Skip to main content

UP demolitions taught lesson to those trying to enforce views in the name of freedom


By NS Venkataraman*
A few days back, the Government of Uttar Pradesh , a major province in India, bulldozed and demolished the residences of those who participated in a violent protest in Prayagraj region of Uttar Pradesh. The demolition act was carried out by the Uttar Pradesh Government under the National Security Act 1980 and the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti Social Activities (Prevention) Act 1986.
After the demolition, six former judges of the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts and six senior advocates appealed to the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter, terming the act of the Uttar Pradesh government as unacceptable and subversion of the rule of law.
Taking a holistic view of the entire matter and considering the responsibility of the government to maintain law and order and further taking note that nobody should take law into their own hands and indulge in violence whatever may be the cause, it appears that the decision of the Uttar Pradesh government to demolish the residents of the rioters is appropriate and much needed. Of course, the Uttar Pradesh government has said that the buildings that were demolished are unauthorized buildings.
As is known, there are different forms of governance such as dictatorship, communism (sort of dictatorship by a coterie of party leaders), feudal system and electoral democracy. While democracy often tends to become noisy governance, in the case of the other forms of governance, there is generally grim silence of “peace”.
Whereas the democratic countries give an impression that it is chaotic form of governance, in the case of other systems , they appear to be “orderly governance”, though the liberty of the people are often severely suppressed.
Nevertheless, looking from different angles, the consensus view amongst the experts is that the democracy is the best form of governance, which highlights and respects the aspirations of the human spirit, which is liberty and freedom.
However, in practice, in democratic countries, it often happens that in the name of freedom, the people with different views and to enforce their views, sometimes take the law into their own hands and in the process, cause violence and bloodshed.
We saw this happening in USA , when President Donald Trump caused violent protests in Capitol Hill in the USA when he lost the Presidential election. Similar disturbing conditions have been seen in other democratic countries also.
The question is how should the democratic government deal with such violent situations caused by one section of the people or the other? Should the government put down such violent acts with the force at its command or submit to the violent protestors by simply remaining as observer?
The fact is that the government has a responsibility to maintain law and order at any cost and it cannot remain indifferent to the violent ground situation.
When there are violent protests, the democratic governments often have to disperse the protesters by beating them with sticks or using teargas on the protesters or even shooting to kill the protesters. Such methods are used by the government not only to stop the violent acts by the protesters but also to deter them from indulging in such violent acts in future.
By and large, such manner of dealing with the violent demonstrations are approved by the common men (silent majority), showing understanding of the inevitability of adopting such methods, particularly considering the gravity of violent situation and the need for the government to protect the interests of general public and public property.
Of course, the protesters and their sympathisers could call such acts as unacceptable in a democratic society, whose views have no takers amongst the general public.
When such violent protest takes place by a group of people, inevitably there are some kingpins who instigate the people to indulge in such violent acts and they too need to be taken to task and made to behave.
Such kingpins may be there amongst the protesting mob or stay at remote places issuing commands . The government can easily trace them. When they are traced and the government knows for sure that they are the instigators, one simple way of punishing them is to demolish their buildings and deter them from indulging in instigating violence in future and making it clear to them that they cannot go scot free exploiting the loopholes in the law.
When there is violent agitation on the streets, the government cannot rush to the judiciary , asking for permission to disperse the mob by beating them with sticks etc.
Similarly, the government cannot wait to get the permission of the judiciary to demolish the buildings of instigators of violence, since such punishment for the instigators become an immediate necessity in the wake of the violent agitations and to prevent them from further instigating the mob violence.
Demolishing the buildings belonging to instigators is justified since they destroy public property by instigating mob violence. It is a case of tit for tat and only way of teaching a lesson or two to the instigators.
Punishing the instigators of violence immediately is certainly a necessary strategy that would put the fear of law in their mindset and protect the rule of law.
---
Trustee, Nandini Voice For The Deprived, Chennai

Comments

TRENDING

Eight years of empowering tribal communities through water initiatives in Chhattisgarh

By Gazala Paul*   In the heart of Chhattisgarh, amidst the echoes of tribal life, a transformative journey has unfolded over the past eight years. The Samerth organization has diligently worked to elevate the lives of indigenous communities in the Kawardha district through the project, "Enabling Baiga Community to access safe drinking water." 

Martin Crowe played instrumental role in making New Zealand a force in world cricket

By Harsh Thakor* Late Martin Crowe was the perfect manifestation of how mere figures could not convey or do justice to the true merit of a batsman. Crowe was arguably the most complete  or majestic batsmen of his era or the ultimate embodiment of batting perfection, or the classical batsmen. He perished 7 years ago, due to a rare and aggressive form of cancer, follicular lymphoma, which originated in 2012. In September, we celebrated his 60th birthday but sadly he left for his heavenly abode.

