all the privileges of MPs and at the most get expelled for just few days not even months or years or for life?
                                       Let me also be upfront in asking: Why some MPs think that it is their fundamental right to throw papers at Speaker? Why PM, Opposition Leader and MPs feel that throwing of papers should be taken very lightly and under no circumstances should they be expelled except for some few days? Are they not guilty of abetting MPs to time and again indulge in such unruly acts? Why they feel that issue should not be made of it and slight condemnation is enough? Why strict rules are not being framed so that those who don’t know how to behave properly are barred from ever entering Parliament again?  
                                        No prizes for guessing that once again on July 24 the Lok Sabha Speaker had to face unruly behaviour from MPs. Topics such as open defecation problem, mob lynchings and attack on Dalits were sought to be highlighted by the Opposition. Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge put forward an adjournment motion notice pertaining to mob lynchings and attacks on Dalits which was rejected by the House. He claimed the Opposition was not given a chance to speak.         
                                           Let me be quick to ask here: Does this give an unfettered licence to MPs to indulge in gross misconduct by throwing papers at Speaker or start shouting at the top of their voices or tearing papers and throwing them all around in Parliament? Why all politicians feel that all this should be overlooked as MPs enjoy certain privileges? Should this be considered a privilege that MPs insult and humiliate a Speaker and that too a woman Speaker? Why is PM Narendra Modi silent on it?
                                             What is most shocking is that 6 Congressmen who misbehaved were suspended for just 5 days which means that they have been given the unfettered licence to again after coming to Parliament indulge in similar misbehaviour and again face expulsion for just 5 days or so or even let off after a light reprimand which makes no difference to them at all! The suspended members are G Gogoi, K Suresh, Adhiranjan Chowdhary, Ranjeet Ranjan, Sushmita Dev and MK Raghavan.      
                                             Let me now also ask some more thought provoking questions: Should all Indians be proud that these 6 Congressmen who had the gall to misbehave with Speaker have been expelled for just 5 days? Why are there no strict rules that if any MP ever dares to throw papers at Speaker, he/she would be barred for life from entering Parliament? Why so lenient rules for MPs? Are such lenient rules not encouraging them to time and again storm to the well of the House and openly misbehave with Speaker as they like and yet continue being the Hon’ble MP?
                                            Let me also not shy away from asking here some more pertinent questions: Why are all MPs including Speaker so conspicuously silent on it? Why should MPs be allowed to throw papers at Speaker and then get away with it by just a slight reprimand or expulsion at the most for few days as we saw recently in the case of these 6 Congressmen? When will this shameful mockery end? How long will the reputed Chair of Speaker be insulted by MPs so brazenly only to come back again to Parliament and repeat the same act?
                                                        Can anyone tell me: Why MPs have the liberty to shout as much as they like in Parliament and instead of spending time on relevant things waste time by shouting due to which crores of taxpayers money are frittered away at the drop of a hat and not stopping here further throw papers at Speaker and still continue being MPs for the rest of their life and get away with just a reprimand or few days expulsion from the House? Why should such unruly MPs not be banned for life from entering Parliament? Why should they not be jailed for few years for insulting Speaker? Why should they be paid any salary for being an MP when they don’t even know how to behave inside Parliament?
                                           Truth be told, Sumitra Mahajan was candid enough to say that, “Sad with what happened. Question Hour should never be disrupted. Had told Kharge Ji, I will allow him to speak after Question Hour.” She also said that, “Creating ruckus at Well is non-disciplinary in itself but tearing up paper and throwing it on Speaker 4 times was worse.” Needless to say, the MPs threw pieces of paper and disrupted proceedings during the zero hour. The Speaker suspended them and adjourned the Lok Sabha till 2.30.
                                                 Truly speaking, this is not the first time that Congress MPs have been suspended for few days for their unruly behaviour. It may be recalled here that in 2015 also, the Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan had suspended 25 Congress MPs again for just five days for “persistently and willfully obstructing” the House. For how long will this be tolerated quietly? For how long will PM Narendra Modi keep a deafening silence on it?
                                        All Indians must also ask themselves these highly relevant but totally neglected questions: For how long will MPs continue to throw papers and insult Speaker and laugh at being expelled for just few days not more than 5 days as we saw just recently and as we saw in 2015? Should we all be proud of this? Should such unruly MPs not be shown the door for the whole life or at least expelled for the remaining term? How long will Centre take no action on this which concerns the high office of Speaker itself? Who will like to become Speaker if such reprehensible acts are allowed to continue unabated and unpunished?  
                                           As if this is not enough, let me also ask here: Why is no news channel or no magazine or no one in media is debating it seriously? Why MPs have the privilege to throw papers at Speaker and escape with just 5 days expulsion from the House? Why even after 70 years of independence we see no strict rules being framed in this regard? This open mockery and most reprehensible act cannot be just condoned by expelling them for a few days.
                                                It needs no rocket scientist to conclude that it is high time and now they must be barred for the rest of their life so that the right message goes out to all MPs that those who can’t respect Speaker have no right to be a MP! How many of us are aware that Speaker office comes above even  the CJI? Should it be still insulted in such a brazen manner by MPs on the ground that they have been elected to represent people and raise their voice in Parliament?
                                                      Let me hasten to add here: Protest has to be done in a well dignified manner as we see in case of eminent MPs from all parties who never indulge in such unruly behaviour! Let there be no doubt on this! Mayawati also protested and even resigned but she didn’t throw papers at Speaker! That is the proper way!
                                                   All said and done, Parliament cannot be allowed to become a dirty fish market where conduct does not matter at all! Most unfortunately, this is what we are seeing in Parliament right now! How long will this reprehensible status quo continue? All MPs must realize this! The earlier they do, the better it shall be for the healthy functioning of our democratic system.
                                      There can be no gainsaying the irrefutable truth that Parliament is the biggest citadel of democracy and few MPs cannot be allowed to hijack it and run it as they like without being checked by anyone or being allowed to escape very lightly! Such unruly MPs must be barred permanently from entering Parliament because they are just not fit for it! When once MPs will be shown the door for life for misbehaving with Speaker, no MP will have the audacity to ever dare to again misbehave with Speaker right inside the House!
                                               But the moot question that arises here is: Will majority of MPs ever allow this to happen has it is they themselves who will be directly affected by such strict rules? MPs only know how to make rules for another but when it comes to them they are not ready for any change and feel that MPs have the right to contest from jails and even if some one is barred from all government jobs because he/she has criminal cases pending against him/her even though they may be false but when it comes to becoming MPs then even dacoits like the former bandit queen Phoolan Devi or anyone else have every right to become an MP! Can this ever be justified? Still our MPs justify this and say that all cases against them are “politically motivated”!
                                                 But what about unruly behaviour inside Parliament? For this also they will give hundred reasons! Most unfortunately, here too they are allowed to have the last laugh and continue as MP in spite of misbehaving with Speaker! Why no serious attempt has ever been made by any government to permanently disqualify all such MPs who misbehave with not just Speaker but with anybody else?
                                               Why we see MPs hurling abuses on aeroplane while interacting with some staff official as we saw recently when a Shiv Sena MP slapped an official and even hurled abuses or with anyone else and yet not be expelled from Parliament? Why strict rules and regulations are there for only all other services and departments? Why similar rules not for MPs and MLAs?
                                                   Why they are treated as being above law? Why they are allowed to decide their own salary when we don’t see this happening in any other department? We have seen how they raise their salary 100 times or 10 times as per their whims and fancies! This too must end!   
                                                    It must be said that a beginning can be made in this direction by at least banning all those MPs and MLAs who misbehave with Speaker or with anyone who is presiding the concerned House! But again the moot questions are: Will this beginning ever be made? Will MPs and MLAs ever allow it to happen? Will the time ever come in our nation when those misbehaving with Speaker or with anyone presiding the House would be barred for life so that only those who display exemplary conduct are allowed to continue as MPs and MLAs? It is our national image that will enhance if this happens and huge taxpayers money won’t be wasted because of the shouting brigade who would then find no place in Parliament or in any State Assembly to sit and create a ruckus, throw papers at Speaker or at anyone who is presiding the concerned House and yet continue as Member of that House!             
                                            MPs very strongly feel that they themselves have the right to determine their own salary and hike it as much as they want and whenever they want! But still Modi who has declared war on corruption feels that there is nothing wrong on it and MPs are a special class! Why should MPs get full salary when they don’t even turn up when their own party issues whip to participate and vote on important matters?
                                      What a pity that PM Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah repeatedly keep appealing to be present in Parliament during sessions but all their request fall on deaf ears! Still do such MPs deserve to be paid full salary? Why when PM Modi wastes no time in punishing those bureaucrats who don’t do their work properly take no action against such MPs who have just no time to attend Parliament even when important sessions take place?
                                        On a concluding note, let me say it loud and clear: The time is ripe now for ushering in what Varun Gandhi has very rightly demanded! All credit to him! MPs should have no right to hike their own salary! This must be ended now once and for all. An expert body of retired Supreme Court Judges, eminent intellectuals and economists should decide what should be the salary of MPs and MLAs and they alone should have the right to decide when the hike is to be done and payment must be in proportion to their performance! Why Modi does not say a single word on this? Is he even bothered to ponder deeply on this? When deadwood in bureaucracy and other professions can be thrown out then why should deadwood MPs and MLAs be allowed to enjoy unfettered freedom to hike their own salary and keep taking salary inspite of enjoying in foreign countries or in tourist hotspots? When will Modi declare a war on this or will they be allowed to make merry like Vijay Mallya who fled India even after not paying the salary of his employees since last so many months and not paying a whooping loan of more than 9000 crore from so many different banks and is now living a luxurious life in England which always grant safe asylum to such offenders from other countries? This burning issue raised most wisely by Varun Gandhi must be taken most seriously by not just PM Narendra Modi but also by all parties equally because there is a heartburn among the common man and this heartburn is what has been very rightly and forcefully raised by Varun Gandhi right inside Parliament! It cannot be permanently kept in cold storage as this will only worsen the explosive situation and it won’t be long before things finally explode for which PM and all MPs would be equally responsible! Do they want this to happen? It is for them to introspect and answer!
by:
Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi,
A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera,
Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.

