Law lets the greater felon loose !

13th January, 2006.

To
THE EDITOR
THE DAILY NEWS AND ANALYSIS, AFTERNOON
TIMES OF INDIA, FREE PRESS JOURNAL, LOKSATTA
MID-DAY, MUMBAI MIRROR, ASIAN AGE,
HINDUSTAN TIMES.

Dear Editor,

The Judgment of the Bombay HC justifying the demolitions of illegal dwellings in Ulhasnagar and holding the citizens responsible by quoting “caveat emptor” (buyer beware), is truly a miscarriage of justice.

Both, as a law student and an activist I don’t believe in this maxim in its entirety. Infact, for long I have felt that the maxim “buyer beware” should be changed to “seller be-warned” to suit the Indian environment where “the consumer is king” remains nothing but a sanctimonious idea.

I am also unable to fathom the statement of Justice Lodha when he says “This is the smallest price you can pay for your ignorance.” Is throwing thousands of people including the old, infirm and children on the streets overnight, a “small price”? How can Justice Lodha call this “ignorance” when the people have been mass cheated, when there is elephantine fraud and breach of trust? While highlighting the legal maxim “buyer beware” and passing the brunt of the demolition judgment onto the innocent citizens, didn’t the court consider a very important legal maxim: “Salus populi est suprema lex” (Regard for the public welfare is the highest law).

Justice Lodha further comments “It really pains us but we have taken an oath to uphold the constitution. We can supplement justice…. not supplant it.” Well, then upholding the Constitution means upholding the right to survival, the right to housing, the right to health and education (of those infirm and children who will become homeless), the right to a humane environment which have been interpreted as the right to life (Article 21) – the most fundamental of our fundamental rights as enshrined in our Constitution.

The Constitution of India provides that the High Court and Supreme Court has the power to review its own orders. Judges have in the past commented that “under the writ jurisdiction, the Judges and Courts have the power of a Monarch”. So, this power must be used to “right the wrong”. And if Justice has to be supplemented, then arrest all those agents, officials, bureaucrats, builders who were involved in ‘legalizing’ these illegal structures, impound their property and black money, freeze their bank accounts and jail them for severe fraud and embezzlement.

That will be justice according to me. Otherwise Ulhasnagar demolition case will be a classic example of:

“The law locks up both men and women
Who steals the goose from off the common,
But lets the greater felon loose
Who steals the common from the goose.”
- Anonymous

Yours frankly,
RONALD L. REBELLO