Regretful: Kapil Dev retired not leaving Indian cricket with integrity he upheld

By Harsh Thakor  Kapil Dev scaled heights as an entertainer and a player upholding the spirit of the game almost unparalleled in his era. In his time he was cricket’s ultimate mascot of sportsmanship On his day Kapil could dazzle in all departments to turn the tempo of game in the manner of a Tsunami breaking in. He radiated r energy, at a level rarely scaled in his era on a cricket field. Few ever blended aggression with artistry so comprehenisively. Although fast medium, he could be as daunting with the ball as the very best, with his crafty outswinger, offcutter, slower ball and ball that kicked from a good length. Inspite of bowling on docile tracks on the subcontinent, Kapil had 434 scalps, with virtually no assistance. I can never forget how he obtained pace and movement on flat pancakes, trapping the great Vivian Richards in Front or getting Geoff Boycott or Zaheer Abbas caught behind. No paceman carried the workload of his team’s bowling attack on his shoulders in his eras muc

How the slogan Jai Bhim gained momentum as movement of popularity and revolution

By Dr Kapilendra Das*  India is an incomprehensible plural country loaded with diversities of religions, castes, cultures, languages, dialects, tribes, societies, costumes, etc. The Indians have good manners/etiquette (decent social conduct, gesture, courtesy, politeness) that build healthy relationships and take them ahead to life. In many parts of India, in many situations, and on formal occasions, it is common for people of India to express and exchange respect, greetings, and salutation for which we people usually use words and phrases like- Namaskar, Namaste, Pranam, Ram Ram, Jai Ram ji, Jai Sriram, Good morning, shubha sakal, Radhe Radhe, Jai Bajarangabali, Jai Gopal, Jai Jai, Supravat, Good night, Shuvaratri, Jai Bhole, Salaam walekam, Walekam salaam, Radhaswami, Namo Buddhaya, Jai Bhim, Hello, and so on.

Towards 2024: Time for ‘We the People of India’ to wake up before it is too late

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ*  It is Constitution Day once again! We, the people of India, gratefully remember 26 November 1949 when the Constitution of India was passed and adopted by the Constituent Assembly. The Constituent Assembly comprised women and men of distinction, who were able to represent the heart and soul of the people of India without fear or favour. They gave of their best, so that we may a visionary Constitution, which would be the mainstay for and of democracy in India!

Ceasefire a tactical victory for Palestinian resistance, protests intensify across globe

By Harsh Thakor*  The Zionist leadership and Netanyahu’s government were compelled to concede the defeat of their first attempt after almost 50 days of daily fighting in the Gaza Strip.  Netanyahu was forced to concede that he was unsuccessful in suppressing the Palestinian Resistance; and that the release of the prisoners was only plausible because they accepted Hamas’ terms.

Odisha leadership crisis deepens: CM engages retired babus to oversee depts' work

By Sudhansu R Das  Over decades, Odisha has lost much of its crop diversity, fertile agriculture land, water bodies, employment potential, handicraft and handloom skills etc. The state has failed to strike a balance between the urban and rural sector growth; this leads to the migration of villagers to the urban areas leading to collapse of the urban infrastructures and an acute labor shortage in rural areas.  A large number of educated, skilled and unskilled Odia people have migrated to other states for higher education, quality jobs and for earning livelihood which plummet the efficiency level of government departments. Utmost transparency in the recruitment and promotion in the state government departments will improve governance mechanisms in the state.  "No near and dear one approach" in governance mechanisms can only achieve inclusive growth for the state on payment basis. This is a moral hazard. When so many educated young people seek employment outside the

1982-83 Bombay textile strike played major role in shaping working class movement

By Harsh Thakor  On January 18th, 1982 the working class movement commemorated the 40th anniversary of the Textile Workers Strike that lasted for 18 months, till July 1983. It was landmark event that played a major role in shaping the working class movement. With more than 2.5 lakh workers from 65 textile mills joining in this strike for almost two years, this strike became one of the most significant strikes in terms of scale and duration All democrats should applaud the mill workers’ united battle, and their unflinching resilience an death defying courage continues to serve as a model for contemporary working-class movements. Many middle class persons harboured opinions that the Textile workers were pampered or were a labour aristocracy, ignorant of how they were denied wages to provide for basic necessities. The Great Bombay Textile Strike is notably one of the most defining movements in the working class struggles in Post-independent India. Bombay’s textile industry flourished in

Massive tropical deforestation: Big finance's $307 billion go to forest-risk commodities

A note on report by Forests & Finance coalition -- Rainforest Action Network, TuK Indonesia, Profundo, Amazon Watch, Repórter Brasil, BankTrack, Sahabat Alam Malaysia and Friends of the Earth US: *** A new report released on ‘Finance Day’ at COP28 by the Forests & Finance Coalition , provides a comprehensive look into the role big finance plays in driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, climate change and human rights abuses in tropical forest regions. The report reveals that since the Paris Agreement, banks have pumped over $307 billion into high risk forestry and agriculture companies linked to tropical deforestation, proving that the policies of major global banks and investors are failing to prevent continued widespread forest and biodiversity loss.

20% of Indian businesses have no emission plan in place despite climate emergency: Report

By Jag Jivan   New research underlines urgent need for strategies and transition plans to combat climate change, remain successful and meet stakeholder expectations.