Dera Head Gets 20 Years In Jail For Raping Sadhvis

Coming straight to the core issue, a Special CBI Court set up in the Rohtak jail on August 28 sentenced Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to 20 years rigorous imprisonment for raping two sadhvis inside the Sirsa dera in 2002. The Judge handed down 10 years sentence each in the two rape cases. HPS Verma who is CBI counsel disclosed that, “The sentence shall not run concurrent. It means he shall remain inside the jail for 20 years. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 30 lakh on the Dera chief, Rs 15 lakh in each of the two cases, which will be payable to the victims.” Counsel for the dera head, senior advocate SK Garg Narwana told journalists that both the jail terms would run consecutively, not concurrently and he would appeal the verdict to the High Court.
Dera Head Gets 20 Years In Jail For Raping Sadhvis

                                               Strictly speaking, I personally just don’t approve of life term as I believe it to be the most cruel punishment. But let me add in the same vein that  I also believe that as long as it exists in our legal system, it must be awarded to all such Babas who first fool victim that they will get salvation by giving them gurumantra only to be raped most brutally! No other punishment should be given to them! No 10 years or 20 years or 30 years! Nothing doing! Only and only life which means whole life in jail!  Same should be the case with child rapists and gang rapists!
                                               While craving for the exclusive indulgence of my esteemed readers, let me inform them that Special CBI Judge – Jagdeep Singh also slapped a fine of Rs 30 lakh on the preacher. Of this, Rs 28 lakh will be divided between the two survivors who stuck to their statements over the past 15 years despite unrelenting pressure from various quarters with threats to even eliminate them! The library of the jail complex was converted into a courtroom for the hearing. Let me now briefly state the entire sequence of events of the day when Ram Rahim was sentenced to jail. It is as follows: –
2.15 pm – Judge reaches Sunaria jail complex via chopper
2.30 pm – Court resumes hearing, the counsels reach the jail and present their version
2.40 pm – Accused reaches courtroom
3.15 pm – Judge sentences accused to rigorous imprisonment
                                        For my esteemed readers exclusive indulgence, let me also inform them that after sentence was pronounced on him, he was virtually in tears. The Dera chief kept repeating that he was innocent and had been framed in a false case. He also said that he did not want to go to jail. He refused to leave the makeshift courtroom and insisted that he did not want to go back to the jail barracks. He also complained to the judge that he wasn’t given tea when he asked for it. What he forgot was that he was there not as a preacher but as a prisoner who was sentenced to jail for committing rape of two sadhvis. 
                                              Be it noted, during arguments, the CBI counsel demanded harsh punishment for the dera head given the heinous nature of the crime and the fact that the sadhvis were in his shelter who trusted him fully only to be betrayed most grievously! Narwana who defended Ram Rahim spared no effort to seek a mild sentence considering Gurmeet’s contribution to society. After he was sentenced to 20 years jail term, he broke down and kept holding a chair and pleaded before the Judge to reduce the jail term.
                                              Be it noted, given that Gurmeet Ram Rahim did not spend a single day in jail after being booked for rape in 2002, he will now have to spend at least half his sentence behind bars before he becomes eligible for bail. However, it must be clarified here that it is entirely the Judge’s discretion whether to give bail or not. I personally feel that there should be no bail for heinous crimes like rape which can never be justified under any circumstances and this “dangerous discretion bomb” must be permanently removed. There can be no mitigating circumstances for a heinous crime like rape!
                                               Let me now jog back my readers memory a little back. It is imperative to do this so that the entire sequence of events in which this high profile case proceeded in the last more than 15 years can be understood properly. It runs as follows: –
2002: Anonymous letters addressed to the Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the then Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana high Court alleged that sexual exploitation of women followers took place at the grand mansion of Dera Sacha Sauda in Sirsa. The sadhvis had accused Ram Rahim of rape. While most of the recepients chose not to react, the High Court took cognizance and directed the then District and Sessions Judge in Sirsa – MS Sular to conduct an inquiry into the matter. In his report, Sular did not rule out the possibility of such acts in dera but said nobody there was prepared to speak about the sexual abuse and there was no way to access the hostel where sadhvis were living without permission from Gurmeet Ram Rahim or authorities.
July 2002: The controversy deepened after a journalist – Ram Chander Chhatrapati is allegedly shot dead by Dera followers, as he was suspected to have written the letters.
September 24, 2002: Punjab and Haryana High Court converted the complaint into a criminal petition as the Judge in Sirsa MS Sular had recommended that the matter be investigated through a central agency and passed an order directing CBI to investigate the allegations.
December 2002: CBI Chandigarh registered a case on December 12, 2002 and began a formal probe.
September 6, 2008: Special CBI court frames charges against Ram Rahim under Sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC.
April 5, 2011: Special CBI court shifts from Ambala to Panchkula. The case is transferred to the Panchkula CBI court.
August 17, 2017: Special CBI Judge Jagdeep Singh reserves verdict for August 25.
August 23, 2017: Security beefed up after nearly 50,000 followers gathered in Panchkula, Haryana, ahead of the CBI verdict anticipated on August 25.
August 24, 2017: Ram Rahim tweets that he would be present in the court despite back pain. To prevent tension, the governments of Punjab and Haryana declare holiday and suspended internet services.
August 28, 2017: Ram Rahim is sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment by CBI Special Court Judge Jagdeep Singh at a specially set up court inside the library of the District Jail in Sunaria near Rohtak in Haryana. The Judge also snubbed the prosecution agency for providing VIP treatment to the accused and specifically asked about permitting the accused for carrying a special luggage along with him.
                                               All said and done, this 20 years sentence is a very small step that has come too late. It should have been life term and this decision too should have come a lot earlier about 14 years back! Also, such Babas who sexually exploit their female followers must be given the harshest punishment as their criminal act by exploiting the blind faith of their followers cannot be justified under any mitigating circumstances! One sincerely hopes that High Court and Supreme Court will finally award the strictest sentence to him and not allow him to go scot free or escape with a lesser jail term! Only then will a loud and clear message will go out to all such characterless Babas that they cannot get away after committing heinous crimes like rape under any circumstances!  

Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi,
A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera,
Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.

Apex Court Reserves Order On Bail Plea Of Lt Col Purohit

It is the worst travesty of justice that a serving Army officer – Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit with impeccable track record of more than 14 years before he was wrongly framed in 2008 by those as a “terrorist” who didn’t like his going after terrorists who were planning to carry out the Mumbai terror attack as we saw also on 26/11! For being an upright officer what he got in reward was more than 9 years in jail and custodial torture to the extent that we can’t even dream of and yet even till now charges have not been framed against him! This is because there was no “hard evidence” against him and ATS with connivance of a senior Army officer spared no opportunity to implicate him falsely!
Apex Court Reserves Order On Bail Plea Of Lt Col Purohit

                                            I am sorry to say but his plight is worse than even Kulbhushan Jadhav who too was wrongly implicated as a terrorist but this happened in Pakistan and not in India which is his own country!  Not one or two or seven but seventy six Army officers who had served with him earlier testified to his being an upright and committed officer but India trusted Mumbai ATS who are notorious for wrongly implicating innocents and here they didn’t spare even an honest and committed Army officer like Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit! What has happened with Lt Colonel Purohit should not happen even with a terrorist! Even Nasik Police Chief whose jurisdiction extended to Malegaon had commended Lt Col Purohit for actively working to expose terrorists funded directly from Pakistan! Can all this be dismissed lightly? NIA too it must be said with dismay has not crowned itself with glory by keeping quiet for 9 years which is a very long time!
                                          Needless to say, Lt Colonel Purohit was regularly informing his superiors in Army informed about what all he was doing yet NIA didn’t care to listen his version properly! Is it a coincidence that Mumbai terror attack of 26/11 happened just months after his arrest? Why such a senior Army officer was treated so shabbily? Why was he wrongly framed as a terrorist without any valid reason?
                                       More intriguingly, why when he was working to expose those who supported terrorism locally was he himself arrested, tortured and branded a terrorist and for 9 years not a single evidence was produced before any court? All this must be investigated impartially and truth must come out! The bold Army officer who was the only one to help Mumbai ATS in falsely implicating Lt Colonel Purohit and get him arrested breaking all norms and who has not produced a single shred of evidence in any court even after 9 years must be taken to task and not allowed to go scot free!
                                                  Let me be direct in asking: Who will compensate him for the 9 years that he, his wife and his children have suffered endlessly? There can be no compensation that can compensate for the terrible sufferings he and his family had to undergo! His wife and children had to hear “She is a wife of terrorist and they are children of terrorist”! I am sorry to say but even Army has not held his hand when he needed it most to which he was fully entitled also thus letting him down most unfairly and this is the worst tragedy! However, I am extremely happy to note that one of the most reputed and trustworthy lawyer of our country who is also a former Solicitor General – Harish Salve who recently took up Kulbhushan Jadhav case at ICJ in Hague and defended it successfully has taken up his case and I am sure that now at least he will get justice from the highest court!  
                                               Be it noted, Supreme Court has reserved its verdict on a plea of Lieutenant Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit seeking interim bail in the 2008 Malegaon blast case after Bombay High Court had earlier dismissed his bail plea. A Bench of Justices RK Agarwal and AM Sapre said it will pass an order on the plea. During the hearing, senior advocate and former Solicitor General Harish Salve who just some months back had successfully defended Kulbhushan Jadhav in ICJ said that he has been in jail for the past nine years but charges have still not been framed against him! He said the MCOCA charge has already been dropped against him and therefore he is entitled to get interim bail! Our whole judicial system should be ashamed that a serving Army Officer is designated a terrorist by Mumbai ATS but for last nine years no charges have been framed against him! This itself is the strongest testimony to prove that how strong case Mumbai ATS has against Lt Col Purohit!
                                        To put things in perspective, while seeking bail in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case, Lt Col Shrikant Purohit made it clear to the Supreme Court that he was caught in a “political crossfire” and was falsely implicated. But the NIA while opposing his plea accused him of running Abhinav Bharat which NIA alleged is an outfit promoting fundamentalism and unlawful activities. One is tempted to ask here: Is Abhinav Bharat an unlawful organisation? Also, why Hurriyat leaders who openly rant against India, chant anti-India slogans, indulge in unlawful activities and get funded hugely from Pakistan due to which they have amassed huge money empire and purchased properties all across the country have not been sent to jail for 9 years as we see in case of Lt Col Shrikant Purohit? Why those Hurriyat leaders who had a hand in murder of Kashmiri Hindus when they fled Kashmir in lakhs way back in 1989 were all released from jail and till now they are roaming scot free?
                                        Anyway, coming back to Lt Colonel Purohit’s case, his senior counsel Harish Salve contended that the officer attended meetings of Abhinav Bharat as an “Army mole” and was not involved in terrorist activities. He rightly said that there were “big holes” in the probe which is why another accused Pragya Singh Thakur was granted bail. Harish Salve made a strong case for bail to be granted to Lt Col Purohit by pointing out that, “My client has been in jail for nine years but charges have not been framed. Since 2001, he has got numerous recommendations (as intelligence officer). I am not asking for discharge but give interim bail after nine years of incarceration till framing of charges in the case.”  He also pointed out that Purohit had informed seniors about inputs that he received from the meetings of Abhinav Bharat and there were infirmities in the probe conducted by the Maharashtra ATS and NIA. Why was all this overlooked?
                                        Of course, senior advocate Harish Salve also pointed to several glaring inconsistencies in the Bombay High Court verdict of April 25 that denied bail to his client – Lt Col Purohit. He said a Court of Inquiry (COI) had confirmed that his attendance at the Abhinav Bharat organisation’s meetings was to gather intelligence  inputs about its activities. “It was not a banned organisation under the law,” Salve told a Bench headed by Justice RK Agrawal that reserved its verdict on the bail application.
                                       Be it noted, Salve said that the NIA chargesheet had virtually absolved his client and the High Court of Bombay had erred in holding that the COI documents could not be relied upon at the stage of bail. Why could the COI documents not be relied upon? COI was conducted properly as per rules and regulations and no rule was broken anywhere in conducting it!
     
