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Salute to Sachin Speedy justice |
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Voice of Pakistan
Peace with Pakistan
Railway journeys
Speedy and cheap
justice a must In-your-face journalism Chatterati
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Salute to Sachin FOR sheer tonnage, it is going to be very difficult to beat the compact, five-foot, five-inch package that goes by the name of Sachin Tendulkar. After the edges, misses and shuffles on 99, the flick off the pads to square leg at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Saturday had history written all over it. Hundred number 35, in Test number 125, breaking Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 34 hundreds in as many Tests. “I have never been so emotional in my life”, he declared, bringing back memories of Gavaskar’s own gestures after becoming the first man to cross the 10,000-run mark many years ago. In today’s politically correct discourse of the sporting world, the team always comes first, and personal records are secondary. But sometimes, the heart has to have its way. There are not many in the 30-plus club, and the only one playing is Brian Lara, with 31 hundreds in 121 Tests. Lara is ahead in sheer number of runs, and comparisons have often been made between the two. As for Sachin and Lara, each of them, with mandatory modesty, has taken care to attest to the genius of the other man. Sachin would have noted the West Indian’s achievements in the big hundred department – what is getting four hundred like? – and wondered why his own triple century has remained so elusive. For aficionados, there will always be one debate that is relevant even while raising a toast to the little man’s commendable achievements. The same statistics that attest to his greatness also say that he has not been quite the match-winner that a man of his capabilities should be. Even ardent admirers like Gavaskar and Lara have not shied away from pointing this out. It is certainly not for lack of trying. No one would doubt Sachin’s commitment and sincerity. And the game is such that it even treats geniuses unfairly. But there is still plenty of time at the crease for Sachin. And when that bat comes down in that magnificent straight drive that can stop the best fast bowlers in their tracks, some debates don’t matter. |
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Speedy justice President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has rightly stressed the need to ensure speedy justice to the people. Addressing a function held to mark the golden jubilee celebrations of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Chandigarh on Saturday, he rightly lauded the contribution of several legal luminaries, past and present, for having built a robust institutional framework for this court during the past five decades. While all those involved in the growth and enrichment of this court deserve due appreciation for their contribution, the issue of the ever-increasing arrears in the courts calls for serious introspection at various levels. Dr Kalam and Justice Y.K. Sabharwal, Chief Justice of India, who also addressed the gathering, warned that people’s faith in the judiciary would get eroded if the backlog of cases was not tackled on priority. The reasons for the slow pace of justice in the country are many. But problems like inadequate number of courts and judicial officers can best be tackled by the government with political will. Similarly, both the advocates and the judges have a duty to prevent frequent adjournments as well as delay in filing documents in the interest of the poor litigants and for the larger public good. There should be no problem as regards vacancies. If there is political will, the problem can be solved expeditiously. Consider how the Centre promptly cleared the posting of 17 Judges to the Madras High Court following the Supreme Court’s intervention. Alternative dispute redressal mechanisms like the Lok Adalats, fast-track courts, arbitration and e-judiciary, too, need to be pursued vigorously because the cost of litigation has increased considerably and the people cannot solely depend on the judicial courts for justice. Just as there is need to fill up vacancies in various courts, the courts need to introduce modern management techniques in their functioning for speedy dispensation of justice. In this context, Justice Sabharwal’s lament that not a single subordinate judicial officer has been recruited in Punjab and Haryana during the past two years should goad the two state governments to apply necessary course corrections. |
