Let's hold our horses

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Let's hold our horses

Saturday, 07 December 2019 | Pioneer

Let's hold our horses

When civil society celebrates vigilantism, then we are actually absolving the justice system of accountability

Mahatma Gandhi believed there is a higher court “than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience.” That kind of justice flows from the moral choice we make as humans with the full knowledge that we would be responsible for the consequences, some of which will impact society beyond our timeline. Crime and its punishment have been one such choice that we have had to make through civilisations, from “an eye for an eye” medievalism to a civil justice system. The first is instantaneous, the second protracted, the first douses our raging emotions, the second gives the satisfaction that we aren’t just as bad as the killers and deviants and have done absolutely the right thing by respecting behavioural over bestial codes. Yet, civility has little place in these impassioned times. Nobody thinks that the severity of crimes and the savagery of predatory intent have not been tamed even by the ruthless execution of the death penalty. Hence there is a prevalent public sentiment for vigilantism in utter disregard of the law which governs the everyday grid of our lives. That fails, every other civilisational construct fails, humanity fails, evolution fails. So when news trickled in that the Telangana police shot dead four rapists of the 26-year-old veterinarian in an encounter during a crime scene reconstruction, the response in its favour was overwhelming as it soothed collective anger. Inarguably, the societal breaking point didn’t happen without a reason. Rape surpasses murder in our country if the National Crime Records Bureau figures are to be believed, at 5 per cent and 2 per cent respectively. Considering the heinousness of the crime, the innocence of the victim, the delayed justice for perpetrators (Nirbhaya death row convicts are still encircling legal loops for seven years) and the continuing violations of women, it is not difficult to gauge the ferocity of public anger. But does that mean that our public institutions and systems should play to the gallery, fan extreme sentiments and encourage gun culture? In the end, outrage cannot justify outrageous behaviour. The police, often tainted by custodial excesses, cannot be seen as giving into frenzy and escaping its responsibility, which is restoring our faith in the justice system with persuasive efficiencies. Killing the accused without a trial definitely won’t put them beyond a reasonable doubt.

Let us consider the larger implication of the clamour for death penalty as a deterrent. Even as protests were held to demand death for Hyderabad rapists, a girl was raped and burnt in Bihar, another was raped and strangulated to death in Karnataka, two were raped and killed in Rajasthan and Bengal and a rape survivor in Uttar Pradesh (UP) was burnt and is fighting for each breath in hospital. So fragile is the threshold that a dancer at a wedding in UP was shot dead for not complying with certain demands. A rapist/criminal has a devious mind, understands what might get him into trouble and hence has already begun covering his tracks by not just killing but eliminating the victim’s remains. The second major problem with a knee-jerk reaction is that we are absolving the police of its failure to do its job. A responsive criminal justice system creates confidence among the citizenry and slows down criminal activity. The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) says that a trial in rape cases should be completed in 60 days but that never happens because of the tardiness of investigations. Then there are judicial flaws that need to be plugged when it comes to rape, the primary fix being denial of bail to the accused till completion of probes. The average time of finishing trial even in fast track courts is eight months. As for the death penalty, acquittals, appeals and mercy petitions mean that only about five per cent of such verdicts are upheld by the higher courts. A traumatised rape survivor hardly has the courage to go through such travesty and gives up midway. How many of us have been tracking the Nirbhaya case over the last seven years as it has faded from public memory? Also, the law has been classist about convicting rapists who are politicians. While the shoot-at-sight approach is easy enough to use against truck cleaners, let us not forget that the rape accused like Kuldeep Sengar and Swami Chinmayanand are privileged by the politics they practise and had been roaming free before they were put in custody. Many serving MPs are in the dark zone. We need police and judicial reforms to let justice remain credible than return to the laws of the jungle. Every crime, rape included, needs a trial. Guilt should be above suspicion. Otherwise, we cannot stop every other person from picking up the gun, deciding what’s best and institutionalising it simply by resorting to it frequently.

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