From the Urdu Press: ‘For SC to be people’s court, need justice without delay’, ‘After Haryana, INDIA should ensure a united front’

At an event in Goa on Saturday, CJI Chandrachud had stressed that the role of the Supreme Court as “the people’s court” must be preserved, but that it did not mean that the apex court had to fulfill the role of the Opposition in the Parliament. “Otherwise, as societies grow and societies evolve into more prosperity and affluence, there is a perception that you should be looking at only the big-ticket items. Ours is not a court like that. Ours is a court which is a people’s court,” he had said.

In this context, the editorial in Roznama Sahara poses a few questions: “a) Does the common citizen have access to the Supreme Court for seeking justice?; b) Leave alone the Supreme Court, can they easily approach the lower judiciary?; c) Do they have the financial means to sustain long-drawn court battles?”

These questions remain unanswered, the Roznama Sahara says.

The editorial notes that President Darupadi Murmu earlier raised the issue of the financial burden of seeking justice, at a programme attended by the CJI. “People lose their property, including jewelry, their jobs, in fighting court cases. Even then, justice eludes them,” the editorial notes, contrasting this with the rich and the ease with which they can avail furloughs and paroles.

The absence of a timeframe within which to discharge court cases further burdens the judiciary itself, the editorial says.

It goes on to laud the fact that despite the above-mentioned issues, faith of the common men in the country’s judiciary was unwavering. “They know that the courts will deliver justice,” the editorial says, adding that for the Supreme Court to be called the people’s court, the common men must get justice without delay.

Siasat

In its October 17 edition published from Hyderabad, the Siasat lists out the challenges for Omar Abdullah, whose party, the National Conference, received a resounding mandate in the recently-held elections in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The daily notes that Omar will have to make a fresh beginning keeping in mind the ground realities and expectations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

“Leaving behind experiences of the past – good or bad – the new Chief Minister will have to take into account the current situation and fresh hopes of the people. It’s a fact that the situation will not change overnight. But a new beginning will have to be made. The new government will have to work on generating employment, and look for new avenues for the same,” the daily notes.

“The Omar government has the requisite numbers and the INDIA group has also unanimously expressed its support. What is now needed is a robust programme based on consensus of all the stakeholders to make a new beginning,” it says.

Salar

The Bangaluru-based Salar criticises the differences in the INDIA bloc over ticket distribution for the elections in Jharkhand next month. The daily argues that after the Congress’s shocking defeat in Haryana, the Opposition should have put together a united front to take on the BJP. “And this (bickering over seats) does not bode well,” it says. “It is interesting to note that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and RJD chief Tejaswi Yadav were present in Ranchi just before the distribution of tickets. Yet it was unilaterally announced that the Congress and JMM will contest on 70 seats out of 80, leaving (just) the rest to other alliance partners,” it says.

The daily, however, says that based on the last Assembly election results, when the RJD won only one seat from the seven it contested, the current Congress-JMM formula does not look off the mark. Therefore, to defeat the BJP, there must be better coordination among the INDIA bloc partners, the daily suggests.