                                         Not stopping here, Harish Salve said on behalf of his client that, “The allegation against me is that I supplied explosive material on the conspiracy hatched by Sadhvi Pragya Thakur. Now if she is enlarged on bail and given a clean chit by the NIA, then the link between me and her is snapped.” Bombay High Court on April 25had given bail to Sadhvi Pragya who was the main accused and who headed Abhinav Bharat but rejected his plea even though he was just an “Army Mole”! Why this glaring disparity? Salve also rightly pointed out that, “My client has got himself caught in political crossfire. He has been in jail for nine years but still he is serving in the Indian Army. Since 2001, he has got numerous recommendations for infiltration. From an unsung hero, he has been now called an incarcerated hero.” Most shameful!
                                        Think logically: If he was a terrorist would he still be serving in the Indian Army? Would he not have been dismissed? Did he not pass all information about activities of Abhinav Bharat group who allegedly masterminded Malegaon bomb blast on September 29, 2008 in which seven people were killed and about 100 injured when a bomb strapped to a motorcycle exploded to his seniors? Have his seniors not testified about it? Still why he is being made the scapegoat? Why was he arrested at the first place? Why he was kept in illegal detention? Why was he not informed of being arrested for a terror offence and why was he deceived? Why was he brutally tortured? Why initially he was arrested for something else?
                                  While arguing brilliantly, Harish Salve said the Maharashtra ATS mentioned in its charge sheet that he had attended the meetings of Abhinav Bharat. Going forward, Salve asked: “Yes, I attended certain meetings, but as a military mole. I was doing my duty. The court says it will look into the ATS chargesheet at the stage of trial and refuses interim bail even as charges are not framed against me. What kind of criminal justice system is this?” Very rightly said! Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur who was also a co-accused and headed meetings of Abhinav Bharat was granted bail by Bombay High Court but Lt Colonel Purohit who attended meeting as “Army Mole” was refused bail even after nine years! This is really atrocious!
                                          What is even more unfortunate is that many newschannels left no stone unturned in showing it in their Primetime News shows that how Purohit was trying to make India a Hindu country, how he was trying to overthrow democracy and what not nonsense! Disgraceful! Is this is how journalism is done without even investigating properly the whole matter? Why the real truth was not brought out before the public? The real truth must come before the people!
                                           The billion dollar question that arises here is: Does an Army Officer of the rank of Lieutenant Colonel enjoy no reputation? Should his past track record not have been taken into account? Salve rightly said that, “After nine years, a man is entitled to see the sun outside the jail.” He argued that Purohit was falsely implicated by the ATS and no report was filed after eight years of a Court of Inquiry.
                                      To put it mildly, we all know that Lt Col Purohit was exonerated of all charges by Court of Inquiry! Still he was treated as if he was a terrorist and just some time back one terrorist it was reported in a newschannel had confessed that the Malegaon attack for which Lt Col Purohit was jailed for 9 years was carried out by a Pakistan based terror outfit! Should all this not be investigated impartially?
                                     As things stand, while denying his involvement in the incident, Purohit told the court that even assuming that the charges that he had supplied the bomb were true, even then he would have to be out of jail as the offence attracted a maximum of seven years imprisonment. Why is he still in jail after nine years when no charges have been proved against him and even a chargesheet has not been filed against him? Why his arrest was not carried out as per procedure? Why he was deceived and then arrested by another Army Officer who it is alleged had even tortured him and till now has not produced even a single shred of evidence against him? Why Lt Col Purohit has been made to suffer so much that he is in jail for nine years even though the maximum term for the offence for which he was charged was just seven years? Who are the powerful forces who are not allowing truth to come out?
                                          There are many unanswered troubling questions that must be answered: Why NIA had to file a separate chargesheet stating that ATS had planted the RDX found from Purohit’s house? Why ATS planted RDX  found from Purohit’s house? What does all this prove? Why ATS was hell bent in implicating Purohit as a terrorist? Was it at the instance of some political party? Why MCOCA charges were also dropped? Why it has taken 9 years for the case to move at snail’s pace and still till date no charges have been framed against him as Harish Salve has pointed out? Truth must come out finally!
                                    As it turned out, it was most dismaying to see that some news channels even before the case is pronounced by the Courts not just labelled him a “Hindu Terrorist” but also levelled many other serious charges against him and they have not been able to substantiate it in any court! They were nothing but a bunch of lies that were bundled together! But it certainly served to tarnish his image because very few know the real truth! It is a national shame! Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh while appearing for the National Investigation Agency (NIA), said there was some evidence against him which would help in framing of charge! Even an illiterate person will have the common sense to ask: Why no charge framed against him for 9 years if there was evidence against him?
                                             We all must ask: Why for nearly nine years a serving army officer of the armed forces and that too of the intelligence wing was made to suffer all sorts of humiliation along with jail and yet not even chargesheet has been filed against him leave alone trial being started! Is this the way a nation treats its officers? What message is being sent to future aspirants who want to join the Indian Army?
                                 It must be asked: If there was an open and shut case against him as those who arrested him projected then why after nine years they have not been able to even file a  chargesheet and why they have not produced any evidence before the court? How can any person leave alone army officer be made to wear the tag of a terrorist without giving him any opportunity to defend himself in last nine years? Why the Mumbai ATS did not frame charges for 9 years if they had evidence to prove that Lt Colonel Purohit is a terrorist? Why RDX was planted in his house as NIA alleged?
                                          It must also be asked: How long will police keep the nation waiting? Who will be responsible if it is found that there is no evidence against Purohit and others? Why a UN report which mentioned that a Pakistan based terror group was responsible for the terror attack yet Purohit who as intelligence officer was providing information on terrorist was himself implicated instead? Why no evidence has been produced against him?
                                    May I ask here: Why even a bench of Supreme Court comprising of Justices FMI Kalifulla and Abhay Manohar Sapre said that, “There was no concrete evidence to show their involvement in any other criminal case and the trial court should decide their bail plea on merit, preferablywithin one month”? Was it just for fun that two Judges and that too serving judges of our highest court – Supreme Court are saying that there was no concrete evidence to show their involvement in any other criminal case? Why Supreme Court said there was considerable doubt about the involvement of those charged under the MCOCA?
                                          May I also ask here: Why trial court didn’t decide their bail plea nearly nine years back and why Lt Col Purohit was made to suffer along with Sadhvi Pragya Thakur in jail where their health deteriorated thus grossly violating their legal rights? What was the compelling circumstance that police decided to keep a serving army officer of the rank of Lt Colonel in jail for nearly nine years without producing any evidence against him in any court? Why even the Court of Inquiry (CoI) conducted by Army found Lt Col Purohit not guilty as Harish Salve rightly pointed out? This itself proves that there is more to it than meets the eye and his arrest along with others was done as part of a grand political conspiracy to keep the ruling elite happy and to be on their right side!             
                                       It also must be asked: Why for nearly nine years Lt Colonel Purohit was not shown even the army documents which he had a right to see? Why it is that only  after the ex Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar  himself personally intervened to make it clear that the main accused in the Malegaon and Samjhauta blasts, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, would be given access to documents he had sought to enable him to prove his innocence? Why was he denied even his basic legal right for such a long time? Who were those army officers who didn’t want that he should be shown any documents and why? They must explain!
                                          Let me also be direct in asking: Why such a senior army officer of the rank of Major General and having an impeccable reputation whom we keep listening in most of the news channels speaking always about defence and our national interests – GD Bakshi keeps crying foul on the ghoulish manner in which Lt Colonel Purohit was falsely implicated and he was made a fall guy while the real culprits were allowed to run away? Why so many other Army officers 76 who had earlier served with him have all hailed him as “a man of courage, conviction with firm uprighteousness”? Are they all speaking lies and only Mumbai ATS and one odd Army officer who falsely implicated him and who has kept quiet for 9 years by not producing any evidence in any court speaking truth? 
                                          Why RSN Singh a retired officer of RAW whom again we keep listening in various news channels talking always about our national interests writes in his cover story titled “Col Purohit : A Victim Of Hindu Terror Industry” published in Uday India magazine dated March 22, 2014 that, “It is a travesty to paint Purohit as the Indian Osama Bin Laden. Going by the selective and flip-flop leaks by the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra, and the manner in which the media is lapping it up, it appears that there is a concerted bid to make an ‘Osama bin Laden’ out of Lt Col Purohit, and prove that Sadhvi Pragya and her accomplices are the new ‘Hindu jihadis’. The credulity of the general public is being stretched on various scores. Firstly, the speed at which fresh revelations are being disseminated by the ATS, is in complete disregard to professional propriety. Secondly, the unprecedented number of narco tests the accused are being subjected to. Thirdly, there is a total blankout with regard to the version of the accused. Fourthly, with every passing day, the network is being enlarged; as if to suggest that the entire country is being consumed by ‘Hindu terrorism’, and has pan-Indian dimension. Fifthly, if intercepts of some of the accused were available prior to the blasts, why were no pre-emptive measures taken? Sixthly, no army representative has been included in the interrogation team. Seventhly, the most intriguing aspect is the timing of the investigations—on the eve of elections.”
                                              Truth be told, Lt Col Purohit claimed that he had been framed in the Samjhauta blasts while he had successfully infiltrated various terror groups such as the Indian Mujahideen and the SIMI. He said with tears in his eyes that, “I have been robbed of honour, dignity and rank and punished for serving the nation”. Why Army has not spoken openly in his defence even though CoI conducted by Army found him not guilty? Why politicians are silent on this? Why Army Generals except one or two like GD Bakshi (retd) are silent on this? What a tragedy that Indian politicians go out of the way to invite Pakistani invaders like Gen Pervez Musharraf who masterminded Kargil war in which we lost officially more than 600 soldiers and treat him like a royal emperor but care two hoots for Indian officers like Lt Col Purohit who at the risk of their own lives penetrate inside enemy camp only to be themselves labeled a terrorist! Captain Saurav Kalia was brutally tortured by Pakistani soldiers and terrorists but Lt Col Purohit is even more unlucky as he was tortured most brutally not for just 22 days but for nearly 9 years to force him to give a confession not by any Pakistani army or terrorist or ISI but by Indian police, Indian intelligence and all donning uniform of India which is his own nation and not Pakistan! Kashmiri separatists leaders openly rant against India, wave flags of ISIS and Pakistan, are known for their proximity to terror leaders but yet they are not arrested but an army officer with a distinguished track record like Lt Col Purohit is arrested and kept in jail without even filing a chargesheet for nearly 9 years! Disgusting!
                                         Anyway coming back to the main subject, incidentally, NIA Director General Sharad Kumar had clarified that Lt Col Purohit was never an accused in the Samjhauta blasts case. However, he had been charge-sheeted by the Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad in the Malegaon blast case, and the NIA was investigating the matter. Does it take nine years to file chargesheet?
                                             I am hundred percent convinced that he is not a terrorist rather is “a victim of most dangerous political conspiracy hatched up in cahoots with some senior police officers and some in the army”. If there was even an iota of proof against him that proof would not have been taken to any temple or any other religious place for some hawan or puja for nearly nine years but produced before the court! Just because a person sets up an organization or even has hardline views is no ground to send him to jail and keep him languishing there for nearly 9 years without even showing him the chargesheet and without producing him even before the lowest court!
                                         You can dismiss what I say lightly but certainly not what Supreme Court says or a senior army officer of the stature of Gen GD Bakshi or a former RAW officer Col RSN Singh or 76 Army officers says and whom we always love to hear in various news channels because they always speak keeping in mind our national interests first and not any regional or religion interest first! Even the seniors of Lt Col Purohit confirm him as “over zealous officer” and profusely praised him but in his bad days he was left in the lurch to suffer all alone by himself with no one standing near him to defend! If this is the way in which an intelligence officer is treated for doing his duty then who will like to take risk only to be himself labelled a terrorist? This is terrible!
                                           It needs no rocket scientist to conclude that justice must not only be done in Lt Col Purohit’s case but also seen to be done! By not filing even a chargesheet in last nearly 9 years several questions have been thrown up and all those who are responsible for this needs to be taken to task! NHRC must itself also investigate the matter and all those who tortured Lt Col Purohit must themselves be sent behind bars and taken to task for their misdeeds and misdemeanours!
                                        Here it must be said:  What Lt Col Purohit’s family is bearing and what he himself is bearing that only they themselves can understand best! Punish them with the strictest punishment if they are terrorists but facts on ground indicate otherwise! I have not seen one Army Officer speaking against Lt Col Purohit till now openly in any news channel not even that Army Officer who it is alleged was hands-in-glove with Mumbai ATS in falsely implicating him because of the personal grudge that he held against him! Why deafening silence? It is because there is no strong case against him!
                                               In the ultimate analysis, it will not be an exaggeration if I say that this case is not just of Lt Col Purohit alone! This is attached directly with Army’s impeccable reputation which has unnecessarily been sought to be damaged by those having vested interests without producing any hard evidence for 9 years and worst of all, by not even filing any charges against him till now! If Lt Col Purohit is given bail it will not be any big favour to him but he will get what he should have got 9 years back!
                                             In hindsight, it must be said that he has been in jail for last 9 years without committing any crime except his job with supreme dedication so much so that he didn’t care even for his own personal safety! All those who are responsible for torturing him and for ensuring that he be wrongly framed as a terrorist and planted RDX in his house as NIA itself alleged must be arrested, probed independently by CBI and punished strictly once found to be involved neck deep in getting Lt Colonel Purohit falsely implicated in a terror case with which he was not even remotely connected! They should not be allowed to get away just like that as this sends a very wrong message that they can armtwist law and frame anyone as a terrorist without being questioned by anyone!
                                  All said and done, I am sure Supreme Court will consider all facts on the ground and deliver justice to Lt Colonel Purohit by not only granting him bail but also ordering inquiry against those who have played an instrumental role in getting him falsely implicated as a terrorist and destroyed his whole career and reputation which he earned in his entire lifetime! Nine years in jail for a serving Army officer without dismissing him or producing any evidence against him and not even filing chargesheet against him for 9 years speaks volumes of how strong the case is against Lt Col Purohit! The jury is still out! Let’s wait and watch what happens! Truth must finally prevail! Justice should not be subverted! After a gruelling wait of 9 long years at least now Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit must get bail which has been due since such a long time! I have no doubt whatsoever that it is an open and shut case which is too palpable!
Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi,
A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera,
Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.   