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Voice of Pakistan THE support extended by the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to the “inalienable right” of the people of Jammu and Kashmir for “self-determination” in accordance with the UN resolutions is nothing but a replay of the tape-recording made by Pakistan. The influence Islamabad exerts over the Islamic organisation, which enjoys living in a time warp of its own making, is well known. This time Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has worked overtime on the OIC members because of the fact that there are few takers for his pleadings in the non-Islamic world. No wonder that ignoring the long-term friendly ties that India has had with these countries, they have gone along the Pakistani prodding during the two-day summit of the grouping in Mecca. Before doing so, the OIC nations should have checked the record of General Musharraf himself, all over Pakistan in general and the PoK and the Northern Areas in particular. The “fairness” of the referendum he held for sticking to power is no secret. He is the least suited person to pose any questions about the governance of Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral part of India. In any case, the OIC should first set its own house in order. The dictatorial rule prevalent in most of the member-states is an anachronism which has no place in modern world. Yet, all demands for democracy and modernity have been ruthlessly crushed. Instead of giving sermons to others, the OIC must lead by example. Its members must realise that they are nowhere near the goal they had set out for themselves when the OIC was set up way back in 1969 in Morocco. Just changing its name, as has now been proposed, will only be a cosmetic alteration. If at all it wants to be guided by the fulminations of General Musharraf, it must act upon his advice to ban extremist groups and join international efforts to combat the menace of terrorism. That such words sound entirely hollow when they emanate from his mouth is another matter. |
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The dream of reason produces monsters. — Goya
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Peace with Pakistan
I
AM veering round to the viewpoint that Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee might have pushed the India-Pakistan dialogue faster and farther than Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has done. Yet when I talked to the latter some months ago, I found him more articulate and more forthcoming than Mr Vajpayee when he was the Prime Minister. My hunch is that if it were up to Dr Manmohan Singh he would have gone ahead. But the Congress that he represents is too cautious, too unsure of what it can concede. The party believes that if it were to make even a small concession to Pakistan, it would be suspect. On the other hand, the BJP, the Congress imagines, could get away with any concession, without arousing fear in the majority because of the party’s Hindutva credentials. There is a grain of truth in it. But the Congress exaggerates its misgivings. The country has reaffirmed through the last general election that its temperament is secular. It has brought down the BJP by 35 seats, from 183 to 148 in the Lok Sabha (lower house). In the past three or four years people in India have also indicated that they are keen to foster good relations with Pakistan. Be it contact, cricket or a colloquium, a new type of equation is emerging between the two sides. Tension is absent. The fear to go across the border has disappeared. Instead, there is an ardent desire to visit each other’s country. Could anyone have imagined a decade ago that there would be a wave of sympathy sweeping the urban India in the wake of the earthquake in the Kashmir area under Pakistan? The desire to render assistance was spontaneous. Not only did the organisations but also individuals send money and material on their own. I saw in Delhi women going from house to house collecting cash and clothes for the victims. Even the fundamentalist among the Hindus raised no voice against New Delhi’s contribution of $25 million to Islamabad. The amiable atmosphere, it is true, has been vitiated by the Delhi blasts which claimed the lives of 70. The murder of M.R. Kutty, a truck driver engaged in the construction of roads in Afghanistan, has further spoilt the climate. India’s National Security Adviser, Mr M.K. Narayanan, has said that Pakistan had a role in the Taliban’s killing of Kutty because it was wary of growing friendship between India and Pakistan. (Mr Narayanan’s contradiction that he was misquoted has been considered a denial under pressure.) A new spurt of violence in Kashmir has also cast its shadow over the pace of normalcy. Yet the general tendency is not to dwell on negative developments. Unlike the past, there is now an effort to take things in their stride. It is recognised that certain desperate elements in Pakistan, particularly some in the armed forces, are trying to thwart the peace process. But the distinction is made between people of Pakistan and the establishment. The first is trusted implicitly and the second doubted unquestionably. The inclination to have good relations with Pakistan still overwhelms the negative feelings. That is what should weigh with New Delhi. Unfortunately, prejudiced bureaucrats and intelligence agencies call the tune. They have a fixed line and they have not departed from it even in the new environment. The government’s understanding is based on the information they feed and that is the reason why the peace process doesn’t pick up speed. Knowing that the Pakistan establishment believes in maintaining a distance, we do not have to react in the same way. Our endeavour should be to defeat its designs and go over its head to appeal to the Pakistanis. People-to-people contacts have proved that conciliation is possible despite the Pakistan establishment. President General Pervez Musharraf has himself conceded that they could not resist the pressure of people-to-people contacts. Since Dr Manmohan Singh has said that the “peace process is irreversible,” our policy has to be such that can retrieve people on the