By
Aditya Aamir
Leave
room for daily developments. That is what the conviction of Sajjan Kumar is, a
development! A date in the Delhi high Court roster which is suddenly recorded
history. And because nobody anticipated Sajjan Kumar’s conviction, no one
significant stood up and opposed Kamal Nath’s appointment as Madhya Pradesh
Chief Minister. The perception that Kamal Nath was party to the 1984 Sikh
massacre was never in the minds of the Chhindwara electorate, which sent him to
the Lok Sabha several times. There are those in Delhi who say they spotted Nath
in the company of Sikh killers a la Sajjan Kumar. So, what is due to Sajjan is
due to Kamal Nath. Logic!
And,
the Bharatiya Janata Party, defeated at the hustings in Madhya Pradesh, has got
a handle to beat the Congress with. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra promptly
linked Sajjan Kumar’s conviction to the conviction in the Congress that Kamal
Nath’s appointment as MP Chief Minister is well deserved. Patra chose to
overlook the fact that he could say what he said only because the HC has
convicted Sajjan Kumar. But there’s no such verdict on Kamal Nath. The two
don’t match despite “commissions of enquiry and a SIT” putting Kamal Nath’s
name among those involved.
Right
now no court is hearing Nath’s involvement in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the
allegation that he was seen outside a Gurdwara could be applicable to Nanak
only knows how many others who must have been passing by the Gurdwara those
three days/nights of horrible events. The BJP should remember that BJP names too
remain indicted in the memories of thousands who saw their loved ones
mercilessly massacred in Gujarat 2002. The High Court in Sajjan Kumar’s case
noted that he “enjoyed political patronage”, but that is not unique to
Congress. Every political party has its share of patronized black sheep.
But
such are the times! Post the 3-states elections, the BJP is politically and
perception-wise on the back-foot. Even the “Rafale-victory” in the Supreme
Court is marred by allegations of “lying” to the top court. The High Court
verdict against Sajjan Kumar is another chance for the BJP to corner the
Congress. And if news that the Congress has decided to standby Sajjan Kumar
with its battery of vaunted legal-eagles, then what’s wrong? For, as long as
the Congress believes that Sajjan Kumar is not involved in the killings, he
ought to get every little bit of help available. That is how it is done. No
family abandons its own.
Ditto
Kamal Nath. For the Congress to stick to his appointment as Chief Minister of
Madhya Pradesh is not out of place considering that a similar trait is seen in
political parties across the spectrum whether in Gujarat, Bihar or Kerala.
Politicians accused of murder and more keep getting elected on this or that
party ticket and if the cases drag on for eternity, pensions and other perks
that office brings also last till the last breath. It is fact that Parliament
and state assemblies have scores with criminal records wearing the garb of
political respectability.
This
is not to say that Sajjan Kumar doesn’t deserve what he got. That is law taking
its own course and the law has long arms and equally long memory. But to say
that Kamal Nath should be punished because Sajjan Kumar has been convicted is
stretching the long arm a bit too far – false equivalence. Such talk doesn’t
weigh much on the scales of justice. Sambit Patra & Co. can only shout from
the rooftops. Without undermining the Delhi High Court verdict, let Patra and
Arun Jaitley not forget that the BJP has its own quota of Sajjan (pun intended)
politicians walking free and talking loud.
So,
let them not pontificate who are coloured in the same shade. And what’s wrong
if Salman Khurshid says that Congress lawyers have every right to represent
Sajjan Kumar if he has the right to appeal? The Supreme Court is his last
resort and though it is very unlikely that the apex court will overturn the HC
verdict, isn’t it a fact the HC overturned a lower court verdict? Anything is
possible and Sajjan Kumar will get another day in court, with the best counsels
he can round up. That is his Constitution-given right.
Fool’s
errand! That is what we are all at, on a fool’s errand: For the people, by the
people, of the people – the sweet fruit of democracy. But our minds are
coloured by perception and we are victims of mass hypnosis. And, so, here we’re
on the cusp of yet another general election, on the same fool’s errand. To
elect to office a set of rulers. Should the conviction of a Sajjan Kumar colour
our perception in deciding to elect the new set? There should be parameters
laid out for perception. But that will not be democracy at work, will it? (IPA Service)
The post At Loggerheads, Conviction And Perception appeared first on Newspack by India Press Agency.
