India Legal 30 September 2015

DEATH BY HANGING:
Is it painful? 38
CANVAS FINGERPRINTING: LEGALIZED BETTING:

New tracking tool 43
Is it at hand? 46
NDIA
EGAL
I L
www.indialegalonline.com
September 30, 2015
`100
STORIES THAT COUNT
OROP
BIKRAAM VOHRA
BIKRAM
VOHRA:
Why the vets came

marching in
INDERJIT BADHWAR:
The dangers ahead 22
RAMESH
MENON:
Do the
courts ever
say sorry?
12
AJITH
PILLAI:
Big legal
bang for
Moneylife
34
DINESH
SHARMA:
Make NDPS
Act more
effective
54
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
INDERJIT BADHWAR
AS YOU SOW,
SO SHALL
YOU REAP
N the way to work every morning, I

drive along the India Gate parikrama. To my right, just before
approaching the stately Hyderabad
House rises the monumenta war
memorial located astride Rajpath, on the
eastern edge of the ceremonial axis of New
Delhi, formerly called Kingsway. Designed by
Lutyens, it is described as the pride of Delhi,
erected to commemorate the 90,000 Indian
soldiers who were killed in World War I.
Among the several national ceremonies
the site hosts, one of the most important was
the Golden Jubilee of the 1965 war against
Pakistan in which, after repelling that countrys armed incursions, Indian soldiers were
virtually knocking at the gates of Lahore
before pulling back. Driving past that site the
other day, I noticed a palpable lack of enthusiasm in the air. The reason was a noticeable
absence of veterans who had preferred to stay
out of the celebration site and participate,
instead, in the goings on at a protest not too
much further away where former military
officers, jawans and countless civilians were
supporting an ex-soldiers hunger strike to
draw public attention to their One Rank One
Pension (OROP) agitation.
Hundreds of veterans who participated in
the 1965 war joined the protest and boycotted
the Golden Jubilee program organized by the
government, a statement by the United Front
of Ex-Servicemen, the umbrella organization
September 30, 2015
of veterans leading the OROP protest, said.

Notable amongst the 1965 war veterans
(who joined the OROP protest on Friday)
were Brigadier DP Nayar who had participated in the Hajipir operation and Wing
Commander Vinod Nebb (Vir Chakra) who
brought down one enemy aircraft in Punjab
sector, the statement added.
Shortly afterwards, the Defense Ministry
made a counter-claim by releasing pictures
showing certain veterans at the wreath-laying
ceremony organized at the Amar Jawan Jyoti
at India Gate.
This was, indeed, a sad day. And the developments have shaken the country as few others have in the recent past. Veterans have
never in the past been so publicly at odds with
an elected government and its bureaucracy.
In fact, in the best tradition of the Indian
armed forces, our veteransno matter what
their private beliefs, political leanings and
predilectionsmaintain the same discipline
and strictly neutral public role as serving officers by keeping out of politics.
Right from the first day of Independence,
this remarkable distancing has ensured that
India, unlike neighboring Pakistan, has been
spared from coups and being governed by
corrupt military juntas.
While, infrequently, the armed forces have
faced corruption charges involving senior
officers from the army, navy, and air force
scandals in the 2000-2010 period, including
skimming of armed forces money, re-selling

of government property and faking combat
missionsthe militarys reputation remains
largely untainted. It is rated by Indians as the
countrys most credible institutions.
According to the Global Corruption
Barometer 2013, here are peoples perception
of 12 institutions in terms of corruption, on a
scale of 1 to 5 (lesser the better) in Indias
Hall of Shamepolitical parties: 4.4;
police: 4.1; parliament/legislature: 3.8; public officials/civil servants: 3.8; educational
system: 3.7; medical/health service: 3.6;
business/private sector: 3.4; judiciary: 3.3;
religious bodies: 3.3; media: 3.2; NGOs: 2.9
and military: 2.5.
Governance Now, reporting on a nationwide poll, concluded: In fact, if corruption
and trust are in inverse proportion, then our
survey for the Republic Day special this year,
carried out by CVoter, was not wide off the
mark. It had the armed forces on top of the
trust rating and police and parliament at the
bottom.
SHORT MEMORY
The sacrifices that
our soldiers have
made for the
nation seem to
have been
forgotten
his is largely because the armed forces