other side. They must see India reaching out to them as it happened during the earthquake. Breaking with the past is essential. New Delhi must go out of the way to improve relations with Islamabad, however obnoxiously it may behave at times. Only then will the Pakistanis realise that while India is making concessions, their own country is not responding. Trade is one field where we can make the difference felt. Unilateral concessions in excise and duties can make the Pakistani goods competitive or even cheaper in Indian markets. The best is to let the goods from across the border come without any levy. If this is too bold a step for New Delhi to take, let it select 30 or 35 commodities for free entry. We are already 40 years behind. Had we taken such a step earlier, the entire scenario would have changed by now. The Pakistanis would have developed a vested interest in Indian markets. It is still not late to let them take advantage of India’s vast market, unhampered and unencumbered. The two points on which the peace talks are stuck are the Sir Creek and the Siachin glaciers. In the first case, there is a map of 1913 which indicates the division of the Sir Creek. When we are insisting on China to accept old maps for the delineation of borders between the two countries, why not go by the 1913 map on the Sir Creek? After the settlement at the Rann of Kutch on the basis of arbitration, there is hardly anything left in the Sir Creek. We are now going to the sea to determine what should be the line. This is a waste of effort. Take the Siachin glacier. When in service the Indian Generals say that it is of great importance. But once they retire, they argue that the glacier is of no strategic value. Our Prime Minister has described it as the “mountain of peace.” Why not travel towards that vision? Troops on both sides may have to be redeployed and, at one time, there was such an understanding. We reversed the decision. New Delhi’s purpose should be how to convert the glacier into a “mountain of peace.” We can continue to have aerial surveys even after that. Concessions on the Sir Creek and Siachin glaciers are not worth stoking fires of estrangement. India does not concede much if it makes the concessions. On the other hand, its gesture will convince people in Pakistan that India is doing its best. Strengthening the hands of the people of Pakistan is important because they are fighting a battle for the restoration of democracy. Peace with India, still considered an enemy in their textbooks, is important because in that lies the hope for the Pakistanis to return to a civilian
rule.
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Railway journeys
I
used to love railway journeys. There was the exhilaration of sitting at an open window, the wind in my hair and on my face, watching the rich and variegating Indian landscape go past; of sharing a commodious compartment with just three individuals, of sharing food and thoughts and feelings. Now I dread railway journeys. I like to feel that this is because railway journeys now mean being held captive in claustrophobic cabins, hermetically sealed from the outside world, with dozens of people who are indifferent to one’s existence. But the truth really lies in my own sad lack of organising ability. The Himalayan Queen had established a reputation for efficiency and comfort. I was looking forward to my journey from Delhi to Kalka. My hostess offered to pack some food for me but I brushed the offer aside, “There’s excellent food on the Himalayan Queen.” But there was no food on the Himalayan Queen, excellent or otherwise, not even a hawker selling stale, greasy, samosas. The train halted at Ambala and I grabbed everything edible in sight. I saw the front half of the train chug away and presumed it was only a shunting as half the train had to go to Amritsar while the other half would go on to Kalka. “Didn’t you say you were going to Kalka?” It was one of my erstwhile fellow passengers. My mouth was full so I nodded my head. “Well, that’s your train,” he said, pointing at the fast disappearing train. I managed to hire a taxi and reach Kalka in time to retrieve my luggage. I had booked on the Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi, which usually left a few minutes after five. But when I looked at my ticket I saw that the time on it was 18.27. I shrugged my shoulders: train timings do change. I reached the station at 18.15 only to learn that my train had left an hour earlier. The timing on my train was the time of the purchase of the ticket. There was a death in the family and I needed to go to Calcutta. I rang up Paramjit and asked him to get me a reservation on the Rajdhani. “Don’t worry, sir. Just reach Delhi.” I reached Delhi, was accorded VIP treatment and escorted to my seat on the train. I took off my glasses and plunged into the new Grisham novel. “How far are you going?” It was my neighbour. “To Calcutta,” I said sharply. “Calcutta? But this train goes to Bombay”. There were two trains, with the same name leaving within minutes of each other, to two different destinations. Paramjit had failed to mention my destination and the contact had presumed I was travelling to Bombay. Come to think of it I too had failed to mention my destination to Paramjit. The result? Not only did I miss the funeral but I now look upon each railway journey with trepidation, wondering what inadequacies in my abilities it will throw
up.
