Monday, August 29, 2011

Death Sentence

The burning issue in Tamilnadu, from law makers to law breakers everybody are against the death sentence confirmation on Rajiv’s convicts ( Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan), and there are so many protests and riots across the state. Why this protest? Why the same political or law students/Attorneys didn’t protest when Auto Shankar’s death sentence was executed? Now why there are so many philanthropic talks about eliminating death sentence? When there were no single protests except from the Amnesty group for Auto Shankar’s execution, probably it’s no worth of political importance.
What is the example that these protests set to society? That anyone who has a community support can murder/assassin anyone and be free, is this not a political black mailing? Few groups who want to gain political popularity have staged this drama fooling the fellow kin’s. At this point I want to think of those police officers and security personnel whose life has been taken for no reason and is there is nothing which can compensate there loss to their families, and the worst part is those civilians who just gathered there to cheer their leader. Are those lives are not valuable? Are only these three convicts life is valuable?
What is the example we are setting to the next generation? That by having political support and community support you can indulge in any big crime and still can be free. No insane will ask what is the crime that they have committed, if any, then, Assassinating the Ex Prime Minister of a country was a crime, wasn’t it? A leader who took steps for the peace and harmony of the community, killing him, was that not a crime? Killing innocent security personnel who were doing their duty and civilians who are there to cheer the ceremony, was that not a crime? Challenging those family livelihood was that not a crime? Just because they are my kin, just because they speak the same language I speak, should I be supporting their crimes? Taking this as an example tomorrow if a political leader who has millions of supporters does a similar crime and he should be set free isn’t? What is the value we have to our judiciary? What respect will our next generation have towards our law and its system? Won’t they pooh-pooh it? That a group of mobs can rewrite something that a judge in a court has written? What respect we have towards those judges who gave this verdict and what respect we have towards our President (personally I don’t like her, as she have corruption case)? How would you expect other countries to respect our law system/president when we don’t? Won’t they pooh-pooh our system? How are we going to face them when they say that the verdict given inside the court can be rewritten by a group of mobsters outside? And we are not ashamed of calling this as victory/strength.

Taking this as an example, tomorrow there can be a protest to release 26/11 attacker Ajmal Amir Kasab, and this protest my be nation wide, as he belongs to a community not limiting to a section of people who speaks his language, if a state level protest can rewrite the verdict, a nation wide (may be world wide) will definitely bring fruits to him, the same goes for parliament attackers and any crime of any serious

Last but not the least, when Bhagat singh was given death sentence, there were similar protests, but he responded that, what he did may be good to his country but in view of law it is a crime and for that he should be hanged and accepted the same gracefully. In the movie “Ramana” the protagonist, actor cum politician Caption Vijaykanth, implied the same thing and was hanged till death. May be what these 3 have done is good for their community but it is still a crime, no civilian have rights to take the law in their hands, by overwriting the death sentence through protest and riots we will be sending bad signals to the society and not only that everyone will start taking law on their hands as it can be overwritten outside if few people think it’s for the good cause.
Finally, for any protest, let it be eradicating death sentence or corruption (Anna Hazare’s movement) we shouldn’t be taking decisions based on sentiments and emotions, as our support will set an example to the next generation and society.