have remained steadfastly apolitical
and have stuck assiduously to the service-before-self motto. The OROP issue,
unfortunately, gained political coloration
because it became part of unkept electioneering promises, first from the Congress party
and then, from Prime Minister Modi who, as
candidate Modi, made OROP his personal
pledge at a mammoth rally at Rewari, Haryana, during the last general elections.
From general observations, there is no
gainsaying that Modi won the hearts and
minds of ex-servicemen and serving voters
who openly (if out of uniform) or quietly (if in
uniform) supported the BJP.
How much water has flown under the
military bridge since then! That a time would
arrive when hunger-striking veterans would
boycott the 1965 Memorial Day even at the
cost of being dubbed anti-national, and the
government would be forced to counterstrike
by issuing a formal press release in the battle
for public opinion is scary. Is the fact of
Photo Division
INDIA LEGAL September 30, 2015
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
DISTORTED PRIORITIES
(L-R) The nation ignored
the genuine demands of
veteran soldiers in its
preoccupation with
the sensational
Indrani MukerjeaSheena Bora saga
UNI
The armed
forces have
remained
steadfastly
apolitical and
have stuck
assiduously to
the servicebefore-self
motto.
September 30, 2015
veterans having to resort to street tactics

to ensure the implementation of electoral
promises proof that there is no other way to
get redressal of genuine grievances in this
nation?
will turn now to Col Hariharan, a veteran

intelligence officer during the IPKF
Operation in Sri Lanka between 19871990, who is a much-admired contributor to
India Legal. He wrote in a recent blog that
the 83-day-long relay hunger strike forced the
government to accede (even though not fully)
to the OROP demand. The home truth that
taking to the street in agitation mode gets
better results than all other democratic
modes is a bitter lesson unlikely to be forgotten by both serving and retired military men,
though these are so alien to good order and
discipline ingrained in their lives.
The colonel points out that this agitation,
and not simply the grant of OROP is a watershed event that will continue to haunt civilmilitary relations in the country. None of the
stakeholders would be happy about it. But it
is a logical sequence to six decades of neglect
of the armed forces and their problems by the
nation. The sooner the government and the
people recognize it, the better it is for the
country lest it becomes an irreversible trend.
This is a sound and timely warning sound-
ed by a patriot and military historian with an

unblemished record of service to the nation.
His blunt recommendation to the Modi
government: You must take corrective action
to halt it, rather than congratulate yourself
for bringing the OROP issue (hopefully) to a
closure.
The veterans, Hariharan says, are thankful
to Modi for upholding his promise to implement the OROP though it was done 15
months after assuming office. But they will
have to thank not only Modi and Defense
Minister Parrikar, but also the RSS that
seemed to have given the final push to Modi
to end the folly of allowing the veterans to
agitate too long. Needless to say, in the veterans eyes, RSS has probably gained greater
credibility than the BJP they voted for.
he Modi governments decision, Hariharan points out, has only revived a

system of defense pension that Mrs
Indira Gandhis government had abolished
unilaterally in 1973. So the government has
now redressed an injustice done to the veterans 42 years ago, rather than dishing out
goodies to keep the soldiers in good humor as
some of the bureaucrats and media scribes
seem to think. And it is not enough.
He says it is time for the prime minister
and the BJP to do some serious soul-search-
That a time would arrive when hunger-striking

veterans would boycott the 1965 Memorial
Day even at the cost of being dubbed
anti-national, is scary.
Mukerjea) and socialite Indrani Mukerjea
with her good looks and alleged dark deeds of
murdering her daughter. Despite lurid tales
of Ms Mukerjea and her shenanigans, some of
the diehard votaries of OROP, including a 92year old major, rewrote the script by going on
a fast-unto-death that was lapped up by the
sensation-hungry visual media.
H
ing on how things came to this sad pass.
If the problem is only partially solved, or
the OROP promise fails to plug loopholes or
is simply a ruse to confuse and divide the veterans, they may resume the agitation, he
observes. But that would be a tragedy
because veterans are respected members of
the armed forces biradri where the collective
wisdom prevails more than the individual.
The jawan of today is better informed on
political happenings than the officers of our
times. And he is going to be the veteran
tomorrow. So the process of repairing civilmilitary interface should start now. If the
government and political parties choose to
ignore the writing on the wall, it could cause
more unpleasantness in the years to come.
If Narendra Modi wants to make a difference to the lives of veterans, Hariharan says,
he should immediately constitute a permanent veterans commission to proactively
advise him, not merely on veterans issues,
but on putting to use the trained and disciplined manpower of veterans for nation
building.
After going through their ordeal, veterans
have probably learnt how to deal with the two
upper castes that run the country: the politician in power and the bureaucracy. Veterans
had to compete for media space for their
struggle with the media tycoon (Peter
ariharan is not playing politics. He is

