The Commonwealth Games began with a bang,notwithstanding numerous hiccups and the incredible fact that there was only one full dress rehearsal preceding the opening event. The seven-year-old tabla player,Keshav,with his innocent smiling face and his tremendous technique was enthralling. He is a must in any future Indo-jazz fusion concert. Most heartening was the warm applause given to the Pakistani athletes. It demonstrated the warm ties between peoples of India and Pakistan and gave a resounding rebuff to the recent violent jingoistic antics of the Thackerays in Mumbai. Our athletes amongst others have made India proud. However,it must be ensured that the Games do not end with a whimper. Empty seats in the stadia and unhygienic water in the swimming pool do not augur well. Overall success of the Games should not weaken the resolve to thoroughly probe the corruption scams and the various acts of commission and omission which have tarnished our nations image. Those found guilty after a fair inquiry must be punished. Their wrongdoings cannot be obliterated by the success of the games. Crime must not pay.
Fair trial for Baig
There is persistent public misconception about the role of a lawyer engaged to defend a person accused of reprehensible crimes. Taking up the case of an accused does not at all mean that the lawyer approves of his alleged actions. The role of the defence lawyer in court is not to express his personal belief about the guilt or innocence of his client. His function is to plead that the facts and circumstances relied upon by the prosecution do not meet the requisite standard of guilt and if there is any reasonable doubt the benefit of it should be given to the accused. To some this may appear outdated. But that is the jurisprudence of every civilised country based on the Rule of Law,one of whose cardinal principles is to give a fair trial to an accused,whatever be the gravity of the alleged offence. This principle is embodied in the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights 1966 which our country has ratified. It is a vital component of Article 21 which postulates that no person should be deprived of his life and liberty except by a fair procedure. Denial of legal representation to an accused is certainly unfair. It is distressing that the Poona Bar Association has directed lawyers not to take up the case of Himayat Baig,an accused in the German bakery blast case. To pressurise advocates to refrain from defending him is totally unjustified. Public sentiments based on the foregone assumption that Baig is guilty cannot override basic principles. Effort should be to ensure that prosecution is properly conducted by an able public prosecutor,that there are no technical goof ups which may result in the acquittal of the accused. If Baig is found guilty,hang him but not by denying him legal representation,an essential requirement of a fair criminal trial.
Spy games
In his recent book,M16: the History of the Secret Intelligence Service 1909-1949,Keith Jeffery surpasses James Bond spy movies. He gives an account of a glamorous 22-year-old agent Ecclesiastic who tricked her Nazi lover into revealing vital intelligence. In June 1944,when she was enlisted by the British secret service,she was the mistress of a German military intelligence officer,Franz Koschnik. One of Ecclesiastics case officers Klop Ustinovfather of the actor Peter Ustinovreported that Ecclesiastic was very intelligent and clearly enjoyed the game of mobilising her ample female resources against normal male instincts. Halina Szymanska,one of the wartime agents in Switzerland,penetrated the highest level of German intelligence. In one of her reports,Halina conveyed her account of the face to face meeting she had with Admiral Canaris over dinner in Berne on October 19,1941. Canaris mentioned the difficulties the German forces were experiencing on the Russian front and Hitler,he said,had grossly miscalculated. The role of females in the spy game is fascinating. Apparently their anatomy helps.
