POTwOes!

Articles

Nikesh Murali

POTwOes!
July 26, 2003

'Draconian' is a word being abused a lot these days and unsurprisingly the congress does not mind participating in the 'National Word Abuse Contest' being held in the vicinity of government offices, in corporate conference halls and college auditoriums of prestigious institutions. The other contestant? No marks for guessing - the BJP.

That is a rather twisted way of presenting the affairs of the state, which has been disrupted by the burning issue, namely POTO. But then the bone of contention has been twisted beyond recognition, in a manner, which makes the concerned parties look like saints. I have constantly harped in all my columns about the need for the government and the opposition to start behaving like responsible men who are the helm of the affairs of the world's largest democracy. Neither the opposition nor the ruling is bothered about the starving millions and economic issues that need immediate attention, instead they indulge in a constant war of words on the ordinance, not bothering to clear the mess and confusion they are in. As far as I can see, prevention of terrorism ordinance promulgated on the 24th of October has two problems…one - it needs to be thoroughly fixed at a few spots and two-the government and the oppn.parties have purposefully designed an ad campaign which proclaims a 'draconian lie’ (abuse!) that there is a communication gap between both parties.

If I am asked to pick the better one (Cong VS BJP) I would pick the BJP, simply because their only fault is not being persuasive enough with the opposition and not allaying their fears in a transparent manner. Why they are doing it? Because of the influence the issue can have on the UP elections, That, is a more subtle way of putting the bare facts on paper - the upper caste Hindu’s will be pleased with the center’s readiness to exterminate jehadi's. With an eye on the ballot box, the BJP has decided to fight till the end. But the infirmity ends here. The BJP has taken a bold initiative and has restated its commitment towards the eradication of terrorism. The POTO may prove to be the long-awaited remedy for the country's security problems, it has all the makes of the highly successful anti-terrorism laws being practiced countries like the US and Britain. Also the government has welcomed suggestions and as always has given due priority for developing a national consensus on this issue. It has not taken a Hitler like stand when it comes to the changes that need to be made to the ordinance. Bad publicity, mudslinging and shameless lying by the Congress have eclipsed this very righteous action of the government and its allies.

I am afraid that the list of wrongdoings is pretty long for the congress. The vehemence of the congress party stems from the sole greed for seats in the UP elections, that is exactly the reason why the Congress are so worried about the implications the new law could have on the minorities. They have conveniently forgotten the fact that it was congress party's messing up of TADA that had caused the violation of minority rights in that instance. The fact that BJP are more capable than them when it come to ruling the country and that the law (unlike the Tada) may steal the show, rightly worries the congressmen out of their wits. The opposition to POTO is illogical, congress ministries in many states such as Maharashtra has a similar law against organized crime, which they don’t find to be 'draconian’. The communist party has gone to the extent of revoking it plans to introduce a similar law in the state of West Bengal. The opposition was seen going bananas over the section 3(8) of the POTO, which harms the freedom of journalists in a minimal way, but the government without much fuss has agreed to make the necessary alterations. The list does not end here; in the conference of chief ministers held recently, none of the congress members had voiced any resentment, even when it was a valuable opportunity to express heir fears. Of all the bloody excuses, why should the congress and its allies oppose a law which is ant-terrorist, when there is a possibility that Al Qaida may stage its next set of fidayeen attacks in India.

Rather than giving constructive opinions and point out the flaws in the law when the government has readily called for a discussion, the congress is too busy pursuing its policy of displaying its gross stupidity. The 'minorities' and the 'journalists' are just a shield; the congressmen are simply undertaking a pointless exercise with an aim to disgrace the BJP, which has shown some mettle. And for a few old chaps the extension of this horrible acting performance ensures a well-deserved vacation during the business days of the parliament, as it seems inevitable that the business of the house will be disrupted as usual and they would not take part in any discussion regarding the POTO.

Is the POTO necessary? I would say yes. Obviously a better solution is will be the proper execution of existing laws to prevent crime, but it requires something radical like the POTO to wake it from its accursed slumber. It certainly needs a great deal of repairs like the revamping of section 3(8), ambiguity regarding the power of special courts, denial of the benefit of "presumption of innocence" clause. The conviction rate for the TADA was a mere 2 %, for the Cr.PC is 6.5% and experts predict that with POTO the rate would be much higher.

The POTO is revolutionary in many aspects, many new methods hitherto unknown to the intelligence community and other agencies will be utilized to fight insurgency, there are also plans to start something on the lines of the FBI. The benefits are too good to miss, but things are getting harder for the BJP. They are receiving any helpful suggestions instead they are being pelted with criticisms. It seems that there is no respite from any quarters; on the 24th of November the SAHRDC has in its 'executive summary' declared the POTO to be more 'draconian' (abused again!) than TADA. Again tons of criticisms, but thankfully a few suggestions. The BJP should also be blamed to some extent for encouraging this verbiage, while the opposition believes in lodging multiple attacks; Mr. Jaitley seems to be the sole warrior voicing the concerns of the government. I hope that the elected representatives of the people spare a moment (amidst this uproar!) to look at the number of casualties’ insurgency has gifted us over the years - 65,000 innocent civilians, 5,800security personnel. I believe with all my heart that these figures are 'Draconian', and this time I am not abusing the word.

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About the author: Born on 22 February 1983 in Trivandrum, Kerala, Nikesh Murali is a prize winning short story writer, reviewer, columnist, playwright and poet. His published works include: Collateral Damage (2001, No Spine), Thirteen(2002, No Spine), Songs of the Raven(2002, NoSpine), Midst of Bees(2002, Kingfisher), Fear(2002, Fairgo), Lovemaking(2003, Kingfisher), Autumn Love(2003, Rowe). His poetry has been translated into more than seven languages and won several international awards. He is the editor of several print and online publications. Email Nikesh Murali: nikesh_murali@rediffmail.com

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