a shrewd observer who slams the
Congress with equal outrage. He
condemns Rahul Gandhis attempt to appropriate the crisis by trying to cozy up with the
veteran protestors: However, when veterans
shooed off his attempt, he wisely reverted
back to the other earthshaking national
eventthe FTII striketo unearth the RSS
conspiracy against national institutions.
Apparently, Rahul has continued to
strategize the Congress response to the
OROP announcement also. Otherwise, it is
difficult to understand why the second most
inarticulate (or is it incomprehensible?)
leader of the Congress PartyAK Antony
was chosen to comment upon it. Antony had
not covered himself with glory during his
long tenure as defense minister. So it was not
surprising to see him haltingly pronounce
that the government had cheated the veterans
by offering a diluted version of OROP than
what the Congress had agreed upon. He conveniently forgot that he sat upon the proposal
for nine long years as defense minister.
And the BJP must be praying that Rahul
Baba should continue to lead the Congress
from the front, so that it can bask in the
reflected glory.
Our cover story written by Bikram Vohra
explains why nobody is leading from the
front.
editor@indialegalonline.com
SEPTEMBER 30, 2015
VOLUME. IX
ISSUE. 02
Editor
Inderjit Badhwar
Managing Editor
Ramesh Menon
Deputy Managing Editor
Shobha John
Executive Editor
Ajith Pillai
Business Editor
Shantanu Guha Ray
Political Editor
Bhavdeep Kang
Associate Editor
Meha Mathur
Deputy Editor
Prabir Biswas
Art Director
Anthony Lawrence
Deputy Art Editor
Amitava Sen
Graphic Designer
Lalit Khitoliya
Photographer
Anil Shakya
News Coordinator/Photo Researcher
Kh Manglembi Devi
Production
Pawan Kumar
LEAD
OROP, an hour of shame
22
The delay in the much-deserved One-Rank-One-Pension scheme for armed forces

veterans demonstrates the lack of sincerity in the governments assurances,
writes BIKRAM VOHRA. Plus, INDERJIT BADHWAR, in his edit comments on
the absence of war veterans in the 1965 war victory celebrations
CFO
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VP (HR & General Administration)
Lokesh C Sharma
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September 30, 2015
SUPREME COURT
Justice denied?
12
Yusuf Mohsin Nulwalla, who was convicted along with actor Sanjay Dutt in the
1993 Bombay blasts case, seeks commutation of his sentence on a technical point.
If proved innocent, would this open a can of worms, probes RAMESH MENON
MEDIA
Defamations galore
While the defamation notice issued by ADAG group against TOI is the
biggest so far, the Bombay High Court's verdict favoring Moneylife was a
shot in the arm for the media. AJITH PILLAI reports
LEGAL EYE
Painful end
Contrary to the belief that hanging leads to instant death, it could lead to
immense agony for the convict if not properly carried out, says SACHIN
DHAWAN
34
38
Cost of freedom
KAUSHIK JOSHI analyzes two judgments that question
why the poor should languish in jails if financial
constraints prevent them from furnishing a bail bond
TECH
Traces you cant erase
40
Betting brouhaha
The questions MPs ask
62
Parliamentarian BHARTRUHARI MAHATAB reviews Parliamentary

Questions: Glorious Beginnings to an Uncertain Future by Devender
Singh, which traces the history of Question Hour to the 1890s
43
You leave your fingerprints, literally, each time you browse a

website. Somebody out there is closely monitoring your
behavior, warns JULIA ANGWIN
FOCUS
BOOKS
GLOBAL TRENDS
Middle Kingdom is jolted
68
As the Chinese Yuan is devalued, tremors are being felt in

economies across the world. STRATFOR team
evaluates the responses of different countries
46
With Goa and Sikkim allowing betting, why doesnt the rest of
India do so too in order to earn revenue, asks KAUSHIK JOSHI
Shots of trouble
50
US-based PATH and ICMR are under the lens for alleged
unethical vaccine trials against cervical cancer on thousands
of Indian girls, reports MEENA MENON
Numb with pain
54
A strange law denies cancer patients access to medicines that

would lessen their pain and suffering. DINESH SHARMA argues
for a better implementation of the amended NSPS Act
STATES
When the
mountains cried
Theres a mad rush for property
in Himachal Pradesh, but the
Himachal Pradesh Apartment
and Property Regulation Act
has failed to prevent rampant
deforestation and construction,
writes RAJA AWASTHI
58
74
DIPLOMACY
Isle of change
The double defeat of Mahinda Rajapaksa in the presidential and

prime ministerial elections indicates that the island populace
wants to bring in a more inclusive politics, and the world powers
are all for it, writes SHASTRI RAMACHANDARAN
REGULARS
HEALTH
Edit................................................................................4
Quote-Unquote...........................................................10
Ringside......................................................................11
Supreme Court............................................................18
Courts......................................................................... 20
National Briefs.............................................................33
More News..................................................................66
Is That Legal................................................................78
International Briefs.......................................................79
Campus Update......................................................... 80
Wordly Wise.................................................................81
People......................................................................... 82
Cover Design: ANTHONY LAWRENCE
Cover Photograph: GETTY IMAGES
QUOTE-UNQUOTE
Pakistan has no power. It is

frustrated and weak. Their
civilian government is
useless. It's a dummy
government. If the military
wants a war, we are ready,
but we are not going to
declare a war.
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy
Bhagat Singh is neither a martyr

nor a national hero. He is a
terrorist. We are against the
naming of Chandigarh International
airport as Shaheed-E-Azam
Sardar Bhagat Singh Airport.
There are things done by the

governments in India that do not strike a
chord with many people and which
cause them to express their
contempt, enmity and
disaffection openly Is this a
valid reason to send such
people to jail?
Akali Dal (Amritsar) president

