Opinion Live and let live

The daily Sahafat,published simultaneously from Delhi,Mumbai,Lucknow and Dehradun,in its editorial (March 10),writes: “We completely agree with the view expressed by the lawyer representing the government,Mr Vahnavati,that India is emotionally not prepared to accept euthanasia. There is also the danger that the ruthless sons and daughters of old parents can,and would,make wrong use of this provision. Therefore,before giving any legal and constitutional sanction to such killings,it is necessary to debate different aspects of this matter. Basically,life is a blessing from God and the right to end it too rests with God alone.”

Judging Godhra

Hyderabad-based daily Siasat,in its March 3 editorial regarding a special court’s judgment on the Godhra train fire incident of 2002,writes: “The perception that strongly emerges from the judgment is that the law of our country is strong and it takes decisions without any prejudice. But,if we consider the cases other than the Godhra case,we find that courts or judges have not demonstrated the same commitment towards justice as the Sabarmati court. Law is blind and,therefore,it should treat every accused in the manner it treated those accused in the Godhra train fire case. Whether it is the riots following the Godhra episode or killings of lakhs of innocent Muslims in other parts of the country,those guilty were not given death sentences after years of legal proceedings,as was done by the judge in the Godhra case.”

The paper adds: “There have been many cases in the country in which large scale killings (qatl-e-aam) have been committed under conspiracies. Following the Godhra episode a conspiracy was hatched for burning alive Muslims in various villages,lanes and bylanes of Gujarat but the arms of law and justice desist from expressing an opinion on the aspect of conspiracy. In various parts of the country,other than Gujarat,crimes have been committed according to conspiracies,but no guilty person has so far been given a death sentence… Justice demands that those guilty in the anti-Muslim riots of Gujarat are punished through fast-track trials. There should not be any discrimination in dispensing justice.”

Hyderabad’s other daily,Munsif,in its editorial on March 4,describes this judgment as “a poor joke in the name of justice,that ignored many important facts”,and one that “amounts to an insult to the highest court of India,the greatest democracy of the world.” The paper writes: “Until a few hours before the judgment was pronounced,it was being claimed that the investigating agency had solid proof against all 94 accused,and all of them would definitely be held guilty. But only 31 out of the 94 accused were declared guilty and the most important accused (Maulvi Umarji) who was being described as the prime conspirator,has been acquitted. The acquittal of 63 persons and the sentencing of only one-third of the accused raises questions about the entire investigation.”

Delhi-based daily Jadeed Khabar,in its editorial (March 3) says: “It is certain that on appeals to the higher courts,there will be changes in the sentences awarded by the special court,because the large number of accused who have been acquitted goes to prove that the police and the prosecutors were faced with practical difficulties while trying to prove that the Godhra incident was the result of a conspiracy,and they have not been able to present their case strongly.”

The Congress-DMK bind

A commentator in Rashtriya Sahara (March 12) says that the road ahead is not easy for the Congress-DMK alliance in Tamil Nadu. According to him,the Congress is faced with a contradiction between its long-term goal and short-term objective. “Rahul Gandhi wants to strengthen the party (long-term goal) but in the party does not want to face a situation similar to its fate in Bihar (short-term objective). Karunanidhi wanted to exploit this contradiction but he did not expect the Congress to take the stance it took.” On the other hand,“Jayalalithaa has strengthened her chances in the election by keeping away from Hindu organisations and appeasing the minorities as well as forging an alliance with Left parties.”

The daily Sahafat writes in its editorial on March 11: “The Congress has got its demand (on number of assembly seats) conceded by the DMK. But it has failed in its objective,for which it wanted to get rid of the DMK. The DMK’s misdeeds are bound to have an adverse effect on its ally,the Congress,in the Tamil Nadu elections.”