SC Reserves Ruling On Privacy Being A Fundamental Right

To start with, the 9-Judge Bench of Supreme Court after hearing both sides reserved its verdict on the question whether privacy is a fundamental right under the Constitution or not. The marathon arguments that begin on July 19 lasted for six days. The judgment is likely to be pronounced before August 27, the date when the incumbent CJI JS Khehar demits office.
SC Reserves Ruling On Privacy Being A Fundamental Right

                                    There is no definite legal definition of privacy. It can be interpreted to mean various things like bodily integrity, protection from state surveillance, personal autonomy, dignity, confidentiality etc. Briefly stated, it has to be determined separately from case to case. It is not explicitly mentioned in Constitution but deemed to be included in Article 21.
                                 Now coming to international arena, Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 and Article 17 of the Internmational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), 1966, which India signed And ratified on April 10, 1979 in totality legally protects persons against “arbitrary interference with one’s privacy, family, home, correspondence, honour and reputation”. Also, Article 7 and 8 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, 2012, recognizes the respect for private and family life, home and communications. Article 8 specifically stipulates protection of personal data and its collection for a specified legitimate purpose.
                                     Coming back to main subject, the 9-Judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India JS Khehar included Justices DY Chandrachud, J Chelameswar, SK Kaul, SA Bobde, RF Nariman, AM Sapre, RK Agarwal and Abdul Nazeer reserved the order after petitioners’ counsels replied persuasively to the cogent arguments by the Centre and some States that privacy must be protected through statutory enactments and there was no need to elevate it to a fundamental right. Centre led by Attorney General KK Venugopal and a battery of senior lawyers appearing for BJP-ruled States who submitted that privacy need not be given a separate status of a fundamental right. Centre claimed that privacy was vague and amorphous and when a right is not defined, it cannot acquire status of a fundamental right.
                                              Be it noted, Venugopal argued that privacy is not a fundamental right and even if so assumed, it is a qualified right which must be subservient to the higher right of citizens to life. Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana followed suit by claiming that privacy is a facet of liberty and violation of right to privacy will necessarily be traced to infringement of any of the existing fundamental rights.
                                           Be it also noted, Venugopal also asserted that even if privacy is assumed to be a fundamental right under right to liberty of citizens, it must yield to the right to life of 270 million citizens who will receive the benefit of social welfare schemes with Aadhaar. He said, “A large section of the people would be deprived of their basic needs and rights if the claim of the petitioners to a fundamental right to privacy is accepted…Even otherwise, there can be no claim to a privacy right against identification for the purposes of public welfare and social schemes of the Government, and to plug leakages and corruption in the administration of such schemes.” He also said that, “In a developing country where millions of people are devoid of the basic necessities of life and do not even have shelter, food, clothing or jobs, and are forced to sleep on pavements even in  the height of winter, and perhaps, to die no claim to a right to privacy of the nature claimed in this case, a fundamental right would lie. Any such claim…would be based on an approach which is esoteric and elitist, in the light of allegation that Aadhaar would convert India into a totalitarian state.”
                                    To put things in perspective, Venugopal asserted that right to privacy could not be bundled as a single right in a developing country like India where a few persons claiming right to privacy override the fundamental rights of 60-70 million people who did not have access to basic amenities like food and shelter. He said: “We are a poor country. In Kalahandi, a mother is forced to sell her girl child for Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 who will eventually be taken to a brothel where her privacy and bodily integrity will be taken away.” Does this confer an unfettered licence on Centre to not grant right to privacy? Can poverty be a ground to deny right to privacy to citizens?
                                     Stretching his argument further, Venugopal contended that, “Under the MNREGA scheme, the government is giving money for the work done by people through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into their bank accounts. The money now goes directly into their bank accounts after being linked to Aadhaar which they never got earlier. Even the World Bank has appreciated the effort and said that this model should be adopted by other countries.” The Bench then rightly said that, “You want to make the DBT reach the beneficiaries. It’s alright as that can be the legitimate interest of the government.” Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman was more direct in saying that, “Don’t forget the little man’s right to privacy. Everything is not Aadhaar-centric. We are going to consider all aspects and give you a comprehensive judgment for conceptual clarity of the nation.”
    