Simranjit Singh Mann
Markandey Katju, ex-Press Council of

India chairman on the Maharashtra governments circular on free speech and
sedition, in The Hindu
Narendra Modi contested

elections on an anti-Pakistan
platform and now wants to dictate
terms for dialogue with Pakistan
but we will never accept this
and we have already conveyed it to New Delhi.
If the enemy ever resorts

to any misadventure,
regardless of its
size and scale
short or long it will
have to pay an
unbearable cost.
National Security Advisor of Pakistan,

Sartaz Aziz, in Dawn News
I dont think it would be fair

to say that the BJP is as
extreme (as Shiv Sena) but
it is becoming more
strident and less
tolerant.
Salman Rushdie in
Hindustan Times
10
September 30, 2015
People who accuse us of hawaa

baazi told soldiers that One Rank
One Pension is not possible due
to financial constraints. It was the
PM who turned their hawaa baazi
to reality.
HRD Minister Smriti Irani, hitting back
at Sonia Gandhi
Pakistan Army chief

Raheel Sharif
Aruna
VERDICT
When men are pure, laws are useless; when men are
corrupt, laws are broken.
Benjamin Disraeli
11
SUPREME COURT/ Yusuf Nulwalla Case
Travesty
of Justice?
Yusuf Mohsin Nulwalla, who
was convicted along with actor
Sanjay Dutt in a Bombay blasts
case, seeks commutation of his
sentence on a technical point. If
proved innocent, would this
open a can of worms?
By Ramesh Menon
AN you remember any instance of an Indian court or

government apologizing to an
accused who went through a
jail term after being wrongly
convicted? There have been
instances in the US and even conservative
China where this has happened. In fact, in a
rare move, a Chinese high court this month
apologized to 19 people wrongfully convicted
and imprisoned in 2012 on charges of illegal
fundraising. The Peoples High Court for the
eastern province of Anhui had no hesitation
in saying that it wished to restore their tarnished reputations.
This is significant as it has happened for
the first time in China. It is well-known that
Chinese courts controlled by the ruling
Communist Party are largely seen by the outside world as one where political considerations hold sway most of the time.
In the case of the US, though the case
dates back to 1921, it still has resonance.
Injustice was meted out to Nicola Sacco and
12
September 30, 2015
Bartolomeo Vanzetti who were wrongfully

found guilty by a jury and electrocuted seven
years later. A series of appeals followed,
funded largely by a private Sacco and Vanzetti Defense Committee. The appeals were
based on recanted testimony, conflicting ballistics evidence, a prejudicial pre-trial statement by the jury foreman and a confession by
an alleged participant in the robbery. These
appeals were all denied. Investigations into
the case continued throughout the 1930s and
1940s. Ultimately, in 1977, Massachusetts
Governor Michael Dukakis issued a proclamation that Sacco and Vanzetti had been
unfairly tried and convicted and that any
disgrace should be forever removed from
their names.
In another case in the US, after more than
two decades in a Washington prison, Kirk
Odom walked free. He had been convicted of
rape and robbery and was forced to register
as a convicted sex offender. In 2012, the US
Justice Department filed court papers saying
that there was clear and convincing evi-
dence that Odom is innocent of the charges

