M A I N   N E W S

Thank you, My Lords!
Hari Jaisingh

IN the front-page editorial "No, My Lord!" (May 5, 2002), we raised three fundamental points: the people's right to information; freedom of the Press to disseminate information; and the need for transparency in the conduct of investigations in the multi-crore Punjab Public Service Commission recruitment scam. We opposed Mr Justice K. S. Garewal's order on principle, without any malice or prejudice. We believe that free flow of information and its proper public use by the media in a responsible manner can help keep the instruments of governance on the right course. It is the right "input" into public awareness that would ultimately make a difference to the quality of our democratic polity. It is gratifying that the Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court hearing all PPSC-related matters has endorsed The Tribune's stand and upheld the public interest petition filed by the Common Cause Forum in this regard.

Mr Justice G. S. Singhvi and Ms Justice Bakshish Kaur have candidly declared in their Friday's verdict: "The reports appearing in the Press and the electronic media about a case involving PPSC chairman Ravinderpal Singh Sidhu, suggesting that he had amassed wealth running into crores and polluting the progress of selection leading to the recruitment of various persons to class I and II services in the state of Punjab, do not in any manner violate the fundamental right to free and fair trial under Article 21 of the Constitution of India." Thank you, My Lords. It is a historic judgement with a clear and sharp message that secrecy does not and should not pay. For it serves only to encourage vested interests to influence and manipulate the course of investigation. Nothing can be more dangerous to fairplay and justice than such man-managed distortions in the process of criminal investigation. There have been enough indications of dubious goings-on behind the scene that might ultimately have scuttled the whole probe into the PPSC scam.

An alert media tuned to public interest can make a difference. Equally crucial—rather, more crucial—is the enlightened role played by the judiciary. After an initial major setback, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has graciously redeemed itself and facilitated a fair but uncompromising probe into the multidimensional scam. The right signal from the court can go a long way in loosening the stranglehold of the corrupt and their nexus with power and wealth. This obnoxious nexus must be broken in all its facets and ramifications.

We all now look to the judiciary, especially the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, to take matters to their logical conclusion. Lawyers, public-spirited persons and newsmen have all helped create a proper atmosphere to fight the monster of corruption. The momentum must be maintained.

The task ahead is not easy. The media must continue to discharge its responsibility to inform the people and make them realise the wrongs and rights of men, matters and issues. Ultimately, an enlightened public can turn the tide against those who exploit jobless youth to line their pockets. Punjab needs a clean and efficient system of governance for the good of the people. We must not allow crooks and operators to turn the system around and enslave it for their private purposes.