Crime and punishment

ACCORDING to some versions of the Mahabharata, the succession to the throne of Hastinapur was decided not by seniority, but by testing the capability of the two princes.  

Pandu’s son Yudhishtir was not only older, but also an upright man — the son of Dharamraj himself. But Duryodhan wanted to be the king too.  And he had his father’s support who was the ruler. 

Vidur was given the task of assessing the two princes. Besides his wide knowledge of the scriptures, he was wise and just. He put a simple question to the two princes: “A murder is committed. What punishment should the murderer get if he is (a) a Shudra (b) a Vaishya (c) a Kshatriya or (d) a Brahmin?” 

Duryodhan was quick and confident to answer: “The punishment should be the same, whatever the murderer’s caste or standing.” 

Good enough! Have we all not been brought up to believe that everyone is equal before law and that the law is blind?

But let us listen to Yudhishtir first. “If a low caste commits a murder, he has to be punished according to whatever is prescribed for such a crime. But a Vaishya guilty of the same crime should get double of that punishment, for he is an educated person who should be aware of the consequences of his crime as well as the difference between right and wrong.

“A Kshatriya should get four times of that punishment. Is he not the one who is duty bound to protect people?  Instead of protecting them, he has used his skills to kill one of them. 

“And a Brahmin — the most learned — one should be given the severe most punishment; double to that of Kshatriya. His duty is to guide people, to show them the difference between right and wrong. If he himself commits such a heinous crime, what effect it will have on society? What will it all lead to?” 

 But what is its relevance today?

Yudhishter’s theory of justice has been turned upside down in the modern era.

The verdict today seems to be that while a common man will be punished much more in proportion to his crime, the poorer you are, the harsher the punishment. The influential person or the person with the right connections shall roam free; so what if he is a criminal, and has committed a murder or two! 

Rapes in educational institutions, corruption cases in judiciary, traitors in the Army, all these have become a regular feature of our daily news. 

And what about the police? Instead of feeling protected, people feel threatened in a police station!

Could there be anything worse than this in a civilised society?