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Speedy and cheap justice a must
I have been associated with the Punjab and Haryana Court for more than half a century. Golden jubilee is an occasion to remember all those great Judges who sat on the Bench and all those great lawyers who appeared in the court and helped in the dispensation of justice. It also gives us an opportunity to reflect as to whether we are enhancing the image further or denting it. Many lawyers of this High Court became Judges and later Chief Justices of India. Presently, too, this court has a large number of eminent Judges and distinguished lawyers. I have no doubt that all of them are working very hard. But the fact is that despite these efforts, the number of cases is increasing, resulting in a delay in the disposal of cases both in the High Courts and the subordinate courts. Litigants are fully justified when they expect a decision on their cases in a reasonable time. One factor that can affect the image and erode the faith of the common man in the judiciary is the delay in the disposal of cases. If we cannot enhance the image which we have inherited, it is our duty and responsibility to at least ensure that it is maintained and no dent is created in it. We cannot always live on our past glory. The common man considers the judiciary as “the ultimate guardian of his rights and liberties”. No institution can take for granted the respect of the community. It has high expectations, and constantly demands proof to its utility. If the problem of delay is not tackled now, it can shake people’s faith. With the enactment of a large number of laws, the volume of work in courts has gone up enormously without any increase, let alone corresponding increase, in the strength of Judges at all levels. People have become more and more aware of their rights and are no longer willing to submit to arbitrariness anywhere. It is necessary to re-evaluate the functioning of the judiciary and to bring about a qualitative change in the justice delivery system so as to bring it in line with the hopes and aspirations of the people. The judiciary has to devise new methods, forge new tools and innovate new strategies for the purpose of reaching social justice to the common man. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, while opening the building of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, had said, “Justice in India should be simple, speedy and cheap.” I hope we would be able to translate the dream of Pandit Nehru into a reality in the near future. I wish to mention only three short-term measures, which, if taken immediately, can to some extent help in solving the problem of delay. The first is the removal of the delay that occurs in filling the vacancies. The second is about management techniques and the third adopting alternative dispute redressal (ADR) measures. Besides increasing the number of Judges in a phased manner, at all levels, as a first step, it is absolutely imperative to fill the existing vacancies at all levels in the shortest possible period. You have to develop a zero-vacancy or nearly zero-vacancy culture. Filling of vacancies, particularly in the district courts, has to be an ongoing process. Second, we have to make full use of modern technology. The time of the courts has to be used for effective hearing and not for procedural matters like the time spent for ordering service when a party is not served or filing of pleadings, etc. This work has to be delegated to the supporting staff. The state must provide the necessary infrastructure and staff to implement these steps. A no-adjournment culture has to be developed by the courts. Priorities have to be fixed. Old and new cases have to be segregated. For every case and every step, the time schedule has to be fixed and followed. Thirdly, boost has to be given to ADR methods in civil matters. The huge pendency of criminal cases, particularly in magisterial courts, where the common man is affected the most, is a matter of great concern. Some cases have to be taken out of the normal channel of courts. Petty offence cases are large in number. Appointment of retired officers as special magistrates would help. Courts have to discourage frivolous litigation and impose heavy costs on frivolous litigants, be it an individual or the government. I would appeal to all the stake-holders — the Judges, lawyers, governments in the states and at the Centre and other litigants — to do everything possible to provide speedy and inexpensive justice. We must remember that the strength and the failure of our system, its utility and credibility as a necessary organ of the State in a civilised society, the respect it would evoke and the confidence it would inspire would depend upon the way it satisfies the hopes and aspirations of the