Professional Documents
Culture Documents
- Y. K. Sabharwal,
Chief Justice of India
concerns of every modern civil society, namely, the need for good
human rights, in particular, when they come in conflict with the acts of
but not the least, the corrupt practices plaguing the corridors of power.
when India regained its freedom, one thing was clear in our mind, that we
and justice, one characterized by the belief that all people should have
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We put our act together and gave to ourselves the Constitution
amongst the citizens and working for unity & integrity of the nation, we
individual.
Our track record over the last almost six decades has been a mixed
have taken giant strides. India today is not merely a developing country.
and a force that can compete with the best. India has made significant
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population did put brakes on the development in many a way. Yet, over
one billion Indians are also counted today as one of our assets.
machinery. We must grant it to all the three chief organs of the State in
India for their valuable contribution in making some of the dreams of our
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individuals by the State, or of one Section of the society by another, are
some of the jarring notes of the music that we have been playing. They
represent the ugly side of our face, which we cannot hide. These are
grand ground realities that cannot, rather ought not, be brushed under the
carpet. All of them individually and collectively are pointer to our failure
debate the issues that arise out of these concerns and do periodic
rights. These debates have the potential not only to identify the causes &
threadbare by the participants over these two days. Your concerns have
the starting point as also the end point of all corruption since it involves
grabbing State power at any cost. You have already discussed amongst
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yourselves as to how corruption erodes the human rights regime and as a
have evolved basic rights, which seek to provide to each of us the right of
various such other rights, in my view, spring from right to equality, which
is the most basic of all human rights. When we talk of good governance,
Member State on its anvil. The expectation of every civil society of its
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Government thus is that it would fulfill its commitments and provide an
social and cultural rights and has no place for corruption of any kind
people,
sovereignty,
good government has the protection of human rights as the top most
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priority on its agenda. Corruption retards development since public
Bill of Rights. They did draw upon the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights issued by the United Nations in 1948 but went ahead of them by
Principles of State Policy’ that, as per Article 37, are principles that
We --– and when I talk of ‘We’, I mean to refer to all the three
organs of the State --– may have not yet come up to the expectations of
the People of India in certain ways. But, all actions of the State thus far
have been made in the Fundamental Rights, from time to time, through
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further the object sought to be achieved by the Directive Principles. After
all, the purpose of the Fundamental Rights on the one hand and the
task of ensuring to each individual all of his basic human rights in their
country.
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of one organ alone would not do since it is the preservation of the overall
different walks of our public life. The stories of defilement at all levels of
abound and known to each of us. One may find a number of instances of
gratification for doing or abstaining from doing the official duties. They
unjust enrichment of self or of the kith and kin; lure of the lucre rather
than the financial rules dictating the award of public contracts or State
bottomless abyss.
corruption can and has been taking in our country. We all know it too
well and it does not need to be catalogued once again. The anxiety
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instead has to be as to whether we have done sufficient to tackle this
thinkers would build up a case for creating a new fundamental right that
system. They seek to highlight the want of efficacy of the criminal law
not wholly unfounded. We cannot shy away from the reality of poor
& mighty as could be brought to book. The reasons for poor performance
of the criminal justice apparatus are well known. The loopholes in the law
evidence and gratuitous stress on mercy, more often than not misplaced
mercy, in the matter of punishment may be cited as some of the areas that
ail the system. These have been discussed endlessly in various foraI.
Many sound suggestions have come up, from time to time, that would
help us all in knitting the net tighter so that guilty may not escape. But we
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continue harping on archaic jurisprudence that is totally inadequate to
right can be enforced and, I must say, has been enforced by the judiciary
in India even without being expressly provided. I need not mention scores
and scores of cases in which the Supreme Court has set at naught the
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State action on account of it being discriminatory or it being the result of
and thus, beyond the pale of all doubts, is violative of the basic
having the pelf to influence the former category and thereby violates
civil, political, economic and social rights. This concession itself would
exist today and, therefore, express provision for corruption free society
may not add to the armory of the judiciary a new weapon against
corruption.
corruption has not been very effective. The provision of sanction for
servants who were acting bonafide. This provision has been used, or
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rather abused, so as to protect even those who are prima facie guilty. The
authorities that are expected to consider the facts & evidence, and grant
sanction, many a time either sit over the request indefinitely or issue
sanction order in such mechanical manner as can never pass the judiciary
scrutiny. Given the fact that proper guidance is provided at every step of
the way, such approach itself smacks of malafide action. The unabashed
give reasons for denial provide yet another dimension to the problem.
conduct rules, the public servant actually starts enjoying at the cost of the
pendency of the other. And when the proceedings reach the stage of
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recording of evidence, he would add to the confusion by referring to
stages. Under the existing rules of evidence this pushes the prosecuting
Supreme Court seriously and suggested in its 166th report the enactment
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of a special law, also taking pains of drafting its Bill called the “Corrupt
is never a happy scenario. I would leave the subject for further discussion
and debate. Since the theory is a new one, I would say that it deserves, in
because its significance lies in its perceived potential to provide the much
King with a fish under the sea drinking water with impunity. But then, the
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ancient scriptures were constrained to proclaim Rajdharma to be the
unabated. Our responses have to be tailored in such a way that the noose
accountable. Criminal Justice system is our best bet since it is not only
punitive for the offender but also preventive for others sharing his bent of
corrupt acts, there is a good case for ensuring that requirement for
request for sanction has been declined. It also needs to be arranged that
power.
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Georges Bernanos in his essay “Why Freedom” said thus: -
itself in some introspection since it is the social mores that are reflected
media has to be that of partners in action as they can provide the check. It
is the duty of the other organs of the State to strengthen these two. Mere
the death knell of our nation as cautioned by the Judiciary a decade ago.
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I would conclude by appealing to all saner elements in our polity
and society, cherishing the dream of a bright future for our beloved
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