and apologized for the terrible justice.
In 2011, New Zealands Associate Justice
Minister Nathan Guy said his government
unreservedly apologized to Aaron Farmer as
he was wrongly convicted for rape in 2005.
Farmer had spent over two years in prison.
The government also paid $3,51,575 as compensation for wrongful conviction and
imprisonment.
NO APOLOGY
But in India, there has been no case where
courts have apologized for a wrong decision
though they have admitted review petitions
or even changed their judgments.
This fortnight, legal experts in India were
discussing this issue when Yusuf Mohsin
Nulwalla, who has been convicted to undergo
imprisonment of seven years in a case related
to the Bombay blasts case of 1993, filed a writ
petition seeking commutation of his imprisonment to three years. His plea was that he
was in possession of a non-prohibited AK-56
assault rifle that is only a semi-automatic
firearm. He also pointed out that the prosecution had not been able to produce any evidence to show that it was an automatic
firearm which is prohibited.
If Yusuf s claim that the weapon he had
was not prohibited is true, then the charge
under Section 7 of the Arms Act would fail. If
he was let out of jail on this plea, many wondered if it would also include remission for
actor Sanjay Dutt as he also was sentenced to
five years along with Nulwalla. But for Dutt it
does not matter anymore as he will be a free
man in the third week of January 2016.
What has hurt both Nulwalla and Dutt is
the fact that the media has always referred to
them as terrorists accused in the Bombay
blasts case when the fact is that they were not
accused under TADA but the Arms Act for
possessing a weapon. Both the TADA court
and the Supreme Court have not held them
guilty in the Bombay blasts case. But the
press always refers to them as the Bombay
blast accused.
NO EVIDENCE
But what has intrigued many observers is the
fact that none of the lawyers or judges
noticed that there was no evidence to prosecute them. The spring which was produced
in court, which was ostensibly from a gun,
was of a different size from that mentioned in
the recovery list. So was the rod which was
meant to clean the gun. The bullets that were
produced in court were brand new when it
was recovered from the sea bed after a month
of it being there. No one asked why the bullets had not rusted and how they had fired
when tested by the forensic department. This
is the problem when not understanding
criminal law in its totality.
The Indian judiciary is seriously short of
lawyers who specialize in criminal law as well
as judges who understand criminal justice.
Significantly, a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Prafulla C
Pant understood the point and conceded that
the courts had overlooked that the weapon in
Nulwallas possession was not prohibited
under the Arms Act (See Box). The bench
advised Harish Salve, Nulwallas counsel, to
file a curative petition and agreed to keep his
writ petition pending.
The charges framed by the TADA court
said that Nulwalla acquired AK-56 rifles and
cartridges and one 9mm pistol and cartridges which were smuggled into the country for committing terrorist acts and he
destroyed the said AK-56 rifle with the assistance of a co-accused. Nulwalla was con-
The spring which

was produced in
court, which was
ostensibly from a
gun, was of a
different size from
that mentioned in
the recovery list....
The bullets that
were produced
were brand new
when it was
recovered from
the sea after a
month. No one
asked why they
had not rusted.
JUSTICE DENIED?
Yusuf Mohsin Nulwalla,
who was sentenced
along with Sanjay Dutt
13
SUPREME COURT/ Yusuf Nulwalla Case
Abu Salem had

told the TADA
court in August
2015 that he has
not provided any
AK-56 rifle to
Yusuf Nulwalla
and Sanjay Dutt.
Salem was not
charged under
the Arms Act
as the court
accepted his plea
but Nullwalla
was convicted.
victed for an offence punishable under the

Arms Act and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for five years along with a fine of
`20,000. If he defaulted on the payment, he
would have to undergo a prison term of
another six months. He was further convicted for the offence punishable under Section
201 of the IPC and sentenced to rigorous
imprisonment for another two years.
The convictions by the TADA court were
given on November 28, 2006, and July 31,
2007, respectively. The conviction was based
on the following facts:
During the investigation of the case, the
prosecution claimed, that there had been
recovery of parts of an AK-56 rifle that was
prohibited. The recovered articles were
placed on record before the TADA court as
evidence Exhibit 3A and 3Bone metallic
spring and one rod.
The court charged Yusuf Nulwalla with
various offences, including possession of the

prohibited firearm. After the trial, he was
acquitted of all other charges, but was convicted of the charge of possession of a prohibited firearm by the TADA court.
An appeal filed in the Supreme Court in
2007 was dismissed. A review petition in
2013 was also dismissed.
NEGLECTED FACTS
Even assuming that the petitioner had possession of an AK-56 rifle and 9 mm pistol as
alleged, the same would not be a prohibited
arm in terms of law. The law is very clear
that it has to be affirmatively proved that it is
a prohibited weapon and in the absence of
such proof, no conviction can be made.
Secondly, the finding of guilt and conviction
of Nulwalla under Section 7 of the Arms Act
for alleged acquisition and possession of
prohibited arms was not based on any ade-
Fair Denial?
HE Supreme Court judgment on March 21, 2013, that dealt

with the probation of Sanjay Dutt upheld the view of the
TADA court that it had taken a view on the basis of the confession of Dutt. The court bench, comprising Justices P Sathasivam (right) and BS Chauhan (below) fully agreed that the arms
acquired by Sanjay Dutt were for self-defence and not for any terrorist activity.
The court set certain grounds for getting probation:
(i) The accused is found guilty of having committed an offence
not punishable with death or imprisonment for life.
(ii) The Court finding him guilty is of the opinion that having regard to the circumstances of
the case, including the nature of the offence
and the character of the offender, it is expedient to release him on probation.
(iii) The accused in such an event enters
into a bond with or without sureties to appear
and receive sentence when called upon during such period not exceeding three
years as the court may direct and, in
the meantime, to keep the peace
and be of good behavior.
Obviously, the underlying
object of the above provisions
is that an accused person
should be given a chance of
14
September 30, 2015
reformation, which he would lose in case he is incarcerated in

