Politics

India’s Cruel Torture Bill

Statistics

1. Every year number of custodial deaths increase considerably.

2.  From 1994-2008; 16,886 custodial deaths were recorded.

3.  In 2007-08; 188 and 1789  people died in police and  judicial custody respectively.

Definition of Torture

Article 1 of United Nations Convention against torture, 1984 defines torture as:-

Any act by which public officials intentionally  inflict severe pain or suffering ( physical or mental) to a person for fullfiling certain purposes like seeking information or a confession, punishment, intimidation or discrimination of the victim.

Indian Position

India signed the UN Convention against ...read more Read More

The CRPF will be soon dead

“Joining CRPF was the biggest mistake of my life. I have realized that the country doesn’t honor its soldiers and it is better to take voluntary retirement after 20 years of service than to be treated as a pawn” says an anonymous CRPF jawan. His opinion reflects the thoughts of thousands of CRPF jawans who have been treated worse than a cattle both by the state and their departments.

Most of the soldiers in the paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) have lost their faith in the system and think ...read more Read More

The ugly truth regarding the Women Reservation Bill

The Women’s day this year was indeed very special, the parliament passed the Women Reservation Bill with full vigor.

The reservation for women in the political front emerged with the Panchayati Raj Act, 1992 which was passed in Rajeev Gandhi’s tenure. The Act provided for women’s reservation upto 33% in the Panchayats.

Subsequently demands for women’s reservation in Parliament and state legislatures were raised . In 1996, the then Prime Minister H.D. Dewe Gowda promised to fulfill these demands. After almost 13 years; the Women’s Reservation Bill [The Constitution (108th Amendment) Bill, 2008] was finally ...read more Read More

Will the quality of justice improve by the creation of National Judicial Service?

National Judicial Service has been one of the most political-legal contentious issues in the judicial history of India. The debate has continued for years. On one hand the law ministry and the legislature intends to introduce the National Judicial Service in the country where as on the other hand the judiciary intends to postpone the same.

Why do judges oppose the commission of All India Judicial Service?

There are four basic ways of judicial appointments:-

1. By political institutions (Partially practiced in Italy and South Korea)

2. By judges themselves (Japan, Iraq and India)

3. By non-judge members (Brazil and Most American States)

4. Through Election ...read more Read More

Are we prepared to deal with another Bhopal Gas Tragedy? With Civil Nuclear Liabilities Bill its hard to imagine

The victims of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, one of the world’s worst disasters are still facing the consequences of the unfortunate incident. The legal framework in 1985 was inadequate to conduct a fair trial of Union Carbide and its CEO Warren Anderson. The U.C.C paid a settlement amount of 470 million dollars to the victims, considering it as its moral obligation. No criminal or civil proceedings were initiated against the notorious Multinational Union Carbide. The decision of Bhopal Gas Tragedy still considered a black chapter in the judicial history of India.

Instead of rectifying ...read more Read More

Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in Afghanistan:

An Insight Story

“We had a land problem with another villager and it was the 5th year that due to the dispute we weren’t able to work on the field, this dispute had taken the life of my elder niece as well. We spoke to woloswal (district attorney) many times and he said that take the case to Kabul – and sometimes said talk amongst yourselves and reach to some conclusions, we are busy with the ongoing insurgency don’t have the means to settle your disputes.

One day he sent someone maybe a judge to find out about our dispute and he ...read more Read More

Another Flawed Law – Communal Violence Bill 2009: Harms the Victims, Protects the Perpetrators

After the mass opposition by all spectrums of society over the Communal Violence Bill 2005, UPA government has re-introduced the bill with 59 amendments. Unfortunately it hardly makes any structural changes. It has been highly criticized on certain grounds.  The bill treats communal violence as a law and order problem but fails to recognise its threat to the socio-economic basis of the society.

The definition of communal violence given under the bill is not comprehensive and includes any scheduled offence under Section 19. Instead of the word communal, ‘sectarian’ ...read more Read More

Taliban Leader Captured !!

Taliban: This originally means students; has become a synonym of terror. The Shariat law prevails in the reign of the Taliban. They forbid pork, wine, music, lobster, cameras, pool tables, masks, chess, nail polish and many other things.  Taliban laws were not only draconian and inhuman in nature but were found sometimes contrasting to Shariat. They encouraged the production of opium (for export reasons) but opposed the production and consumption of hasheesh or alcohol.

It is alleged that Pakistan was one of the major sponsor of ...read more Read More

Valentine One Day International on 14 Feb – Lovers vs Hindu Politicians

Sunil Behl, a call centre employee was searching a perfect gift for his valentine. Unfortunately he wouldn’t meet her on 14th February as he got scared of the Hindu extremists. Well his fear doesn’t seem to be so unreasonable.

Every year all news channels showcase a debate featuring Hindu Protagonists, MTv VJ’s and Directors like Mahesh Bhatt. The issue is often left unresolved. The Bajrang Dal speaker well dressed in a formal suit alleges “This is not our culture. We strongly oppose it. It is the exhibition of vulgarity and obscenity.” But ...read more Read More

Mumbai is a Metropolitan, Not a Religious Playground for Politicians – Pakistan IPL Players Controversy and Shah Rukh Khan Comments

Shah Rukh Khan’s support to the Pakistani players in IPL bidding made him face a lot of trouble. He was not only threatened but also targeted by the Shiv Sena. He was alleged to be a traitor and was dared to speak in favour of Pakistani players in future. He stood up for his beliefs and refused to apologize. Fortunately people from Bollywood and elsewhere have now started recognizing their right to speech.

When Shiv Sena recommended Shah Rukh to live in Pakistan instead, this infuriated not only ...read more Read More