Tharcius S. Fernando
The entire nation is in great shock witnessing the unruly behaviour of the so called lawyers who behaved like goondas manhandling the students and teachers of JNU and journalists and O P Sharma, the BJP MLA of Delhi behaving like a real rowdy attacking a CPI worker in the open. As if it was not enough, the same lawyer goons, who were allowed to roam around freely in Patiala House court complex also much against the dictates of the Apex Court, behaved like brutes attacking the journalists again and also the JNUSU President Kanhaiya Kumar when he was brought to the courts by the Delhi police.
All this happened in the presence of the Delhi police who were mute spectators to the atrocities committed by the fringe elements in and around the court premises. It is also alleged that the Right wing elements have entered the court premises in lawyers’ cloak to commit the atrocities.
One only wonders why the Delhi police, knowing well the tense atmosphere prevailing in the courts, have not taken adequate steps to cordon off the premises but coolly submitted Kanhaiya to be manhandled by the hooligans which tantamount to tacit support lent to the offenders. Though it is not a surprise that the Prime Minister has not uttered a word about the JNU issue, what is intriguing is that he remains silent even to condemn or admonish his party MLA Sharma for his unruly behaviour which is unbecoming of a legislator-law maker.
That the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi often rushes to assert his superiority over the elected government in Delhi and avariciously declares that the police was under his control, one wants to know why he has not come forward to own responsibility for the failure of his Delhi police, accept his inefficiency in this episode and also initiate action against the Delhi Commissioner of Police Bassi for his failure to maintain law and order, particularly in the court premises.
With the BJP at the helm of affairs at the centre, it is highly improbable that any of the above reasonable demands would find a logical solution. What is tragic is that we have no other way to go but to tolerate all this for three more long years.