prison and associates with hardened criminals.
However, even though it was accepted that Dutt had got the
weapon for self-defence and not for any terrorist activity and
despite the conditions set down for granting probation, Justices P
Sathasivam and BS Chauhan said that the circumstances and the
nature of the offense did not warrant the benefit of the provisions
of the Probation of Offenders Act. However, taking note of various
aspects, the court reduced his sentence to minimum period of
five years.
In his additional affidavit before the Supreme
Court, Dutt asserted that he was entitled to
seek the benefit of Section 4 of Probation of
Offenders Act. He had made out a case for
probation by giving facts related to the
work he and his family had done and also
underlined the fact that he had no criminal
antecedents. Though the Supreme Court
accepted the findings of
the TADA court that Dutt
was not involved in
the 1992-93 riots, it
denied him the
benefits of probation. No reason
was given.
quate or sufficient evidence nor established

beyond reasonable doubt at the trial. This
aspect of the case was not placed before and
has not been noticed by the TADA court and
the Supreme Court.
Besides, both the AK-56 and 9mm pistol
are per se not prohibited arms and the conviction of Nulwalla based on the assumption
that the same were prohibited arms was contrary to law. In the trial court as well as the
Supreme Court, the question whether the
AK-56 that was allegedly in possession of
Nulwalla fell within the definition of a prohibited arm, was not gone into.
Nulwallas conviction was based on a
premise that he was in possession of an automatic weapon. The appeal was also decided
on the premise that he was in possession of
an automatic weapon. The courts believed
the prosecution case that he was in possession of an AK-56 rifle. The trial court and the
Supreme Court held and affirmed the finding
that parts like a rod and a spring recovered
from him showed that he was in possession
of an AK-56 rifle.
Besides, the courts failed to consider that
the FSL report did not state whether the
aforesaid parts of the weapon recovered
established that the weapon that was allegedly in the possession of Nulwalla was a fully
automatic firearm or a semi-automatic
firearm. For conviction, it was essential to
prove the acquisition, possession and carrying of prohibited arms and ammunitions by
an accused. No evidence has been led to
prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that the
firearm in question is prohibited arms
within the definition of Section 2(1) (i) of the
Arms Act, 1959. The spring and rod recovered was not given a conclusive finding by
any court whether they fall as a weapon
which is a prohibited weapon or arm.
SALEM PLEA
The case said that the arms were given to
Nulwalla by Abu Salem. The Supreme Court
had dropped eight charges against Abu
Salem which were framed by the TADA court
in the 1993 Bombay blasts case. Abu Salem
had told the TADA court in August 2015 that
he has not provided any AK-56 rifles to
Nulwalla and Dutt. Salem was not charged
under the Arms Act as the court accepted his

plea that he never supplied the arms but
Nullwalla was convicted as the police said
that it was given to him by Abu Salem.
Even if the curative petition of Nulwalla
reverses the final judgment and order of conviction and sentence of the TADA court and
also the judgment passed by the Supreme
Court, Dutt who is convicted in a similar case
will not get any benefit as his term has almost
come to an end. If the curative petition is
allowed in favor of Nulwalla, he would be
then seen by the court to have committed an
offence punishable only under the Arms Act
and not under TADA and the maximum sentence would be three years, which he has
already completed and so can be let free.
Many are watching this case keenly and
questioning whether there was a travesty of
justice in the cases of Nulwalla and Dutt. IL
POINT OF REFERENCE
(Top) The 1993 Mumbai blasts
(Above) The Supreme Court
bench comprising Justice
Ranjan Gogoi and Prafulla
C Pant felt that the weapons
possessed by Nulwalla
were not illegal
15
SUPREME COURT/ Erroneous Decisions
Supreme but not

infallible
Despite being the highest court of the land, there have been instances
where the Supreme Court has erred in the finding of facts and law
By Venkatasubramanian
ERROR OF
JUDGMENT
The Supreme Courts
verdict during
Emergency (above and
right) that fundamental
rights could be
suspended was set
later aside by
parliament
16
September 30, 2015
HILE asking the counsel

