The Ruchika Girhotra case has already shown us some of the worst of India. Leave aside,even,the sordid initial actions of disgraced cop S.P.S. Rathore; the complicity of society at every level from Ruchikas school,to the local cops,to the home ministry and the political class reveals how difficult it is,sometimes,to envision an India in which the powerful are held to account. Each of us,at some point,has kept silent,or accepted injustice,for fear that the awful machinery of an intrusive state should be turned against us by some insider. So it is that when a case like this is exposed,bottled-up frustrations explode in righteous anger. But righteous anger is still anger. And the one thing that democratic institutions must fear more than the machinations of the influential is the anger of the mob. Which is what,sadly,this has become. Consider the most recent,unfortunate sight: of Law Minister Moily announcing that the case would likely be re-opened and be treated as a model case. What he likely means is that Rathore will face charges for abetment of suicide; this charge was earlier,on the orders of the high court in 2002,dropped. Yet there was little to indicate the careful thought that should accompany a ministerial decision to counter that ruling. And to compound this,we are subject to the sight of precisely those people who had earlier abandoned Ruchika and her family now bending over backward taking legal norms with them. Not only is this inappropriate for a liberal state,but it has very real effects. Consider this: we are faced,following Rathores sentencing,with one fact,that the law covering sexual molestation of minors is horrifyingly weak reflecting the dubious Victorian morality that underpins our criminal code and that a maximum sentence of two years is unacceptable today. We must change that. But heres the great tragedy in forcing institutions politics,police,the legal system that bent to the powerful to now bend to public anger: we focus on a particular instance,on one man,rather than on ensuring that future Ruchikas are protected. Let it be clearly understood: citizen activism has its place. This newspaper prides itself on its history of laying bare the misuse of power before the public. But the courtroom,and judicial investigation,must be as insulated from the fury of the justifiably incensed as it should be from the whims of the well-connected. So let us curb our anger,if it gets in the way of setting things to rights. Anything else would be injustice for Ruchika.
