An Appeal

I appeal to the Indian Government to forthwith send back Sanaullah, a Pakistani prisoner who was attacked in a Jammu jail and is said to be in coma, to Pakistan, as requested by the Pakistan Government. This will be a humanitarian act.

I also appeal to the Governments of India and Pakistan to immediately set up committees to review cases of all prisoners in the other country, and to set up mechanisms for early release of those convicted on alleged 'confessions' or insufficient or suspicious evidence. Many of such persons have been convicted on alleged 'confession'. Everyone knows how 'confessions' are obtained in our countries (by third degree methods).

Hence reliance on these for conviction is totally unsafe.

Unfortunately many people regard nationals of the other country with a lot of prejudices, and it is time that these prejudices are removed, otherwise great injustice can be caused, as in the cases of Dr. Khalil Chishty and Sarabjit Singh.

  --Justice Katju

Sarabjit Singh

Sarabjit Singh was held guilty by the Pakistan Courts in connection with the 1990 Lahore bomb blast which killed 14 people, and sentenced to death. He was on death row in a Pakistan jail for 22 years.

I carefully studied the evidence in his case, and found it extremely weak. The main prosecution witness, Shaukat Salim, later retracted his statement which he had earlier given in Court, and said it was given under police pressure. The other evidence against Sarabjit was his alleged 'confession', but we all know how 'confessions' are obtained in our countries (by third degree methods).

I therefore sent 4 letters to the Pakistan President and Prime Minister mentioning all this and requesting that he be released and sent back to India. The first letter was sent through the then Pakistan High Commissioner to India, Mr. Shahid Malik, the second through Dr. Khalil Chishty (for whose release also I had made many efforts), the third through Mr. Ansar Burney, former Pakistan Minister and social activist, and the fourth through someone else.

I also mentioned in my letters that apart from the merits of the case, Sarabjit had been on death row, not ordinary confinement, in jail, for over 21 years, with a damocles sword constantly hanging over his head, and this would make anyone go mad. I therefore pleaded that mercy should be shown to him and he be set free (some of my letters to the Pakistan President and Prime Minister are on my blog justicekatju.blogspot.in). I quoted from Portia's speech in Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice that justice should be tempered with mercy.

There was no acknowledgement to any of these letters.

Now that Sarabjit is dead I can only express my deep sorrow. In my view both Dr. Khalil Chishty and Sarabjit were victims of the prejudiced mindset of most people on both sides of the border, most Indians regarding Pakistanis as devils, and most Pakistanis regarding Indians as devils (when the truth is, as I have been repeatedly saying, 99% people of all countries and communities are good, though they are often befooled by some wicked people).

The only difference between the cases of Dr. Chishty and Sarabjit is that while Dr. Chishty is alive ( though after undergoing 20 years hardship ) and back home in Karachi (I often speak to him on telephone), Sarabjit is dead.

This again reinforces my belief that only reunification of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh under a strong, secular, modern minded government, which does not tolerate religious extremism, whether Hindu or Muslim, can bring peace and prosperity in our sub-continent

India and Pakistan

It is my firm belief that India and Pakistan (and Bangladesh) must reunite under a strong secular modern minded government which does not tolerate religious extremism, and crushes it with an iron hand. I know this will not happen in the near future, because those who divided us will not let us easily reunite. But I am planting a seed which will grow up into a tree and bear fruit in 15-20 years. It will not bear fruit immediately, but unless it is planted now, there will be no fruit in the future.This will require patiently educating the people for a long time about the truth.

You must be mad at me for calling Pakistan a fake, artificial country. Let me clarify that I believe that 99% people of all countries are good, and therefore 99% people of Pakistan ( and India) are good. I am a disciple of the great philosopher Rousseau who believed that most people are good. However, most people are also simpletons, and can be befooled and taken for a ride by wicked people. That is what was done by the British to our people (see online 'History in the Service of Imperialism' by B.N.Pandey). There was zero% communalism in 1857, i.e. before the Mutiny, but after the Mutiny the British decided that the only way to control India was to spread communal hatred between Hindus and Muslims. This divide and rule policy was followed relentlessly and systematically by the British after 1857. The British Collector used to secretly call the Hindu Pandit, give him some money, and ask him to speak against Muslims, and similarly he would secretly call the Muslim Maulvi, give him money, and ask him to speak against Hindus. Communal riots were artificially engineered. This was done year after year, decade after decade. In 1909 separate electorates were introduced by the Minto-Morley 'Reforms'. All this resulted in the horrors of Partition (read the stories about Partition by Manto). Even after 1947 there are wicked people who are spreading communalism.