for Yusuf Mohsin Nulwalla, Harish Salve, to
move a curative petition,
Justice Gogoi said: All
orders of the court are not always correct or
perfect. Whatever order we give, right or
wrong, are final.
These observations make one recall the
title of a book, a collection of essays published in 2000, to mark the 50th anniversary
of the Supreme Court: Supreme, but not
infallible. The title itself is taken from an oft
quoted self-reflection of an American judge:
We are not final because we are infallible, we
are infallible only because we are final.
(Justice Robert Jackson in Brown v. Allen in
1953). Justice BN Kirpal, wrote in his preface
to this book: We would like to believe that
the Supreme Court has gone about its task
less conscious of its supremacy and more
warily with the intuition that the court,
though final, is fallible. These essays are a
reminder of what the Court is and does.
In the history of Indias Supreme Court,
instances of the court admitting errors in the
finding of facts and law are many. While in
some cases, subsequent benches have sought
to correct the erroneous decisions of previous
benches, some have remained uncorrected
due to the vagaries of the judicial system. Of
these, erroneous decisions in sentencing con-
We would like to believe

that the Supreme Court
has gone about its task
less conscious of its
supremacy and more
warily with the intuition that
the court, though final, is
fallible. These essays are a
reminder of what the Court
is and does.
Justice BN Kirpal in his preface to a
book, Supreme, but not infallible.
victs to death, but which went uncorrected
before the convicts were hanged, were the
most telling.
In October 1975, the Allahabad High
Court upheld the death sentences on Jeeta
Singh, Kashmira Singh and Harbans Singh.
The three convicts were found guilty of murdering four members of a family and their
role in the crime was similar. All were before
the Supreme Court separately on appeal.
eeta Singhs appeal was dismissed by a

Bench of three judges (Justices YV
Chandrachud, VR Krishna Iyer and NL
Untwalia) and he was hanged. Another
bench of two judges (Justices M Fazal Ali and
PN Bhagwati) commuted Kashmira Singhs
death sentence to life imprisonment.
Yet another Supreme Court Bench dismissed Harbans Singhs appeal and review
petition. Harbans Singh had sought equal
treatment with Kashmira, and he was scheduled to be hanged with Jeeta Singh. But he
appealed again. This time, the court stayed
his execution and recommended presidential
clemency, which was granted.
In Santosh Kumar Satishbhushan Bariyar
vs State of Maharashtra (2009), the Supreme
Court admitted gross misapplication of the
death penalty law in a host of cases on the
ground that they did not follow the stipulated test mandated in Bachan Singh vs State of
Punjab (1980). In Ravji vs State of Rajasthan

(1995), the Supreme Court had held that it is
only characteristics relating to crime, to the
exclusion of the ones relating to criminal,
which are relevant to sentencing in criminal
trial. Ravji case was followed in at least six
decisions of the Supreme Court.
In Bariyar, the court held the ruling in
Ravji as per incuriam (in error). Following
Ravji, two prisoners, who were wrongly sentenced to death, Ravji Rao and Surja Ram,
were executed on May 4, 1996, and April 7,
1997, respectively.
In several cases, larger benches find the
decisions of smaller benches error-prone and
overrule them, both on findings of fact and
law. In ADM Jabalpur vs Shiv Kant Shukla,
decided during the Emergency, the majority
judges held that fundamental rights could be
suspended during the Emergency. Although
this has not been specifically overruled by a
subsequent judgment, the 44th Amendment
passed by parliament is considered to have
impliedly set this judgment aside.
But none of the subsequent benches
would cite ADM Jabalpur as a valid precedent for this proposition, because it was
always considered to be erroneous.
The curative petition mechanism devised
by the court in 2002 is itself an acknowledgement that errors can happen and should be
rectified even belatedly. IL
While in some
cases, the
subsequent
benches have
tried to correct the
wrong decisions
of the previous
benches, some
have remained
uncorrected due
to the vagaries
of the judicial
system.
17
SUPREME COURT
FTII PIL dismissed

HE apex court has rejected
a PIL seeking its intervention into the current crisis
at the Film and Television
Institute of India (FTII), Pune, as
a result of the student agitation.
For the past three months, the
students are on protest over the
appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as chairman of FTII by the
government.
The PIL had pointed out that
the institute was unable to func-
tion, jeopardizing the career of

students, yet the government
was doing nothing to solve the
problem. It wanted the court to
instruct the center to seek a
solution to the impasse.
The court also turned down
the request to ask the Maharashtra government to provide
security cover to those students
who were willing to attend classes. Classes have not been
held for three months.
An onerous task
HE Supreme Court has
observed that it was not
feasible for it to keep a tab
on whether Right to Education
Act was being carried out in its
true spirit across the country and
it was for high courts to take up
the job. It, therefore, turned down
a plea for asking the center and
the states to appoint enough
teachers and build schools.
The court was responding to
a petition from an NGO that