                               In this context, it would be pertinent to note that Justice RF Nariman who is a member of the Bench led by CJI JS Khehar rightly posed a question to the Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta who opposed privacy being recognized as a fundamental right. Justice RF Nariman asked: “A one whole chapter in the Aadhaar Act deals with privacy interest. Is this not another legitimate recognition of it (privacy) being a fundamental right?” Earlier Justice SA Bobde wondered whether the Aadhaar Act of 2016 itself had any provisions to protect privacy. To this, Venugopal then pointed to Section 28 of the statute dealing with “security and confidentiality of information”. To this, Justice Bobde again shot back asking “So does this mean you do recognize privacy as a fundamental right?” The palpable answer is yes.    
                                      Also, I would like to point  out here that over the course of the various hearings in this landmark case, many thought provoking questions have been posed by the Supreme Court itself and they are as follows: What are the specific rights that come under the right to privacy? Does the right include family, sexual orientation, gender identity, surveillance, property, data protections, bodily integrity etc? What are the limitations that a state can pose on the right? It still remains to be seen as to what exactly the Supreme Court finally rules on this as the decision has been reserved. But one thing is clear: It is not so easy to answer all these with precision!        
                                                                                                  
                                             Challenging the stand of the Centre and States, senior advocate and former Law Minister Kapil Sibal appearing for Opposition-ruled States of West Bengal, Karnataka, Punjab and Union Territory of Chandigarh said that in this day and age the need for privacy is all the more essential considering the fact how technological advancement can allow State and non-State actors to pervade into private space of individuals. He said that, “Privacy cannot be an absolute right. But it is a Fundamental Right. This court needs to strike a balance. In the light of technological development, the court should take a fresh look on the Right to Privacy and its contours in the modern day.” He was supported by senior advocates Gopal Subramanium, Arvind Datar, Shyam Divan and Anand Grover who urged the Court to lay down privacy to be at the core of the Constitutionally recognized principles of liberty and dignity, and hence a fundamental right. No doubt, they argued exceptionally well to push forward their point.
                                  Truly speaking, the Bench then did ask the petitioners that if privacy essentially was liberty, then why distinguish it as a fundamental right. The Bench understood privacy to fall into three zones – intimate, private and public, and said that Government control would increase from the first to the last zone. Senior counsel Gopal Sankaranarayanan who appeared for the think tank Centre for Civil Society raised the point about apps. He said that, “When we use an app, it asks us whether it can access the contact list, pictures etc and we invariably say yes. Thus, we are waiving our privacy. But if we raise privacy to the status of a fundamental right, it cannot be waived”. A valid point.
                                             It may be recalled here that an eight-Judge Bench comprising the then Chief Justice Mehar Chand Mahajan and Justices B Jagannadhadas, Ghulam Hasan, Natwarlal H Bhagwati, TL Venkatarama Aiyyar, BK Mukherjea, Sundhi Ranjan Das and Vivian Bose in MP Sharma & Others v Satish Chandra, District Magistrate, Delhi & Others [1954 SCR 1077] dated March 15, 1954, it was held that, “A power of search and seizure is, in any system of jurisprudence, an overriding power of the State for the protection of social security and that power is necessarily regulated by law. When the Constitution makers have thought fit not to subject such regulation to constitutional limitations by recognition of the fundamental right to privacy, analogous to the American Fourth Amendment, there is no justification for importing into it, a totally different fundamental right by some process of strained construction.” Privacy was not recognized as a fundamental right.
                            Similarly in Kharak Singh v The State of UP & Others [1964 1 SCR 332] dated December 18, 1962, the writ petition was adjudicated by a six-Judge Bench comprising the then Chief Justice Bhuvaneshwar P Sinha and Justices N Rajagopala Ayyangar, Syed Jaffer Imam, K Subbarao, JC Shah and JR Mudholkar , the Bench struck down Clause (b) – domiciliary visits at night – of Regulation 236, but upheld the rest. The Bench also held that, “The right of privacy is not a guaranteed right under our Constitution, and therefore the attempt to ascertain the movements of an individual is merely a manner in which privacy is invaded and is not an infringement of a fundamental right guaranteed in Part III (fundamental rights).”
                                         In this case the petitioner Kharak Singh was challaned in a case of dacoity, but was released as there was no evidence against him. Uttar Pradesh Police subsequently opened a “history sheet” against him and brought him under “surveillance”. This was done in exercise of the powers under Chapter XX of the Uttar Pradesh Police Regulations. Regulation 236 authorised six measures of “surveillance”: (a) secret picketing of the house or approaches to the house of suspects; (b) domiciliary visits at night; (c) through periodic inquiries by officers not below the rank of Sub-Inspector into repute, habits, associations, income, expenses and occupation; (d) reporting by constables and chaukidars of movements and absence from home; (e) verification of movements and absences by means of inquiry slips; and (f) collection and record on a history sheet of all information bearing on conduct.
                                            In his writ petition, Kharak Singh had challenged the constitutional validity of Chapter XX, and the powers conferred upon police officials thereunder on the ground that they violated his fundamental rights under Article 19(1)(d) – right to freedom of movement – and Article 21 – protection of life and personal liberty. In this case also privacy was not declared to be a fundamental right.   
                                                            But in a later case a three Judge Bench verdict in 1975 in Gobind v State of Madhya Pradesh [(1975) 2 SCC 148] it was held that right to privacy was a fundamental right and this was followed by Supreme Court Benches over the last 40 years! In PUCL v Union of India, [(1997) 1 SCC 301], it was held by Apex Court that Courts can proceed on a case by case basis to determine which rights come under the aspects of privacy and which don’t. Justice J Chelameswar of Supreme Court said: “In a Republic founded on a written Constitution, it is difficult to accept there is no fundamental right to privacy…There is a battery of judgments saying privacy is a fundamental right. We have to give serious thought to this question.”                          
                                          Truth be told, Justice DY Chandrachud cautioned that “those adjudicating on privacy must ensure that our quest for innovation is not stifled”. Intervening during the arguments by senior counsel Rakesh Dwivedi, who appeared for the Gujarat government, Justice Chandrachud aptly said that, “We are a knowledge-based society and privacy cannot be raised to a level where we stifle innovation. Innovation in India is happening in services…data.” He also said that for understanding individual privacy, it would be helpful to envisage three zones – intimate, private and public. In the intimate zone, which encompasses family, personal relationships etc, state interference will be minimal. The second was the private zone where an individual shares personal data with others, like on the social media or for using a service.”
                             Elaborating further, it must be pointed out that Justice DY Chandrachud set out the tentative thought process and drew support from Justice RF Nariman. He said, “The first zone could be the most intimate zone of privacy concerning marriage, sexuality, relations with family and the law should frown upon any intrusion. The state could still intrude into this intimate zone in extraordinary circumstances provided it met stringent norms.”
                             The Bench also elucidated further that, “The second zone would be the private zone, which involved parting of personal data by use of credit card, social networking platforms, income tax declarations. In this sphere, sharing of personal data by an individual will be used only for the purpose for which it is shared by an individual. The third is the public zone where privacy protection requires minimal regulations. Here, the personal data shared will not mean the right to privacy is surrendered. The individual will retain his privacy to body and mind”. This clearly implies that the right to privacy may not be unfettered.   
                                    Needless to say, Justice Chandrachud also sought to make it clear that, “The data so submitted must be used only for the purpose for which it is given”. He added that, “When a person goes from zone one to zone three, the privacy right remains. When it is balanced against state interests, that state interests will have to satisfy the tests of that zone.” There can be no denying it.
                                        As it turned out, Dwivedi said his point was that everything depended on circumstances and hence it would be sufficient if tested on a case-by-case basis, instead of making it a fundamental right. He also said the discussions on privacy will also have to take note of large corporations outside India “which are more powerful that the Indian state” and controlling the information flow. He also wanted to know that, “How does one control Google which has servers outside India?”
                                        Let me bring out here that to this Justice DY Chandrachud answered that, “Yes, you are right that privacy as a practical notion has broken down to a large extent. But let us not use that argument to defeat privacy as a Constitutional notion.” The Bench also realized the difficulty in straitjacket interpretation of constitutional status of right to privacy, it being linked to liberty which has visible footprints on several fundamental rights guaranteed in Part-III of the Constitution.
                                  Let me also bring out here that Justice Chandrachud said, “We are dealing with an issue that has an impact on what constituted India as a powerhouse for growth of service sector. The analysis of choices and personal preferences of 1.4 billion and the analysis of this generates demand in the service sector. In defining the right to privacy, we must keep in mind this critical sector which depends on personal data of Indians using a particular service.” There is a great risk of personal information falling into the hands of private players and service providers. On this, Justice Chandrachud rightly said: “I don’t want the state to pass on my personal information to some 2,000 service provider who will send me Whatsapp message offering cosmetics and air conditioners…That is our area of concern. Personal details turn into vital commercial information for private service providers.” As both the government and service providers collect personal data, the chances of data leakage become increasingly more!
                                     It also cannot be missed out here that when the Bench was emphasizing on the sacrosanct tag attached to the right to privacy in the US Constitution, Rakesh Dwivedi while arguing for Gujarat government said that, “If right to privacy was so sanctified in the US Constitution, how could US forces invade privacy of a house (in Pakistan) to eliminate Osama bin Laden? Privacy is a fluid term incapable of being defined, for it changes contours depending on situations.”
                                Not stopping here, Dwivedi also asked that, “If privacy is intrinsic to many fundamental rights, where is the necessity of defining it as a standalone fundamental right? Can the SC fathom all hues of privacy to present it as a homogeneous right capable of standing alone and aloof from other fundamental rights.” It remains to be seen as to what the Apex Court finally rules on this. All factors will have to be taken into account and Apex Court will certainly do this and deliver a very landmark decision that will be always read very curiously.
                                   Be it also noted, senior advocate CA Sundaram appearing for the Maharashtra government while asserting that privacy would always take a back seat to securing basic needs of people quipped: “What is better, two square meals or right to privacy?” Pat came the reply by Bench that people’s economic rights could never be a ground to undermine fundamental rights. Justice DY Chandrachud rightly asked: “Does it mean the cherished constitutional rights are subservient to certain economic developments? Can two square meals be promised in return for barring people from protesting, forming association or giving up other fundamental rights? This can never be. We must guard against this tendency.” Absolutely right!
                                       Justice J Chelameswar also said on the same lines as that of Justice DY Chandrachud while observing that, “It is a very cruel choice one can give to citizens – two square meals or right to privacy.” Justice RF Nariman also questioned that, “In the era when personal liberty and fundamental rights are being given a wider meaning, how can you argue for contracting the width of fundamental rights?” Sundaram sought to repeatedly clarify that he was not against right to privacy as a statutory right. He said that, “Privacy is, in fact, protected by several statutes in several forms, be it Indian Post Office Act, Aadhaar Act, Income Tax Act or others. I am all for statutory protection to privacy. But, giving it a homogeneous shape as right to privacy and introducing as a standalone fundamental right would not be proper. It was one thing for the Supreme Court to interpret an existing fundamental right to rule that right to privacy was part of it, but quite another to rule it as a standalone fundamental right. The Supreme Court must remember that interpretational route to specify a right is far apart from introducing right to privacy in the Constitution despite the Constitution-makers specifically considering, debating and then rejecting it. Parliament alone can consider, debate and elevate a common law right as fundamental right in the Constitution not the Supreme Court.”
                                     When the Bench pointed out that India had an obligation to respect the right to privacy as it had signed the UN declaration on Human rights, Sundaram said India’s obligation to respect international treaty mandates was under Article 61 of Directive Principles of the Constitution, which was not an enforceable right.” Appearing for Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the petitioners apprehension that personal data collected for Aadhaar would be used by the government to track activities of citizens is unfounded. He argued that, “Aadhaar Act is an exemplary piece of legislation that protects personal data zealously and punishes data leakage. The personal data protection regime is so stringent that even if the government attempts to know where Aadhaar card has been used, it would be able to get only general data which would not pinpoint the location of the citizen. If a person opens bank account, the government would come to know which bank the citizen has opened the account but not the branch location.”                    
                                          All said and done, Government has every right to promote Digital India but it should not come at cost of citizens privacy being fully breached! Government must come up with a strong law protecting data privacy so that citizens don’t always live in the shadow of fear of their privacy being breached! In this context, Justice DY Chandrachud rightly pointed out that, “There is no denying that it [Aadhaar] is a social welfare scheme, but you [the government] must first concede that the state is obliged to put a robust personal data protection mechanism in place. There may be a billion Aadhaar card holders. I don’t want the state to pass on my personal information to some 2,000 service providers who will send me Whatsapp messages offering cosmetics and air conditioners… That is our area of concern. Personal details turn into vital commercial information for service providers. Have you got a robust protection mechanism?”  Also, it has to be borne in mind that privacy is not just about Aadhaar or data protection alone, it’s about allowing people to make free choices like what to eat, what to drink, whom to marry, right not to be disturbed of sleep by loud speakers etc and not violating their right not to be coerced what they don’t like. I have not even an iota of doubt that the Supreme Court will soon pronounce the right and a very landmark judgment on this so important issue concerning us all which it has reserved now to be decided later!  

