Indian courts are atrociously slow in delivering verdicts, most times, favoring the rich and the powerful. It has been media, which has been instrumental in highlighting the cases of injustice like the Jessica Lal and Ruchika Girhotra cases. The verdicts have taken decades to be delivered crawling the slow ladder of the Indian legal system. And those like the Afzal Guru or Ajmal Kasab cases where capital punishment has been granted will be handled even more delicately bouncing to the President and taking their own sweet time to finality. I am not a victim yet I feel frustrated that those who are the victims have to suffer interminably to get justice.
The worst case in recent days is of the Bhopal Gas Leak tragedy verdict, which is the world’s worst industrial disaster. A meager punishment of 2 years to each of the accused after 26 years is a mockery of justice. Mr. Warren Anderson, the chief of Union Carbide was let out on bail and allowed to get away to US in 1984 where he is leading a life of peace and tranquility. The US government says that nothing has changed for them to consider his extradition. Of course not! None of their precious citizens were killed, that’s why! This country calls itself an epitome of freedom and justice. It will go after BP for the oil spill disaster, but it cares two hoots for the disasters created by its own companies in foreign lands.
Why? Because, the Indian Government is toothless and powerless in protecting and valuing the lives of its own citizens. Its a shame that we don’t defend our own countrymen. Its a shame that most of the compensation hardly reaches the people it is aimed for, and the compensation was hopelessly little to begin with. Its a shame that the rich and the corrupt thrive at the cost of the poor and the hapless. Its a shame that this issue will also drown out in a few days, and things will be back to normal for the chamchas of Uncle Sam.
PS: Some links of the tragic story
http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/bhopal-gas-tragedy-the-government-botch-up-30612.php?u=0840
http://news.rediff.com/slide-show/2010/jun/07/slide-show-1-bhopal-gas-tragedy-verdict.htm
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bhopal-Gas-Tragedy-Endless-nightmare/articleshow/5294330.cms
Rach!!
This is India!!!
Abhi tak hume samajh me nahin aaya ki we are nothing in front of the politicians and the bureaucrats!!
Yesterday I was shocked to listen that CBI Head asked the team tracking Henderson to not track him.
Why so??
How much DOW paid the politicians??
I felt ashamed when i heard of the sentence and fine!!
among many things in our country , this is something that i will never understand why do we take so long to deliver our verdicts.26 yrs is a life time for some people!!!! and when its finally done it looked like a child’s play. attrocious!!! no wonder many hesitate to take the help of the law.
I think we will have to reconcile with the fact that our entire systems lean bit towards the capitalist structure.
We would welcome the nuclear treaty about to be signed by MM. The American companies will be lucky enough to escape with minimum restrictions.
And we will start blaming the judiciary, beauracracy…
When this Union Carbide started Indians would have rejoiced and Warren would have been a hero…
I fear the same history is going to repeat when that American clown is trying to pass the nuclear agreement
indian judiciary is nthing but a thing to laugh on…i get really annoyed and frustrated by these slow judgements…its really shameful
Hi Rachna, my opinion, politicians only help themselves first, the rich help the rich, they scratch each other’s back.
I have never heard, nor read, nor know of any politicians retiring poor or on the Equator….
And politicians are the same World over, ‘you do what the government wants you to do, but don’t do what we do’.
I always wonder about politicians going on holidays to Switzerland, ‘for health reasons’, ha ha.
I have never been happier in my life than the day I stopped reading the papers and watched the news on TV. Politicians make me lose my appetite.
You have a nice day and stay cool, Lee.
@Bhupesh It does not surprise but dismays me certainly.
@nituscorner So true. We would want to avoid the courts at all cost for the money and time involved.
@Jon I don’t think, it is really a reflection of capitalism. There is nothing wrong in having powerful industries being set up in India. But, our government fails in building safeguards like punishment in case of disasters. Instead of state policies, it is cronyism in the face of American power that politicians bow down to. If US sneezes, even Pakistan gets the jitters and starts acting. India keeps barking at all doors and Pakistan gives a damn. That’s the sad truth of how much power India exerts in international politics.
@rohini Shameful, it is.
@Uncle Lee You are absolutely right! The rich and the powerful look after each other’s interests. It cuts across countries and political parties.
Me too don’t think…there is anything wrong in powerful industries being set up
Whe u say gov. doesnt bother about safegaurds… do u think ppl r aware of the safeguards…
or is our law capable to handle these?
At the recessions thousands of companies just closed up and employees left out with nothing
There is no rule against firing without any reason!
Similarily there will be thousands of loopholes for these guys to escape
Very true.
Why do we have a sysytem of electing representatives I often wonder when they are so useless.
everytime why people have to come on roads to demand justice, like in Jessicaa or Ruchika or recently Sanjana.
@Jon I am resenting the connivance of politicians to let the powerful escape scotfree. At least after bad incidents, they must be more cautious about the penalty clauses.
At the same time, I do not want the government to be interfering too much in the running of companies. It is looked at as an excuse for red tapism and corruption.
@Bhagyashree They indeed have to be beaten into taking action or doing probes by people.