people, of the common man in quest of justice, in keeping the scales even in any legal combat between the rich and the poor, between the mighty and the weak, between the State and the citizen, without fear or favour. We must ask ourselves: Does our judicial system satisfy the demand for justice? Does it fulfil the expectations of the people? Are the courts of law looked upon as temples of justice, where it is administered without fear or favour, oblivious of the personalities of the litigants and without regard to their long purse or high status? Does the common man have an abiding and unshakable faith in the process of justice as administered by the courts, particularly with reference to speed and expense? The writer is the Chief Justice of India. The article has been excerpted from a speech delivered by him at a function organised to celebrate the golden jubilee of the Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandigarh. |
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In-your-face journalism Recently doctors in France performed a history-making partial face transplant on a 38-year-old woman who’d lost her mouth, chin and nose after a dog attack. By Wednesday morning, the American news media was all over the story, and by that evening, broadcasters were challenging each other to see how quickly they could segue from serious medical coverage to the more revenue-producing stuff of cosmetic surgery and celebrities. On CNN’s “The Situation Room,” Wolf Blitzer joined “The Cafferty File’s” Jack Cafferty in an odd little soft-shoe routine about what would happen if face transplants became the hottest new thing in elective cosmetic surgery. “An extreme makeover indeed!” Blitzer intoned. Cafferty, leading with a disclaimer about having “a little fun with a serious story,” extrapolated even further, reading viewer responses to a survey about what celebrity faces they’d covet if transplants became as commonplace as lifts. In true American fashion, most preferred a composite — a greatest hits medley of ideal celebrity features that, wouldn’t you know it, ranged from “Anderson Cooper’s face for job interviews” to “Wolf Blitzer’s face (so) I could fly to Washington and pick up groupies in the bars there by telling them I am the Wolfman.” Funny stuff. Someone should put these guys on morning drive talk radio. But CNN was hardly the only news outlet that managed to turn a gruesome medical report (a European one, no less) into a sci-fi human interest feature. Just about everyone ran clips from the 1997 movie “Face/Off” — in which hero John Travolta and villainous Nicholas Cage exchanged faces and identities through futuristic plastic surgery — and several broadcasters felt compelled to wrap up the story by noting that doctors were, alas, not considering the possibility of elective face transplants in the future (the implication being, “But we sure are!”). Sure, there continue to be a few ethical issues around the edges of this story. Some experts criticized the French doctors for not first attempting more traditional reconstructive surgery. It was also pointed out that the patient was not necessarily going to die without the surgery. This was, according to doctors, a quality-of-life issue rather than a life-or-death matter. There is a very real short-term possibility of organ rejection, as well as a long-term chance that the patient will develop cancer due to some of the anti-rejection drugs. But these issues by themselves just aren’t sexy enough for TV. Because today’s news is all about relating to the audience, about delivering news that touches people right in their living rooms, it’s only natural they’d give us the story we really want. It’s not a medical story, and it’s certainly not a story happening in France. It’s the story about what it means to be freedom-loving people (you know, the ones whose way of life the insurgents hate). It’s the story about how, in a great democracy, we can say what we wish, worship any God we choose and have any damn face we want, even if it bears no relationship to our DNA. Apparently, free people are all supposed to look alike. Over the last decade or so, a giant eraser seems to have rubbed against our collective concept of the human face, rendering it at once “more perfect” and increasingly forgettable. Even in places outside of Los Angeles, where in some communities cubist faces rule the day, it seems more and more difficult to tell people apart from one another. A sort of McMansion effect is beginning to settle across our facial plains. Like old houses that are bulldozed to make room for enormous prefabs, we’re tossing out our own histories in favor of noses or cheekbones that may, perversely, reflect the values of our current society but have nothing to do with our heritage, our families or even sometimes our ethnicity.