Unless we reunite there will never be peace. The 2 nation theory on the basis of which Pakistan was created is bogus. Whenever I meet my Pakistani friends I feel no different from them, we speak the same language, we look like each other, and we share our love for Urdu. How are we two different nations ? I will never accept this fraud. It was high time someone had to speak the truth, and it seems it was for me to bell the cat.

Read my article " The Truth about Pakistan "

Urdu

Upto 1947 Urdu was the common language of all educated people, Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, etc in large parts of urban India. My father, grandfather, etc were all very proficient in Urdu. After 1947 a vicious propaganda was spread by some biased people that Hindi is the language of Hindus and Urdu is the language of Muslims. This way great damage and great injustice was done to Urdu, which was branded as a communal language, when the truth is that it is thoroughly secular.

I have read the poetry of many Indian poets, e.g. Tulsi, Sur, Rahim, Mira, Bhushan, Raskhan, Kabir, Tagore, Subramania Bharti, Ramdas, Habba Khatun,etc. and also the poetry of many foreign languages, e.g. English poets like Wordsworth, Shelley, Keats, Byron, Tennyson, T.S.Eliot, etc, American poets like Walt Whitman, Longfellow,Frost,etc, German poets like Heinrich Heine, Rilke, etc Russian poets like Pushkin, Mayakovsky, etc Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, etc.

In my opinion no poetry in the world expresses the voice of the human heart in such a powerful, yet dignified, manner as Urdu poetry does. In that sense I regard Urdu poetry as the greatest poetry in the world. What a tragedy that this great language, which gave birth to such great poetry was sought to be rejected in the land of its own birth by some biased people.

In my own humble way I am trying to revive the glory of Urdu.
Please read my articles 'What is Urdu?' and 'Great Injustice To Urdu In India'.

On the demise of Justice J.S. Verma

On the demise of Justice J.S. Verma
(former Chief Justice of India)
By Justice Markandey Katju(former Judge, Supreme Court of India)
Justice J.S. Verma, who passed away recently, was one of the giants of the Indian Judiciary,who set very high standards of integrity on the bench & even thereafter He was a role model for many of us, who would often seek his advice even after he had retired. Justices Venkatchaliah, Krishna Iyer, and Verma have always been our father figures.
I remember that when I was on the bench of the High Court and Supreme Court I would often contact him confidentially and seek his guidance.Once while a Supreme Court Judge I received an invitation from a respected dignitary in Delhi for a mushaira he had organized. I am very fond of Urdu poetry, and was seriously intending to go there, but I was in two minds, and hence I telephoned Justice Verma (who had retired a longtimeback) to seek his advice. He told me that a general principle for Judges was that if they were in two minds whether to accept an invitation or not, a Judge should decline it, because by doing so he lost nothing, but by accepting it he took a risk. He also said that Judges should lead a reclusive life if they wanted to be respected.
No one has ever lifted a finger at Justice Verma's integrity. Even after retirement he refused arbitration or consultation work, even though he could have earned crores by it (as many retired Judges are doing). His advice was sought regularly by one and all, including the Government. His completion of the report on crimes against women in 29 days is a model as to how such reports should be made.
In his sad demise the entire legal fraternity as well as the country has suffered a great loss.

Sex workers and Poverty

" Pinhaa tha daam-e-sakht qareeb aashiyaan ke
Udhne hi na paaye the ki giraftaar hum hue "

The above sher (couplet) of the great Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib, was used by me in my order in Budhadev Karmaskar vs. State of West Bengal, Cr.Appeal 135/2010 (see 'sex workers' on my blog justicekatju.blogspot.in).

The word 'pinha' means 'hidden' or 'concealed', 'daam' means 'net', 'sakht' means 'hard' or 'cruel', 'qareeb' means 'near', 'aashiyaan' means 'nest', and 'giraftaar' means 'caught' or 'arrested'.

The sher therefore means :

"Near the nest was the hidden cruel net (of a hunter)
Even before the chick could take its first flight it was caught".

In India perhaps there are 20 million or more sex workers (prostitutes). They have been driven into this profession not because they enjoy it but because of abject poverty. The massive poverty of about 80% of our population of 1200 million people is the real cause of exploitation
of women. To fill their stomachs these poor girls have to sell their bodies. These girls should have had a life of happiness, but instead they get caught in the flesh trade because of their poverty at a very early age and their lives are ruined.