SC Very Rightly Gives Bail To Lt Col Shrikant Purohit

It is the worst travesty of justice that a serving Army officer – Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit with impeccable track record of more than 14 years before he was wrongly framed in 2008 by those as a “terrorist” who didn’t like his going after terrorists who were planning to carry out the Mumbai terror attack as we saw also on 26/11! For being an upright officer what he got in reward was more than 9 years in jail and custodial torture to the extent that we can’t even dream of and yet even till now charges have not been framed against him! This is because there was no “hard evidence” against him and ATS with connivance of a senior Army officer spared no opportunity to implicate him falsely!
SC Very Rightly Gives Bail To Lt Col Shrikant Purohit
                                            I am sorry to say but his plight is worse than even Kulbhushan Jadhav who too was wrongly implicated as a terrorist but this happened in Pakistan and not in India which is his own country!  Not one or two or seven but seventy six Army officers who had served with him earlier testified to his being an upright and committed officer but India trusted Mumbai ATS who are notorious for wrongly implicating innocents and here they didn’t spare even an honest and committed Army officer like Lt Colonel Shrikant Purohit! What has happened with Lt Colonel Purohit should not happen even with a terrorist!
                                          Even Nasik Police Chief whose jurisdiction extended to Malegaon had commended Lt Col Purohit for actively working to expose terrorists funded directly from Pakistan! Can all this be dismissed lightly? NIA too it must be said with dismay has not crowned itself with glory by keeping quiet for 9 years which is a very long time!
                                          Is it a coincidence that Mumbai terror attack of 26/11 happened just months after his arrest? Why such a senior Army officer was treated so shabbily? Why was he wrongly framed as a terrorist without any valid reason?
                                       More intriguingly, why when he was working to expose those who supported terrorism locally was he himself arrested, tortured and branded a terrorist and for 9 years not a single evidence was produced before any court? All this must be investigated impartially and truth must come out! The bold Army officer who was the only one to help Mumbai ATS in falsely implicating Lt Colonel Purohit and get him arrested breaking all norms and who has not produced a single shred of evidence in any court even after 9 years must be taken to task and not allowed to go scot free!
                                                  Let me be direct in asking: Who will compensate him for the 9 years that he, his wife and his children have suffered endlessly? There can be no compensation that can compensate for the terrible sufferings he and his family had to undergo! His wife and children had to hear “She is a wife of terrorist and they are children of terrorist”!
                                   I am sorry to say but even Army has not held his hand when he needed it most to which he was fully entitled also thus letting him down most unfairly and this is the worst tragedy! However, I am extremely happy to note that one of the most reputed and trustworthy lawyer of our country who is also a former Solicitor General – Harish Salve who recently took up Kulbhushan Jadhav case at ICJ in Hague and defended it successfully has taken up his case and here too has got him bail!
                                             I had not even an iota of doubt in my mind that finally Lt Col Shrikant Purohit would get bail from the highest court of our nation even though the lower courts disappointed him. After being in jail for nearly nine years Supreme Court ultimately decided to release Lt Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit from jail on bail in the 2008 Malegaon blast case in which seven people had died and about 100 injured. There were many things that ultimately worked in Lt Col Purohit’s favour.
                                               Writer Madhu Kishwar tweeted “Thankfully Col Purohit finally got bail. His imprisonment is one of the most dangerous games played by the Congress to protect Pakistan backed terror groups”. After getting bail, Lt Col Purohit merely said that, “I do not want to say anything now about politics. I would not like to comment anything on the investigation as the matter is sub judice. All I want to say is that I remain a simple soldier who loves his uniform and the Indian Army. I thank the Army for standing by me.”
                                    We all must ask: Why for nearly nine years a serving army officer of the armed forces and that too of the intelligence wing was made to suffer all sorts of humiliation along with jail and yet not even chargesheet has been filed against him leave alone trial being started! Is this the way a nation treats its officers? What message is being sent to future aspirants who want to join the Indian Army?
                                         It must be asked: If there was an open and shut case against him as those who arrested him projected then why after nine years they have not been able to even file a  chargesheet and why they have not produced any evidence before the court? How can any person leave alone army officer be made to wear the tag of a terrorist without giving him any opportunity to defend himself in last nine years? Why the Mumbai ATS did not frame charges for 9 years if they had evidence to prove that Lt Colonel Purohit is a terrorist? Why RDX was planted in his house as NIA alleged?
                                           It must also be asked: How long will police keep the nation waiting? Who will be responsible if it is found that there is no evidence against Purohit and others? Why a UN report which mentioned that a Pakistan based terror group was responsible for the terror attack yet Purohit who as intelligence officer was providing information on terrorist was himself implicated instead? Why no evidence has been produced against him?
                          May I ask here: Why even earlier a bench of Supreme Court comprising of Justices FMI Kalifulla and Abhay Manohar Sapre said that, “There was no concrete evidence to show their involvement in any other criminal case and the trial court should decide their bail plea on merit, preferably within one month”? Was it just for fun that two Judges and that too serving judges of our highest court – Supreme Court are saying that there was no concrete evidence to show their involvement in any other criminal case? Why Supreme Court said there was considerable doubt about the involvement of those charged under the MCOCA?
                                        May I also ask here: Why trial court didn’t decide their bail plea nearly nine years back and why Lt Col Purohit was made to suffer along with Sadhvi Pragya Thakur in jail where their health deteriorated thus grossly violating their legal rights? What was the compelling circumstance that police decided to keep a serving army officer of the rank of Lt Colonel in jail for nearly nine years without producing any evidence against him in any court? Why even the Court of Inquiry (CoI) conducted by Army found Lt Col Purohit not guilty as Harish Salve rightly pointed out? This itself proves that there is more to it than meets the eye and his arrest along with others was done as part of a grand political conspiracy to keep the ruling elite happy and to be on their right side!             
                                       It also must be asked: Why for nearly nine years Lt Colonel Purohit was not shown even the army documents which he had a right to see? Why it is that only  after the ex Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar  himself personally intervened to make it clear that the main accused in the Malegaon and Samjhauta blasts, Lt Col Prasad Purohit, would be given access to documents he had sought to enable him to prove his innocence? Why was he denied even his basic legal right for such a long time? Who were those army officers who didn’t want that he should be shown any documents and why? They must explain!
                                         Why RSN Singh a retired officer of RAW whom again we keep listening in various news channels talking always about our national interests writes in his cover story titled “Col Purohit : A Victim Of Hindu Terror Industry” published in Uday India magazine dated March 22, 2014 that, “It is a travesty to paint Purohit as the Indian Osama Bin Laden. Going by the selective and flip-flop leaks by the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra, and the manner in which the media is lapping it up, it appears that there is a concerted bid to make an ‘Osama bin Laden’ out of Lt Col Purohit, and prove that Sadhvi Pragya and her accomplices are the new ‘Hindu jihadis’. The credulity of the general public is being stretched on various scores. Firstly, the speed at which fresh revelations are being disseminated by the ATS, is in complete disregard to professional propriety. Secondly, the unprecedented number of narco tests the accused are being subjected to. Thirdly, there is a total blankout with regard to the version of the accused. Fourthly, with every passing day, the network is being enlarged; as if to suggest that the entire country is being consumed by ‘Hindu terrorism’, and has pan-Indian dimension. Fifthly, if intercepts of some of the accused were available prior to the blasts, why were no pre-emptive measures taken? Sixthly, no army representative has been included in the interrogation team. Seventhly, the most intriguing aspect is the timing of the investigations—on the eve of elections.”
                                                  Garima Aggarwal in her enlightening editorial titled “Colonel Purohit’s Case – Did UPA  Manufacture Political Conspiracy Of Hindu Terror” dated August 24, 2017 in Hindu Post rightly points out that, “The history of this case reflects how an accused can actually be tortured crossing all boundaries of Human Rights and can end up serving more jail term than actually prescribed by law as punishment for a certain crime (if proven). There are more than a dozen accused in this case, and it can be fairly concluded that most others must have been tortured too. Another major accused, Sadhvi Pragya has already been given bail. Sadhvi Pragya had disclosed parts of her torture story mentioning the cruelties that she went through that have rendered her spine permanently damaged. Colonel Purohit had an exemplary performance record. He was a top notch intelligence officer, and this is clear from this report. He had created an effective intelligence network and was probably gathering the kind of intelligence that was beyond the expectations of various in the army and politics. It may never be known but it can be logically speculated that it may have been any of his intelligence inputs, either regarding the fake currency racket or the extent to which Dawood and ISI had penetrated our systems / organizations, or Kashmiri terrorists travelling in the cars of politicians, which may have led to his incarceration in this case. The way it all began is in itself a story of great injustice and the detention was actually illegal to begin with. Not only his movement order  paper was hidden from him, the first violence in the custody was carried out by none other than a fellow military officer, Colonel Shrivastav. Colonel Purohit was told that he was to go to Delhi but later he was diverted to Mumbai and wasn’t even allowed to inform a single member of his family. In fact, Colonel Purohit filed RTI application to understand the rules and procedures of how and who can modify the travel orders. But the information that came about was not satisfying going by the old reports. The fact that he was a serving officer at that time was not paid heed to, he was bluffed and taken to Mumbai and what followed there was a series of severe torture. Madhu Kishwar, founder of Manushi.in had interviewed Col Purohit’s wife, who had narrated the kind of torture he went through. From 29th Oct 2008 to 4th Nov 2008, Col Purohit was illegally detained and severely tortured. The pattern was repeating itself, Sadhvi Pragya too had said that she was illegally detained from 10th Oct 2008 to 23rd Oct 2008 and was severely tortured. This detailed report carries various statements, letters and complaints by Colonel Purohit himself, here is an extract of how he himself explains the start of the torture :
