NEW DELHI, Jan 4: From corruption to politics, crime to obscenity, corporate disputes to human rights and activating the law enforcing agencies to disciplining the general public, the Delhi High Court during 1997 played a pivotal role in all fields to achieve the goal of social cleansing.Be it the multi-crore Jain hawala case, sensational Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MPs bribery case, cancellation of petrol pump allotments, Maruti-Suzuki corporate dispute or ordering of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry against Delhi Congress strongman Jagdish Tytler, the Delhi HC acted as the torch bearer in the "judicial activism" the country has been witnessing.The other major cases that took place during the year included the St Kitts forgery case, Janata Dal and Congress elections cases, Martin Massey beating case, school fee hike case, Connaught Place shoot-out case and the Uphaar fire tragedy case. The three cases against Congress president Sitaram Kesri - Dr Tanwar murder case, Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) case and amassing wealth disproportionate to known source of income case - attracted the attention of the country almost during every hearing.Among the country's top politicians caught in the web of judicial activism were Bharatiya Janata Party president L K Advani, former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao, Rashtriya Janata Dal president Laloo Prasad Yadav, Janata Dal president Sharad Yadav and many former Union ministers, facing corruption and criminal charges in various cases.Though the judiciary did its part of the job, things did not improve as expected as the officials in various government and other departments took their own time in going through the complaints, removing grievances and streamlining the functioning.
