M A I N   N E W S

It is a question of dharma, Mr Chautala
by Hari Jaisingh

The Haryana Chief Minister has categorically declared that any action against Director-General of Police S. P. S. Rathore in the Ruchika molestation case will be taken only if he is convicted by a court. Mr Om Prakash Chautala is an honourable man. He knows his political arithmetic. Having been in and out of power, he is familiar with the intricacies of governance. His views in the Ruchika affair are probably prompted by politico-administrative convenience. He is surely entitled to his views, howsoever misplaced. But the question here is not merely of the legal aspects of the infamous case. At stake is the vital issue of dharma. More than the legality or political considerations, what matters in the public eye is the morality of action or non-action. The Ruchika molestation case is not a small issue. At the centre of this shocking episode is the question of the message the ruling elite wishes to convey to the man in the street.

The law surely has to take its own course. We are also familiar with procedural and technical delays which occur in the pursuit of justice. What is, however, disturbing is the ability of those in positions of power to manage men, matters and issues to suit their interests. To say this is not to cast aspersions on any individual. We certainly do not believe in a malicious trial by the media. But the Press will be failing in its duty if it does not bring forth right information into public focus. This is the very essence of democracy and of the freedom of the Press we all swear by.

In our earlier editorial comment ( Nov. 21), we had taken a categorical stand that Mr Rathore must quit in public interest. Our plea is based on fairplay and moral grounds. We believe that the people's faith in the system can be sustained only if the ruling class takes its decision in the broad framework of ethics, morality and fairness. Our plea is addressed to the conscience of decision-makers without any malice or prejudice. We cannot allow the basic facts of the case to be lost sight of in legal jargon or in the politics of convenience. We are sure that Mr Chautala too has an abiding interest in value-based politics and would like to act in accordance with the new image he has of late been trying to project of himself. It is a different matter if he still finds Mr Rathore serviceable for reasons best known to him.

The conduct of politicians and officers, particularly those holding public office, has to be tested on the touchstone of morality and character. Ruchika could have been anybody's daughter. The circumstances in which she lost her life have been pieced together in various news reports. Before the dispensers of justice come to grasp the facts, it is the political masters in the state who are expected to send the right signal by their action. At stake is the credibility of Mr Chautala's administration and his slogan of "sarkar apke dwar". Ruchika's case should not be viewed as a matter of prestige or as a test of official firmness. The Chautala government is indeed on test. More than the rule of law, the people of Haryana would like to see the rule of dharma in the sacred land where the dharmayudha was fought in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. And the law of dharma is all-encompassing. Dharma sanctifies both the means and the ends. Its dynamism lies in its universal appeal. We are sure the sacred message of Kurukshetra will not go unheeded in the corridors of power in Chandigarh.