Bail, personal liberty
The arrest and release of a high-profile television anchor is a case with many useful pointers. The Supreme Court of India rightly took up the case with remarkable speed and passed orders, which has to be appreciated especially as it concerns liberty. But as pointed out by Mr. Dushyant Dave, senior advocate, the same urgency needs to be shown in similar matters. Second, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud’s scathing attack against such arrests and his deep concern for the rule of law and democracy have to be acknowledged. Therein lies the future of the Supreme Court having regard to the difficult times in which we live. Also, in the instances of those who have been arrested in connection with the suicide cases of Sushant Singh Rajput and Anvay Naik, the political overtones cannot be missed. The arrests could have been avoided. Most of the burdens on courts are the result of struggles and rivalries between political parties which act without respect to the rule of law and democracy.
N.G.R. Prasad,
Chennai
No one grudges the relief granted to the TV anchor, but selective patronage from a higher court would send wrong signals down the line, unless properly documented. The court did not give the benefit of doubt either to Mr. Prashant Bhushan, who is a crusader for civil rights and an apolitical person, and, more recently, in the case of a comedian and satirist, whose tweets are at best ephemeral in nature. The common man still evinces great faith in the judicial system, and courts have greater responsibility to ensure that equity and justice prevail in rulings.
V. Subramanian,
Chennai
Congress, the spoiler
While the Mahagathbandhan has done extremely well in the just concluded Bihar elections, one cannot overlook the fact that it was because of the debacle of the Congress party that a good opportunity to form the government in the State was lost. Against the 70 seats allotted to the grand old party, it was able to win only 19 seats, thereby becoming the spoiler. The RJD must certainly be regretting its decision to accommodate the Congress with such a huge number of seats.
The results of the Bihar elections should also be an eye-opener for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)which also lost a fair chance of winning the 2016 Assembly elections mainly due to the abysmal performance of its ally, the Congress. Once again, in contrast to the bulk of seats demanded, the results were absymal. With the DMK having a fair chance of winning the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu in 2021, the party should take a firm stand not to allot more than what Congress deserves.
Tharcius S. Fernando,
Chennai
There is something fundamentally wrong with the Congress, once the apple of the eye of the masses, to have fallen rock bottom in the expectations of people. Unless there is thorough and passionate introspection over its repeated failures, the party could be doomed.
V. Padmanabhan,
Bengaluru
Reopening put off
The decision of the Tamil Nadu government not to reopen schools for Classes 9 to 12 on Monday, November 16, is unwelcome, to say the least. Schools across the State elicited parents’ views in written form on November 9, as instructed by the government.
Having done that, one feels the onus of responsibility of reopening schools should have been left with them based, of course, on the percentage of affirmative responses. According to reliable sources, in many schools, over 80% of parents of students in Class 12 wanted brick-and-mortar classes.
S. Ramakrishnasayee,
Chennai
Given the real threat of a second wave of infection in the backdrop of the festival season and the onset of winter, the government cannot afford to turn a blind eye to the health risks students would have been exposed to had they returned to school. Any decision regarding reopening educational institutions needs to be guided by science and the ground realities.
M. Jeyaram,
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu
