INDIA MOILY'S MISSION TO RELEASE UNDERTRIALS: Justice at the doorstep

INDIA'S BEST COLLEGES, INSTITUTES and UNIVERSITIES

The Law Minister is on a mission to bring smiles to 10 lakh families

Veerappa Moily, the current Cabinet Minister for Law, Justice and Company Affairs, feels he can bring smiles to 10 lakh families. He has set a target to release 2 lakh undertrials by the end of July, 2010. So, considering a family of five, 2 lakh undertrials cases will make a whopping 10 lakh Indians happy. He is determined to keep his deadline which he had set on January 26, 2010.

India has 1,276 jails that house 3.5 lakh prisoners, even though the capacity of these prisons is merely 2.5 lakh ' 70 per cent of the inmates are undertrials, and again, 70 per cent of the undertrials are booked for petty crimes. Thus, an overall figure of 1.7 lakh will be freed by the end of this year. The breakup of the above figure, according to National Crime Records Bureau, suggests 12.58 per cent are because of petty thefts, 11.52 per cent are charged with attempt to murder and 0.11 per cent is because of eve teasing. For this, our jurisprudence throws weight much more on investigating authorities and police rather than on the rights and rehabilitation of those who are undertrials! Apart from their degree of crimes, the more unfortunate fact is that one-third of the convicts are illiterate and not many of them are properly educated either! Moreover, the archaic laws that are causing undertrials to languish in prisons for years without proper trial, were created by British during their days of colonial rule as a tool for the detention of the natives. Such laws must be revised and reformed immediately, as it is totally outdated and counterproductive!

Moily is serious it seems, as he developed a comprehensive plan to implement his mission; and even wrote to ex-Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan and judges of the high courts to dispose off the cases through fast track courts. Uttar Pradesh took the lead by releasing over 52,843 undertrials and settling the cases of 4,203 more. Other states that have performed well include Andhra Pradesh (9,116), Delhi (8,701), Orissa (8,566), Maharashtra (7,252), Punjab (3,219), Gujarat (3,101), Haryana (2,169), Kerala (2,334) and Karnataka (1,081). West Bengal and Tamil Nadu are the pits, releasing 287 and 608 prisoners respectively.

In spite of success of the endeavour, which Moily described as 'a silent revolution in the judiciary... bringing out good results,' the question that still lingers is about the future when the jails will get overcrowded again because of delayed justice! The reason attributed to such fallacy is the lack of coordination among the parties involved viz. police, prosecuting authorities, and judiciary, as they move in isolation without being accountable to anyone. However, to overcome the hurdles of the justice delivery system, a new goal has been set by the Law Ministry ''The National Mission for delivery of Justice' ' which aims to reduce pendency within the next three years and to provide world class judicial infrastructure and technology to speed up trials. However, it has to be implemented properly to make people believe the claim. Until then, like always, bringing smiles to the 10 lakh Indians will remain a mere lip-service than reality.

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AFRICAN SUMMIT UNITY: Changes Africa should see!

INDIA'S BEST COLLEGES, INSTITUTES and UNIVERSITIES

Africa concluded the 15th AU Summit. A lot more needs to be done
Africa is in the news again. This time not because of the FIFA World Cup, but because Uganda hosted the 15th African Union Summit. The summit is highly significant ' not only for Africa but also for the world for peace ' for the simple reason that unrest in one continent can destabilise the whole world. Perhaps this is one bottleneck of globalisation. However, out of the 66 targeted during the summit only 49 heads of state and governments arrived to attend the summit. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on a war- crimes issue, didn't attend it in spite of being invited by Uganda's President.

The theme of the summit was "Maternal, Infant and Child Health and Development in Africa" but the significance of the summit primarily lies in the issue of African unity. The debate of a unified Africa is old but looking at Africa's efforts, the issue needs some attention. The truth is that the African Union may not be like the European Union in the foreseeable future, but then they certainly need to realise the importance of unity for mutual growth and prosperity.

Apparently, there are three primary impediments to unite Africa. Firstly, the foreign interventions. The crazy drive for Africa of countries like the US, the UK, China and other European nations is certainly noteworthy to mention. They are definitely not pouring a lot of money without any reason. And it's going to get worse as the US Department of Justice is expected to launch a new Kleptarchy Asset Recovery Initiative aimed at curbing large scale foreign official corruption and aiding recovering of stolen funds. It's not beyond imagination to foresee how foreign intervention will get dirtier and will have a deadly impact on the region. However, against the populist view, foreign aid has never been a solution for Africa. Poverty in Africa has literally gone up from 11 per cent to a staggering 66 per cent between 1970 and 1998 despite foreign aid flows increasing manifolds and which were at its peak during the same period.

Secondly, inefficient management of its vast natural resources is the other problem. Africa is a continent with 54 countries and about a billion population. It has 9.49 per cent and 8.22 per cent of world's oil and natural gas reserves with over 117.481 billion barrels of oil and a whopping 14.58 trillion cubic metres of natural gas stocks as of 2007. But the mismanagement in handling natural resources made it a curse than blessing. Over 6.9 million people have died since 1998 in civil wars due to coltan, a dull black metallic ore in Congo alone.

Thirdly, the resurgence of non state elements has become a threat to peace. The most recent and horrifying serial bomb blasts in Uganda by Al-Shabab which took the lives of over 70 people because they were watching football is a classic example of it. Uganda's President rightly focused upon issues like turning rich, natural resources into wealth, to be not too dependent on foreign aid and redefine Africa's role in the international arena. It will be a distant dream until others realise it. Middle East is a failure, when it comes to uniting the region. It was suffering from similar problems. Africa is undergoing the same transition now. It has to ensure that it corrects the mistakes that Mid-East made.