“I was interrogated by this combined team for almost two hours on the night of 29/30 Oct 2008. Till then all the members of interrogating team was talking to me with a respect deserved by an army officer. After initial two hours of questioning, it was Colonel Shrivastav (Director Military Intelligence – 9) who suddenly sprung from his chair and initiated a brutal physical assault on me. He slapped me on my face at will and continued slapping me and started kicking me all over the body with his shoes on. Colonel R K Shrivastav then started pulling my hair on head and chest as well. At this stage the other interrogators, including the Indian Police Service cadre officers of Anti Terrorism Squad and Intelligence Bureau officers, joined him in physically assaulting me. My face was totally swollen then. Colonel R K Shrivastav’s actions of physical assault on me made the Police and Intelligence Bureau officers shed their inhibition of carrying out physical torture of mine, a serving army officer. Colonel R K Shrivastav then stood on my feet and legs as I was tied to a chair and inhumanly started twisting my nipples and my private parts (genitals) with all his strength. Colonel Shrivastav once again started hitting me on my face and even boxing me with tight fists on my back. Colonel Shrivastav was holding and pulling my hair on head while the other Indian Police Service officers tortured me. I was in absolute state of shock and totally shattered by this physical assault carried out by Colonel R K Shrivastav, (Director Military Intelligence – 9). This nightmare of physical assaults hitting, slapping, twisting of private parts, tying me to a chair, standing on my legs, feet coupled with dirtiest possible abuses on my mother, wife and sister continued unabated. After four days of continuous beating and torture, on 02 Nov 2008, Colonel Shrivastav ordered the Police to handcuff me. This was breach of privilege for a serving army officer and it was not police officers but insistence of Col Shrivastav which caused the same. I was handcuffed and remained in that condition till 04 Nov 2008. The sequence of beating and brutal torture was intermittently on with Colonel Shrivastav abusing me about my mother, wife and sister. He kept on threatening me that if I don’t own up my involvement in the Malegaon Bomb Blast, he (Colonel Shrivastav) would strip my mother, wife and sister and make them parade naked in front of me. Police officially arrested me on 05 Nov 2008.” After this, the case shifted from one investigation agency to another, without a final charge sheet and trial never began for more than 8 long years. In fact, after this illegal detention, when Col Purohit was checked in military hospital, the reports mentioned permanent damage to his knees, his knee reconstruction surgery had fallen apart because of torture, parts of his hands had lost sensation because of nerve damage. One more essential link in this case, Sudhakar Chaturvedi, still awaits bail. He was a registered intelligence operator which Col Purohit had cultivated. He was accused of keeping RDX at his home which was allegedly supplied by Purohit. I have had various discussions with the lawyer of Sudhakar Chaturvedi over last 2 years, needless to say that he was also tortured like all other accused. However, not only this detailed report on Manushi.in explains how other army personnel caught the planting of RDX at Sudhakar’s house, there are other witnesses also who later claimed that they were coerced to give statements that Maharashtra ATS sought. There were very serious allegations raised by Col Purohit’s wife, Aparna Purohit that she was also severely humiliated and threatened of dire consequences by Hemant Karkare and Col Shrivastav to give ‘required’ statements. Another serious allegation was that Col Purohit was pressurized into making a confessional video (probably passed on as narco tests going by old news reports, it seems mostly lead by Tehelka & Times Now then, a lot of such news pages have gone into archives / proxy servers now), which was shared with media without first testifying the confession in front of a magistrate. Most of the idea of ‘Hindutva Terror’ and Col Purohit being guilty was based on Swami Aseemanand’s ‘confession’, from which he retracted more than once later. Below is the short jaw-dropping interview of Colonel Purohit by NewsX, where he says ‘torture is a sober word for what he was put through’, and throws light on various other aspects of the case. No wonder his knee reconstruction surgery ( done before his arrest in 2008) fell apart, he says that he was suspended from horizontal bars and stretched on opposite sides  : Two major things that glaringly point out that this narrative of ‘Hindu Terror’ may have a political conspiracy manufactured by UPA, under Sonia Gandhi in center and Sharad Pawar in state of Maharashtra are, the illegal detention and severe torture.  It must be noted that several Muslim accused in Malegaon Blasts 2006 were acquitted in April 2016 because both the NIA and Court said that there was no suficient evidence to implicate them. They spent 10 years in jail, but nobody was illegally detained and went missing for days, nor were they tortured like Colonel Purohit, Sadhvi Pragya and others. Who can forget that Sharad Pawar openly took ‘credit’ for coining ‘Hindu Terror’ in a political speech in 2009!”  
                                            Here it must be said:  What Lt Col Purohit’s family is bearing and what he himself is bearing that only they themselves can understand best! Punish them with the strictest punishment if they are terrorists but facts on ground indicate otherwise! I have not seen one Army Officer speaking against Lt Col Purohit till now openly in any news channel not even that Army Officer who it is alleged was hands-in-glove with Mumbai ATS in falsely implicating him because of the personal grudge that he held against him! Why this stony, deafening silence? It is because there is no strong case against him!
                                       During the hearing, senior advocate and former Solicitor General Harish Salve who just some months back had successfully defended Kulbhushan Jadhav in ICJ said that he has been in jail for the past nine years but charges have still not been framed against him! He said the MCOCA charge has already been dropped against him and therefore he is entitled to get interim bail! Our whole judicial system should be ashamed that a serving Army Officer is designated a terrorist by Mumbai ATS but for last nine years no charges have been framed against him! This itself is the strongest testimony to prove that how strong case Mumbai ATS has against Lt Col Purohit!
                                To put things in perspective, while seeking bail in the 2008 Malegaon blasts case, Lt Col Shrikant Purohit made it clear to the Supreme Court that he was caught in a “political crossfire” and was falsely implicated. But the NIA while opposing his plea accused him of running Abhinav Bharat which NIA alleged is an outfit promoting fundamentalism and unlawful activities. One is tempted to ask here: Is Abhinav Bharat an unlawful organisation? 
                                Lt Col Purohit’s senior counsel Harish Salve contended that the officer attended meetings of Abhinav Bharat as an “Army mole” and was not involved in terrorist activities. He rightly said that there were “big holes” in the probe which is why another accused Pragya Singh Thakur was granted bail. Harish Salve made a strong case for bail to be granted to Lt Col Purohit by pointing out that, “My client has been in jail for nine years but charges have not been framed. Since 2001, he has got numerous recommendations (as intelligence officer). I am not asking for discharge but give interim bail after nine years of incarceration till framing of charges in the case.”  He also pointed out that Purohit had informed seniors about inputs that he received from the meetings of Abhinav Bharat and there were infirmities in the probe conducted by the Maharashtra ATS and NIA. Why was all this overlooked?  
                                       As it turned out, the Supreme Court also while granting bail noted that there were glaring contradictions between the positions of Maharashtra’s Anti Terrorism Squad and the National Investigating Agency (NIA) about his role. A Bench of Justices RK Agrawal and AM Sapre were unanimous in concluding that, “Keeping in view the fact that NIA’s supplementary chargesheet is at variance with the chargesheet filed by ATS and that the trial is likely to take a long time and Purohit has been in prison for about eight years and eight months, we are of the considered view that Purohit has made out a prima facie case for release on bail and we deem it appropriate to enlarge him on bail.”    
                                   The Bench also said that, “At the stage of granting bail, a detailed examination of evidence and elaborate documentation of the merits of the case has not to be undertaken. The grant or denial (of bail) is regulated, to a large extent, by the facts and circumstances of each particular case. But at the same time, right to bail is not to be denied merely because of the sentiments of the community against the accused.” No one can dispute this!
                                       The Bench also pointed out that, “Liberty of a citizen is undoubtedly important, but this is to balance with the security of the community. A balance is required to be maintained between the personal liberty of the accused and the investigational rights of the agency. It must result in minimum interference with the personal liberty of the accused and the right of the agency to investigate the case.”
                                       Be it noted, the Supreme Court also ordered him to appear before the trial court as and when summoned, make himself available for investigation by the NIA, not influence witnesses directly or indirectly, surrender his passport and not leave the country without the trial court’s prior permission. The Court asked Purohit to furnish a personal security of Rs 1 lakh, two additional sureties of the same amount. But the Apex Court also clarified that bail to Purohit would not automatically entitle other accused to get bail and said their applications would be decided on merit.
                                    Salve said that the NIA chargesheet had virtually absolved his client and the High Court of Bombay had erred in holding that the Court of Inquiry (COI) documents could not be relied upon at the stage of bail. Why could the COI documents not be relied upon? COI was conducted properly as per rules and regulations and no rule was broken anywhere in conducting it!
     
