Former Union Minister and journalist Arun Shourie on Friday launched his new book Anita Gets Bail: What are our courts doing? What should we do about… in Hyderabad at an event organised by Manthan.
Using the anecdotal case of his wife who was issued a non-bailable warrant in a case as a take-off point, Mr. Shourie had the audience roaring in laughter as he narrated one case after another that showed up the functioning of the judiciary.
“The judiciary by its various pronouncements and judgements has reduced our faith. The quality of judgements has gone down. The quality of writing has gone down. The consequences of judgements are not thought through,” said Mr. Shourie as he narrated the drama of the case of National Anthem from the movie Kabhi Khusi Kabhi Gham and how the singing of Jana Gana Mana was made mandatory before the screening of movies.
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“Don’t think the executive takes one step at a time. You have to see the pattern. The judiciary is under a planned, systematic attack. We are being made accustomed to the attack,” said Mr. Shourie as he chronicled the Judge Loya case.
“Many of these disconcerting things in the country are connected to elections. The issue of Love Jihad was over the day the last ballot was cast in Uttar Pradesh elections. Lynchings for cow smuggling and slaughter stopped once elections got over,” said Mr. Shourie who tried to disassociate the current avatar of Bharatiya Janata Party from the earlier one helmed by Atal Behari Vajpayee.
“We are being shown a new norm for authoritarianism. The new rulers have no shame. We are marching towards authoritarianism and the assault is systematic and we have to be constantly vigilant and fight. Judiciary is not the only institution that is being targeted. The role of Rajya Sabha was reduced when 16 money bills were passed,” said Mr. Shourie who asked citizens to be alert to their sovereign duty.
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