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Minority report: As the Catholic Church opposes quotas in minority institutions,

resentment is brewing within the community.

INDIA'S BEST COLLEGES, INSTITUTES and UNIVERSITIES

By virtue of their scope and nature, minority institutions should serve the interests of the needy and deserving from within the communities in whose name they exist. But if a decision of the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI), made public on July 6, is a pointer, the raison d''tre of these schools and colleges could face severe dilution.

NCMEI has categorically said that reserving a quota for minority community students in these institutions would not be a good idea. The statement is worded thus: 'Identifying criteria of a minority educational institution based on bulk or majority of admission to a minority community or on the basis of ratio of admission of students belonging to minority community fixed by the State Government would be unreasonable, impractical and unworkable'' The decision of the Commission, though it is bound by constitutional provisions, could pave the way for further commercialisation of education in the name of minorities.

Though the decision is equally applicable to other minorities such as Sikhs, Muslims and Parsis, the Catholic church is probably the happiest. The church had opposed NCMEI's reported move to fix a quota for minority students in these educational institutions to help them maintain their minority status. The church had even registered its protest to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
It is not difficult to understand why the Catholic church upped the ante against NCMEI simply on the basis of a newspaper report. PN Benjamin, member of the Karnataka Minority Commission, while talking to TSI, says: 'The church does not want to lose its grip on the government. They utilise all the resources of the government and take many benefits in the name of minorities but do not act in the best interests of the minorities.'

When TSI contacted MSA Siddiqui, chairman, NCMEI, he explained: 'I never issued any order regarding fixing a cap or quota. Newspapers misquoted me and I suddenly found myself caught in a maelstrom of criticism.' Minority report The church, on its part, is now drawing flak from several quarters. Human rights activist Joseph Gathia says: 'The church has become autocratic. It wants constitutional rights but does not want to fulfil its duties. If it derives benefits in the name of minorities, its first responsibility is towards that community.'

Anand Bernard, retired member of the Madhya Pradesh Minority Commission, is even more vocal against the attitude of the church. He says: 'The church earns huge profits through these schools. In Madhya Pradesh alone, the income is estimated to be around Rs 600 crore. This money should be spent on the welfare of the minorities. There are world class educational institutions such as XLRI, St Stephen's, Christian Medical College, Vellore, etc. Why doesn't the church allow candidates within their own community to be admitted to these colleges? The church lacks transparency. Do they have elected bodies similar to the SGPC or the Waqf Board?'

The NCMEI volte-face hasn't, however, sparked a similar debate among Muslims and Sikhs. But in Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia there is growing resentment among students as the perception is that these institutions have not really served the purpose that they were designed for. Mohd Illiyas Malik, convenor of the Jamia Minority Status Coordination Committee, says, 'Muslim students are not getting full benefit. The situation will improve only when the university is granted minority status. In professional courses, the number of Muslims is minimal.' This certainly isn't the end of the conflict, especially within the Christian community. Disgruntlement is brewing in the community as the church continues to insist that minority institutions should retain their 'open' character. That clearly, and understandably, appears to be the minority view among Christian activists at this juncture.

With inputs from Nadeem Ahmad Minority report 'Support the deserving'

R L Francis, Dalit Christian leader

Why do you oppose the NCMEI decision?
It will result in more commercialisation of these education. Missionary schools will turn into teaching shops.

Why is the church against fixing a quota for minorities?
If quota is fixed how will they be able to oblige bureaucrats and politicians?

Their purpose is not to take care of the welfare of the community but to maintain their clout. Whenever someone tries to tame the church, he has to pay. Take the example of the EMS Namboodiripad government, which was also the first democratically elected Communist government in the world. It was sacked by Jawaharlal Nehru as the church feared the Communist government would take control of their institutions.

What is wrong if the church establishes schools that benefit other communities as well?
St Thomas School, Ghaziabad, has 1500 students. Only 50 of these students are Christians. About 15 per cent urban Christians and 40 per cent rural Christians are uneducated. The church should help them.

Do you have support from inside the community?
No. What can be expected from people like Rev. Walson Thampu? He talks about Dalit Christian rights when he is part of the Rangnath Mishra Commission but tries to block the entry of Dalit Christians when he becomes principal of St Stephen's. Minority report 'Can't compromise quality'

Babu Joseph, Spokesperson, Catholic Bishop Conference of India

Why are you opposing quota for your own community?
This is against Article 30(1) of the Constitution. The Christian population in India is just 2 per cent of the whole, and these are scattered all over the country. Wherever they are they have a right to preserve their religion and culture.

Why do you charge such high fees?
Take the example of St Columba's of Delhi. Its fee is still way below other schools of the same category. Similar is the situation with other institutions.

You have world class institutions. Why don't you give admission to poor Christians?
We cannot compromise with quality. Allegations of high capitation fees are simply misplaced.

The Waqf Board and Tirupati Balaji management committee are elected bodies. Why does the church oppose transparency?
Most of these institutions are registered under Trust Act or Societies Act. The church does not fall in this category.

Do you file income tax returns? Do you have audited balance sheets of income and expenses?
Yes, we have.

Why are they not in the public domain?
These are in the public domain and the balance sheets are open to scrutiny.

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