I have compared these innocent young girls to the chick which is caught in the net of a cruel hunter in its very first flight.

Urdu poetry has, among other qualities, a unique feature. An Urdu verse can be given a meaning by the reader which was never intended by the writer. Surely Ghalib, when he wrote the above couplet, never thought it could be applied to sex workers !

Republics in Ancient India

Our country India is a fascinating country. In this piece I wish to refer to the overwhelming material to show that in many regions there were republics, that is, areas without kings, in ancient India.

This material consists of (1) The Mahabharata,(2) The Buddhist Canon,both in Sanskrit and in Pali, (3) The accounts of Greek and Roman historians regarding Alexander the Great's invasion of India in 326 B.C. (4) Panini's Ashtadhyayi, (5) Kautilya's Arthashastra, etc

Let us first take the Mahabharat. In Chapter 107/108 of Shantiparva there is a detailed narration by Bheeshma Pitaamah to Yudhishthir about the features of republics (called ganas) in India. Bheeshma states that when there is unity among the people of a republic that republic becomes powerful and its people become prosperous. Such people are intelligent, brave,enthusiastic, honest, and trained in the use of arms. They do not cheat each other, and help those in distress. This way they prosper.
Having said this Bheeshma then narrates how republics are destroyed :

" Bhedey ganaah vineyshur hi bhinnaastu sujayaah paraih
Tasmaat sanghaatyogen prayateran ganaah sadaa"

I.e. "Republics are destroyed only by internal conflicts between the people
Therefore republics should always seek to maintain good relations among the people"

and also :

"Teshaam ayonyabhinnaanaam swashaktim anutishthataam
Nigrahah panditaih kaaryah kshipramev pradhaanatah"

which means :

" Therefore the wise people in a republic should crush the chiefs of the wicked persons who try to divide the people"

This is a fascinating narrative in the Mahabharat. It shows that in ancient India there were not only kingdoms (like Hastinapur and Indraprastha) but also regions where there was no king but a republic. As to details about the organization and functioning of these republics the material available is vague and scanty, but that there were republics can not be doubted. As long as people of these republics were united they were strong and prosperous, but they became endangered when there were dissensions among the people.

The Buddhist Canon, both in Sanskrit (in which much of Mahayana Buddhist literature was written) and in Pali (in which much of Hinayana literature was written) has extensive reference to republics in India, e.g. the Lichchavi city of Vaishali. Thus in the Pali Buddhist work 'The Mahanibbana Sutra' it is mentioned that when King Ajaatshatru of Magadha was planning to attack the Vajjian democratic republic he sent a messenger to the Buddha for his opinion. Instead of speaking to this messenger, the Buddha said to one of his disciples :" Have you heard Anand that the Vajjians foregather often and frequent the public meetings of their clan ? So long Anand, as the Vajjians so foregather, and so frequent, the public meetings of their clan, so long they may be expected not to decline but to prosper".

Similarly, in the Avadaana Shatak, a Sanskrit Buddhist text of the second century A.D. it is mentioned that a group of merchants went from North India to the Deccan, and were asked by the King of the Deccan as to who was the king who ruled over North India. The merchants replied :
" Deva, kechit deshaah ganaadheenaah, kechit raajaadheenah, iti"
which means :
" Your Majesty, certain areas are under a republican form of government, while others are under kings"

Alexander the Great's invasion of India in 326 B.C. has provided a lot of material to show that there were many parts of India under republican forms of government, not kings. The Greek historian Diodorus Siculus writes that at the time of Alexander's invasion most cities in North West India had democratic forms of government (though some areas were under kings,e.g. Ambhi and Porus) and this is also mentioned by the historian Arian. Alexander's army faced its fiercest resistance from the armies of these republics,e.g. the Mallas, and gained victory only after suffering huge casualties.

Panini and Kautilya have also referred to these republics (ganas) in many parts of India.

I have referred to all this to show that if today's Indian Repulic and its people wish to be strong and prosperous they must be united, and not divided on the basis of religion, caste, language, region, race, etc as some wicked people are trying to do.

Appeal to the President of India

                                                                                                                     April 18, 2013

H.E. The President of India,

Rashtrapati Bhavan,

New Delhi.

Re:       My appeals for pardon/respite for (1)  Issaq Mohammed Hajwane (2) Sharif Abdul Gafoor Parker (3) Zaibunnisa Kazi (4) Devender Pal Singh Bhullar and (5) Sanjay Dutt.