— LA TIMES-WASHINGTON POST |
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Chatterati Natwar Singh’s exit from the Union Cabinet may be a breather for the Congress. But for the Opposition this is only the first victory. As the Volcker report unfolds, it’s very clear that the sons, sons-in-law, nephews of various senior Congress men are involved. The arrogance of these youngsters is for all to see and experience in Delhi circles. Aneel Mitrani is well known in the Capital for his escapades of all sorts for years. In this scenario one does end up feeling sorry for fathers like Natwar, who have to pay for the deeds of their kids. But it is a weakness of the parents to turn a blind eye when a kid is getting spoilt and embarrassing the family name and honour of the political party they represent. Even in other political parties we have enough good-for-nothing, high-headed kids going crazy with their dad’s power. The new trend of wives, sons, daughters being adjusted in positions of power also needs to be stopped. In fact, the day Analdeep Sehgal was named in this scam, his mom-in-law was adjusted as a member of the AICC. The party high command should keep a check on all this or the opposition will have many more issues like this cropping up every day. Tennis gets hot Delhi is a hub of activity during this season. The weather is perfect and celebrities from all spheres are flying in. Last week we had the city’s tennis scene getting hot with celebrity players like Sania Mirza, Mahesh Bhupati, Shikha Oberoi, Richard and Michaella Krajicek and they enthralled the crowds with their power-packed games at the stadium. The Dutch, however, dominated the Indians as they took an unbeatable lead in the three matches played. In the evening it was party time for all. Networking time to get more advertising work for the likes of Mahesh, who look after Sania’s endorsements. Stars’ cricket When movie stars and cricketers come together, can you imagine the chaos and excitement? A cricket match was organised in memory of the late Sunil Dutt. And, of course, the chief guest here was our new MP from Mumbai, Sunil Dutt’s daughter Priya Dutt. The new mother was glowing with pride. The late Sports Minister loved cricket, so it was natural to hold a cricket match to collect funds for an orphanage in his honour. The entry of Bollywood stars into the cricket field had the crowds cheer out loud. Govinda, Shatrughan Sinha — for a change with his wife Poonam — Pooja Batra, Gulshan Grover and singer Rageshwari’s songs kept the crowd entertained. Chetan Chauhan, Atul Wasan and Kapil Dev were grinning away with the stars. Now with the cricket and filmi stars, how can Rajiv Shukla not be there? Suniel Shetty was the first to bat and got out on a duck. The prize distribution was at the poolside. You need to cool down too, you know, after all the heat was too much with such star power chemistry. Kuldip Bishnoi walked off with the trophy while Gulshan Grover won the best Cricketer award, Pooja Batra bagged the best bowler and Suniel Shetty got the award for his social responsibility? So with jhatka and matka vibes going haywire it was a full day of fun and cheer and an eyeful for the locals. |
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November 22, 1917 Sir J.C. Bose’s research We are glad to learn that researches carried out under Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose have been recognised by Government as of Imperial importance, and that six State scholarships have been sanctioned for workers already trained by the eminent scientist. It is also gratifying to learn that Government have expressed a desire to make further grants commensurate with public donations. The researches carried on in the institute are of far-reaching importance and are sure to put India on a level with other countries in the field of science. Dr Bose feels that India has also enough to contribute to the world, and his institute marks a step in that direction. He has two big donations from Mr Bomanji and Mr Khatan. It is a pleasure to find the students of Fergusson College, Poona, coming forward with their mite. The public should come forward with donations to make the Institute worthy of India.
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Women whether naturally good or not, whether chaste or unchaste, should always be regarded as images of the Blissful Divine Mother. — Ramakrishna The Brahmin’s duty is to look after the sanitation of the soul, the bhangi’s that of the body of
society. — Mahatma Gandhi |
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