Dhobles Mumbai

The character certificate handed to Dhoble skirts the real issue. The greater tragedy for Mumbai is that this kind of vigilantism,an aggressive moral policing,stems from an enormous political abdication and failure. It took a Dhoble for Maharashtras Minister of State for Home Satej Patil to acknowledge that the government should take a relook at the law to protect the rights of citizens. It is also pertinent for lawmakers to review the statutes to see if legislations like the Bombay Shops and Establishments Act of 1948 have kept pace with the citys evolution.

Mumbais malaise is that politicians have failed to articulate an idea of Mumbai an enterprising,cosmopolitan space where due process of law is followed and citizen freedoms are protected. But then this is the city where at different moments,all political parties have turned into self-appointed minders of morals condoning violence on Valentines Day or attacks on western culture. Dhoble is a symptom of the wider culture of patrolling and punishment that has Mumbai in its grip.