Your Excellency,

            I already sent to you my appeals for pardon/respite to the above mentioned persons, which have been received in your office. I pray that till the decision of my appeals for pardon Your Excellency should grant respite, reprieve or suspension of the sentence of these 5 persons till my pardon appeals are finally decided.

            In this connection I may refer to Article 72 (1) of the Constitution which states:

“The President shall have the power to grant pardons reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence”.

            A perusal of Article 72 (1) shows that the President has not only power to grant pardon, but he has also the power to grant respite, reprieve or suspension of the sentence.

            It is quite natural that before Your Excellency takes a final decision on my pardon petition Your Excellency may like to consult legal and administrative experts and would want the opinion of the Prime Minister, whom I met day before yesterday in his office in connection with the same matter. Hence it is quite likely that my pardon appeals may take some time to decide. Hence I respectfully request that Your Excellency may grant respite, reprieves or suspension of the sentence to these persons till the pardons appeal are  decided, otherwise the pardon appeals  may become  infructuous.  Four out of the five persons for whom I appealed for pardon are concerned with the Bombay bomb blast case of 1993. Three of them are very old and may not survive in jail. 

For example, Issaq Mohammed Hajwane is now 89 years of age and I have annexed with my pardon appeal his photographs showing that his body is almost a skeleton and he has to be bodily carried for going to the bath room. Similarly, Gafoor Parker whose photographs were also annexed to my earlier to you is about 80 years age. As regards Zaibunnisa Kazi, she is 73 years old having many medical problems, and can hardly walk and talk. I am afraid these old people will not survive in jail.

As regards Devender Pal Singh Bhullar, if he is hanged my pardon appeal will become infructuous..

I also prayed for pardon to Sanjay Dutt for the reason given in my letter to you dated March 28, 2013.

I therefore once again request you to grant respite, reprieve or suspension of the sentence to the above mention persons till my pardon petitions are decided, and direct that the sentences of these 5 persons by the Supreme Court shall not be implemented till final disposal of my pardon appeals.  

                                                                                                Yours faithfully,

           

                                                                                                (Justice Markandey Katju)

                                                                                                 Former Judge,

                                                                                                Supreme Court of India

                                                                                                New Delhi

                                                                                                

The Transitional Period

"Hai maujazan ek kulzum-e-khoon kaash yahi ho
Aata hai abhi dekhiye kyaa kyaa mere aage "
----- Mirza Ghalib

Ghalib's sher which I have just quoted means :

"Before me is a turbulent sea of blood
But wait and see what is coming ahead"

In other words, worse times are coming in India. This transitional period in our history through which India is passing, from a feudal agricultural to a modern industrial society, is going to be a terrible period, just like the transitional period in European history,when Europe was passing through its transition from a feudal to a modern society, from the 16th to 18th Centuries. That transition was accompanied by tremendous turbulence, turmoil, wars, revolutions, social churning and chaos, intellectual ferment, etc. It was only after going through that fire that modern society emerged in Europe. India is presently going through that fire, that very painful and agonizing period in our history, which, as Ghalib predicted, is going to intensify in the days to come.

One wishes that this transition would take place quickly and peacefully, but unfortunately that is not how history functions. In a historical transition the old society is torn apart and totally uprooted, its values destroyed one by one, and a new society created in its place with new values. That requires a prolonged period of struggle, by the patriotic intellectuals as well as the masses.

When I became a Judge of Allahabad High Court in 1991 I said in my welcome speech to the High Court Bar Association that equity (that is, human feelings) will always influence my judicial verdicts.

I then quoted the following Sanskrit shlokas of Brihaspati :

" Kevalam shaastram aashritya na kartavyo hi nirnayah
Yuktiheene vichhaare tu dharmahaani prajaayate
Saadhu asaadhu, chauro achauro prajaayate vyavahaaratah
Yuktim vinaa vichaare Maandavyasya chaurataam gatah"

which means :

"The decision should not be given by merely following the letter of the law
For if the decision is wholly unreasonable, injustice (dharmahaani) will follow
By merely following the letter of the law a good man may be declared a bad man, and an innocent man a thief
Just as Maandavya, an innocent man, was held to be a thief"

The story of Rishi Maandavya was that one day he was doing meditation in his aashram when a thief, who was fleeing, threw some stolen goods there, and fled. The king's men, who were pursuing the thief, came to the aashram and arrested Rishi Maandavya, who was taken to the king who ordered him to be hanged.

Throughout my judicial career as a Judge for 20 years it was this approach and these shlokas of Brihaspati which guided me. And in my various appeals for pardon to several persons which I made recently it was this spirit which motivated me