C.R. Irani On Enforcing Law Against Goons

Within a fortnight of the unprovoked assault on a Christian priest and two nuns in Mathura and within days of a clear warning by the Prime Minister himself to desist from such vulgar displays of ignorance, intolerance and brute force, it has happened again and in the same district of Uttar Pradesh. A group of Christians distributing religious literature in the village of Nagla Ajita were set upon by what are euphemistically described as villagers egged on, at the very least, by activists of that notorious organisation in which the Home Minister sees no criminality, the Bajrang Dal. They burnt their bibles and other literature, and for good measure took away the van they were using. Not content with that, they carted the 14 missionaries to the local police station and got some solitary local to file an FIR against them. Is it suggested that all this happened without official connivance? No details of the alleged offence committed are available for the simple reason that none was committed. It is the constitutionally guaranteed right of every citizen to practise and propagate the religion of his choice. It was with considerable difficulty that a Walter Robinson, representing the missionaries was able to register a counter FIR.

It is time to draw attention to the contradiction between constitutionally guaranteed rights and the reluctance, nay the determination, of politicians in office and the police they have subdued to do their bidding, not to enforce it ... The fault lies at the level of law enforcement and the total lack of accountability of those who, with malice aforethought, do not choose to enforce the law and when they feel obliged to apprehend culprits, to see to it that proceedings do not commence. At long last when proccedings do commence, official agencies ensure that witnesses do not come forward because of terror and intimidation ...

How is this problem to be tackled? ... At the.end of the day is it not a simple matter of enforcing the law? And visiting exemplary punishment on those, police, bureaucrat or politician involved in abuse of the legal process in order to shield the guilty?

In the meantime, those who filed the fake FIR against the missionaries who were victims in Nagla Ajita, not offenders, must be dealt with under the law, the FIR filed against the mischief makers must proceed to trial and conviction. It is time we acted to bring the rule of law into its own. In a word, enforce the law and be seen to be enforcing it. That is the need of the hour. (Source: The Statesman, 25 April, 2000)