                                         Not stopping here, Harish Salve said on behalf of his client that, “The allegation against me is that I supplied explosive material on the conspiracy hatched by Sadhvi Pragya Thakur. Now if she is enlarged on bail and given a clean chit by the NIA, then the link between me and her is snapped.” Bombay High Court on April 25 had given bail to Sadhvi Pragya who was the main accused and who headed Abhinav Bharat but rejected his plea even though he was just an “Army Mole”! Why this glaring disparity?
                                          While arguing brilliantly, Harish Salve said the Maharashtra ATS mentioned in its charge sheet that he had attended the meetings of Abhinav Bharat. Going forward, Salve asked: “Yes, I attended certain meetings, but as a military mole. I was doing my duty. The court says it will look into the ATS chargesheet at the stage of trial and refuses interim bail even as charges are not framed against me. What kind of criminal justice system is this?” Very rightly said! Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur who was also a co-accused and headed meetings of Abhinav Bharat was granted bail by Bombay High Court but Lt Colonel Purohit who attended meeting as “Army Mole” was refused bail even after nine years! This is really atrocious!
                                     Why bail to a Sadhvi but not to a serving Army officer with more than 14 years of distinguished service who even got Army Chief’s commendation card for the bravery he demonstrated in various military intelligence operations in Kashmir? Even Nasik Police Commissioner – Himanshu in whose jurisdiction Malegaon comes had commended and lauded Lt Col Purohit for penetrating into terrorist outfits cadre and providing him valuable inputs that helped him in checking terror outfits carrying out more terror attacks! Salve also rightly pointed out that, “My client has got himself caught in political crossfire. He has been in jail for nine years but still he is serving in the Indian Army. Since 2001, he has got numerous recommendations for infiltration. From an unsung hero, he has been now called an incarcerated hero.” Most shameful!
                                   Supreme Court while granting bail also took into account what was alleged about how he was tortured. It was alleged by his wife Aparna that, “He was subjected to gruesome third-degree torture. He was beaten up and hung upside down. His feet were tied and pulled apart. All this was done to get a confession out of him. When he was produced in court he could not even walk properly. Later [on our request to the court] he was taken to the naval hospital in Colaba and a complete examination was done. The doctors said two nerves in his hand were severed. When he was serving in Jammu and Kashmir, he had suffered an injury so his knee had to be reconstructed. Those ligaments were torn again.”
                                       Think logically: If he was a terrorist would he still be serving in the Indian Army? Would he not have been dismissed? Did he not pass all information about activities of Abhinav Bharat group who allegedly masterminded Malegaon bomb blast on September 29, 2008 in which seven people were killed and about 100 injured when a bomb strapped to a motorcycle exploded to his seniors? Have his seniors not testified about it? Still why he is being made the scapegoat? Why was he arrested at the first place and that too not according to proper rules?
                                       Why he was kept in illegal detention? Why was he blindfolded and taken to unknown destination and tortured mercilessly? Why was he not informed of being arrested for a terror offence and why was he deceived? Why was he brutally tortured? Why initially he was arrested for something else? Why was he taken to Khandala and brutally tortured after making him naked for many days not sparing even his penis and why that senior Army officer at whose instruction all this happened could not give any convincing reply for all this? Why was that senior Army officer not taken to task?
                                      Why 76 Army officers deposed in his favour and hailed him as an outstanding officer totally committed to his job? Why even Maj Gaurav Arya, Maj Gen GD Bakshi, Col RSN Singh of RAW Intelligence Branch and others too spoke strongly in his favour and pointed to deep conspiracy to implicate him for the role he was playing in exposing the corrupt nexus between politicians and terror outfits based in Pakistan which includes Dawood group? Why there are no material witnesses against Lt Col Purohit? Why three such witnesses who earlier claimed to the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) that Purohit was integral to the conspiracy which includes one Captain Joshi backtracked when confronted by NIA and even alleged pressure and torture by ATS? Why Mumbai ATS kept on torturing him who is a serving senior rank Army officer for 9 years yet could not even file chargesheet against him?
                                     Why the report of the Court of Inquiry by the Ministry of Defence which is before the trial court now also confirming that Lt Col Purohit had briefed his superiors in the Army about details of the three Abhinav Bharat meetings that he had attended in January 2008 as he himself alleged? Why it was overlooked that Lt Col Purohit would never do so if he was really indulging in a terror conspiracy? Why NIA failed to prove that the two men who planted the bomb in September 2008 and are absconding till now – Ramji Kalsangre and Sandeep Dange were part of any meetings attended by Purohit or had any telephonic contact with him ever?
                                        Why ATS alleged that Purohit supplied RDX for blasts but NIA report showed that ATS officer planted RDX in house of one of the accused? Why that ATS officer who planted RDX has not been arrested and interrogated seriously? Does this not smell of deep conspiracy that ATS officer is himself planting RDX and ATS was trying its level best to falsely implicate him ?
                                           Most important of all, why charges have not been framed against Lt Col Purohit till now after 9 long years? Why Mumbai ATS and investigating agencies slept for 9 long years if there was an open and shut case against him? Why he with more than 14 years of distinguished service was tortured worse than a terrorist and beaten black and blue and yet could not extract anything out of him? All this must be investigated impartially and truth must come out!
                                        On a concluding note, Supreme Court very rightly granted bail to Lt Col Purohit while taking into account his otherwise unblemished track record with many citations lauding him unequivocally and giving credence to the indisputable fact that he was planted as a mole in Abhinav Bharat by Army itself and he was keeping his seniors in the loop about everything and did not hide anything! Even Nasik Police Commissioner Himanshu had thanked him for his untiring and unstinted efforts in helping them to nab many terrorists yet all this was overlooked and he was incarcerated himself as a terrorist for 9 long years and yet charges were not framed against him because all charges against him were fabricated, concocted and maliciously framed to get him hanged for being a terrorist involved in Malegaon blast case in which 7 Muslims had died and about 100 injured! I am sure that this case too will be decided on merits, not on media reports alone which left no stone unturned in wrongly branding him a Hindu terrorist about to turn India into a Hindu country without bringing out that he had been planted as a mole by the Army itself and he was briefing his seniors about everything going on! Truth will ultimately prevail!

Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col BPS Sirohi, A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera, Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh.