Judicial Reforms-- Reduction of Judges’ Discretion First Imperative

The Government of India has failed to bring the bill for judicial reforms in parliament. One of the reasons of obnoxious practices in judiciary especially in some section of the higher one is too much liberty exercised by a judge in using discretion in judicial proceedings particularly at the admission stage.

There are provisions in the procedural or Constitutional laws to use discretion in securing ends of justice. But now a days this discretion is being misused in selective manner. One bench goes on to decide the matter on merits in case of gross violations of fundamental or legal rights; another bench dismisses a writ, application or SLP purely on the point of maintainability, alternative remedy or technical lacuna in similar situation.

In a righteous judicial stance there must not be any variation with change of benches. Decisions from the same set of facts and laws must be the same irrespective of benches.

Discretion invariably affects justice. More the discretion the more are the chances of arbitrariness. The first step should be to eliminate the element of discretion or reduce it to minimum level so that unscrupulous judges do not promote arbitrariness, partiality and favoritism. For this, research should be undertaken to effectively lay down programmed and charted format/paradigm where there is a sense of predictability about the outcome of a case depending upon the facts and law.

The second point of reform should be to make accountable a judge who gives grossly wrong decisions at the cost of fundamental and human rights. Complaint disposal system should be transparent & effective.

The third reform should evolve on recruitment policy of judges and the collegium system must go in favor of a broad spectrum selection panel.

The fourth one should aim at spurring the replacement of or amendment to the impeachment provision so that without diluting the independence of honest judges there must be a mechanism to effectively discipline an errant or corrupt judge.

The fifth and the most important step of reform should focus on the character, moral robustness, incorruptibility and conduct of a judge in his social surroundings.

The sixth reform should entail constant performance appraisal with a focus on quality judgments.

The seventh point of reform should restrain judges indulging in criticism of institutions or individuals off record. A check on judges’ sermons in courts which do not form a part of their orders must be enforced. Only yesterday we noticed news about a judge lamenting denial of justice to ordinary citizens but his own performance belies his own words.

Trifurcate Jammu & Kashmir before Telangana comes into being

In  J & K,  Ladakh  and Jammu are two distinct areas marked by linguistic, cultural and geographical differences. Politically also the people of these regions stand subjugated under the people of the Kashmir valley who have been their rulers even though these two parts are racially, culturally and religiously not in complete harmony with the valley people.

Pakistani and secessionist elements rule the roost. They have driven away the native Sikhs and Pundits from the valley. But our leadership continues to shelter the traitors.

Ladakh and Jammu must be separated from the valley and then quell the militancy in the valley with so much brutality that generations to come may not raise its disintegration bogey again.

Yesterday Pakistani army intruded ½ K.M. inside our boundary and killed five jawans. Every-day China slaps us in the face. The terror-outfits have permeated every nook and corner of the country. The I.S.I. is influencing politics. We are a battered nation with no self-pride or determination because the leadership has failed us due to its meekness & weakness. Our sovereignty is at stake. Morale of State is low. We are still ruining our institutions like I.B., police and defence forces. About 10 IPS officers are in jail for killing terrorists. God save this country from the crooks.

We hope a strong leader will emerge like Sardar Patel who would crush any voice that militates against the integrity of the country.

Indian Political Parties are afraid of Right to Information Act

All the political parties have ganged up in an unprecedented unity to obstruct transparency in their functioning. They all are opposing tooth & nail their coverage under the R.T.I.Act 2005. The bigger the party the bigger is its resolve to escape the dragnet of the transparency law. They are enjoying government facilities, tax-exemptions, and buildings on prime lands at premium locations in the national & state capitals, and several concessions & public donations. But they want an exit from the ambit of the Act. The more corrupt a party the more vociferous it is in its demand to negate the recent CIC order by bringing in a legislation in the Parliament.

Only the corrupt need to shy away from transparency be it the institutions or the political parties. The Act has taken good care of the issues sensitive to the unity and integrity of the nation by having an exemption clause. I do not think any other exemptions should be retained in the section 8 at all of the RTI Act in today’s world of exposures and revelations. We have example of the wiki leaks that has bared every secret so trenchantly guarded by the USA. Recently there was news that the Americans are having an electronic surveillance over India.

So when the western countries can have a tab on our official secrecy, when they know about the Indians having Swiss accounts and black money and, when even Pakistan has an access to information to our country-secrets why these corrupt parties are worried about us the voters. Afterall we all know they are shameless too.

सारण ज़िले में स्कूल के 25 बच्चों की मध्याह्न भोजन लेने से मृत्यु

कल बिहार  के सारण ज़िले में एक गाँव धर्मा सती स्कूल के 25 बच्चों की मृत्यु मध्याह्न भोजन  लेने से हो गई. मध्याह्न-भोज एक ऐसा नौटंकी है जिसके कारण ना सिर्फ़ ईंधन,रसोइया,अन्न-मसालों की जुगार करनी पड़ती है बल्कि बच्चों से बेगारी  भी ली जाती है. समय और शिक्षण दोनों प्रभावित होते हैं. ऊपर से नीचे तक भ्रष्टाचार इन योजनाओं का अनिवार्य अंग है.

सरकार को चाहिए कि डिब्बे-बंद बिस्किट्स, केक, दूध के बने सामान, चॉकलेट, सूखे फल स्कूल के बच्चों में वितरित करे.

पता नहीं इसमें शामिल भ्रष्ट लोगों को दंड मिलेगा या नहीं.

Indian Courts kickstart electoral reforms long overdue

Courts of India have taken upon themselves the task of cleansing the electoral system of India.  This is a welcome step. The Parliament and the Election Commission both have failed to usher in electoral reforms. Judicial directions on doling out freebie and largesse, proscribing caste rallies, debarring convicted and jailed persons from elections, deprecating political promises to allure electorates were long over due

But appeasement of certain groups of voters, lopsided development and government financial assistance to targeted segments of population, selective loan-waiving schemes, government subsidies on Haj and pilgrimage etc. should also be banned as electoral malpractices.

Recently the media-hyped Food Security Ordinance and cash-transfer on LPG etc are nothing but an exercise to bribe the Indian voters. The popular saying is that as is the king so are his subjects.  There is hardly a day that passes without torrid details of a new subject of corruption in government.

केदारनाथ की त्रासदी

मनुष्य ने अपने निर्बंध लोभ के कारण प्रकृति को विनाश तथा विध्वंश के मार्ग पर चलने को विवश किया हैI भ्रष्ट सत्ता के संरक्षण में उत्तराखंड के शांत एवं नैसर्गिक वातावरण को अधोगामी विकास के द्वारा नष्ट-भ्रष्ट किया गया, उसीका परिणाम केदारनाथ की अभूतपूर्व विनाश-लीला हैI हज़ारों यात्रियों का कारुणिक अंत आधुनिक काल की सर्वाधिक वीभत्स गाथा हैI इस त्रासदी को ससमय सहायता पहुँचI कर कम किया जा सकता था लेकिन अक्षम सरकार ने अपने संसाधनों का तत्क्षण तथा प्रभावी तरीके से उपयोग नहीं कियाI

Modi’s Juggernaut Pulverizes Advani’s Dreams

There is nothing wrong for Advani to be ambitious. But his ambition shattered in 2009 when he had miserably failed as a leader to energize his party the BJP into a creditable victory. Now he wants another chance for another retrial in 2014 elections. As a veteran leader whose contribution to the party is stupendous and undeniable, he ought to have conducted himself gracefully at his ripe age of 86. He would have won hearts if he had consented majority (rather consensus) decision of the party  to bestow the leadership on Narendra Modi; now his bête noire, the man he himself created in politics and groomed gradually to this stage. Advani failed to see the writing on the wall. He disregarded the sentiments of the rank and file of the party. It is very sad that he has lost respectability for petty selfishness at the fag end of his life after contributing immensely to the party he nurtured and loved most.

Today I see a comment by Shashi Tharoor “In Congress, our leaders defer to each other, in BJP they differ with each other”. Why does an articulate person like Tharoor gloss over the fact that BJP has never been an inheritance for Advani from his ancestors unlike the Congress. The BJP is a party comprising various shades of opinions, and decisions are taken through process of conciliation and consultation. So differences are a natural corollary of a democratic process of a democratic party. But Rahul Gandhi has inherited the Congress from his father, who acquired the political title from his mother and his mother from her father. Thus it is personal fiefdom of the Congress first family hence only the scions of the family  are awed of and revered, and the rest of the party men are only courtiers or jesters.