pointed out that the government
was not serious enough about
implementing the act, and wanted the court to play a proactive
role. It also said that there was an
acute shortage of schools and
teachers all over India.
The court asked the petitioner
to move all high courts so that
the act could be enforced in all
states.
Advice to ML Sharma
HE apex court has pointed
out that former CBI Special Director ML Sharma
who is helping the Central
Vigilance Commission (CVC) in
probing the Ranjit Sinha diary
case, had overestimated demands for remuneration and
infrastructure needed for the
job. The court also felt that
Sharma was not aware that the
entire procedure would only
take eight weeks.
Sharma was selected by the
18
September 30, 2015
apex court in July for helping

the CVC to find out whether the
former CBI chief had watered
down charges against people
involved in the coal scam after
he allegedly met them at his
residence.
The court asked Sharma to
think about seeking the help of
two-three officers and the same
number of secretarial staff. It
also instructed that the inquiry
must be completed within 8 to
12 weeks.
Quota benefits for disabled
HE Supreme Court recently made it

amply clear that disabled persons
can claim quota benefits only at the
entry level in government jobs and not
thereafter at the time of promotions.

The court was referring to its 2013
verdict which had clearly stated the condition. The verdict mandated three percent
reservations in jobs.
The court was responding to a contention of the center that the issue of
reservation during promotions was not
addressed by the court in its 2013 order.
The court also took a grim view of the
centers tardy progress in filling up vacancies of disabled persons in government
jobs. The 2013 order had directed the
center and the states to fill up all vacancies within three months.
SITs final order on Gulbarg

HE special court conducting trial in
the 2002 Gulbarg Society massacre case in Gujarat was recently
given the go-ahead by the apex court to
come up with its final verdict. Trial proceedings in the case have been going on
in the SIT court since 2009. The SC had
earlier allowed the court to complete the
trial within three months.
The apex court had put a hold on all
trials in this case as well as eight other
cases relating to 2002 Gujarat riots.
Thereafter, a special investigating team
(SIT) was formed in 2008 and the special
SIT court was set up in 2009.
Sixty nine people lost their lives in the
killings, including Congress MP Ehsan

Jafri, when a Hindu mob attacked Gulbarg
Society, a Muslim neighbourhood in
Ahmedabad.
Progress card on
black money
he black money issue cropped up
in the apex court recently and it
sought to know from the center
what had been done to implement the
tough recommendations of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on
unearthing black money and ways to
end the corrupt practice. The SIT was
appointed by the apex court and has
already submitted three reports.
The court asked the center to submit an action-taken report on October
28. It was reacting to a PIL filed by
well-known lawyer Ram Jethmalani.
CLAT up for revamp?

aking cognizance of a petition
that there was a need for an independent and professional body to
conduct the Common Law Admission
Test, popularly known as CLAT, the
apex court sought responses from the
center and the Bar Council of India
within six weeks.
The PIL pointed out that the present
system of examination, conducted by
the National Law Universities, was riddled with loopholes and could be misused. It wanted a review of the fee
structure, format and syllabus of the
examination as well as questions
included in the exam.
No mercy for corruption

onsidering the rampant corruption in India
with no end in sight, the apex court directed the courts to deal with such cases with
a heavy hand and instructed them to opt for the
severest of punishment without any consideration for mercy. It did not matter what was the
extent of corruption, the court ruled.
The courts observation came while it sacked
a conductor of the UP State Road Transport
Corporation for corrupt practice. The conductor

had looked the other way while 25 passengers
did not buy tickets on a UPSRTC bus 23 years
ago. The apex court overruled the verdict of a
labor court and the Allahabad High Court which
did not take away his job after finding him guilty.
Compiled by Prabir Biswas
Illustrations: UdayShankar
19
COURTS
UP pulled up for bureaucrats

he Allahabad High Court wanted a response from the UP chief
secretary as to why some top
officers of Noida Authority, Greater
Noida Industrial Development Authority and Yamuna Expressway Development Authority were allowed to
continue in their current postings for
such long periods.
The petitioner, Jitendra Kumar
Goel, had drawn the attention of the
court to the term of several senior
officials, including Rama Raman
(chairman and CEO of Noida Authority and Greater Noida Industrial
Development Authority) and Santosh
Yadav (CEO of Yamuna Expressway
Development Authority).
Kumar pointed out that several
irregularities during their tenure were
in public domain and even wanted
the CBI to probe into their assets.
He also contended that since
Yadav Singh, the suspended chief
engineer of all the three authorities,
was under CBI investigation for alleged corruption and disproportionate
assets, the officers should have been
shifted much earlier to clear any doubts of their involvement.
The court took particular objection to the continuance of Raman as
head of all the three authorities for
inordinate period.
A bonanza for women in Navy

omen officers from the Indian
Navy had much to rejoice as
the Delhi Court ordered that
they must be accorded permanent
commission with retirement benefits
after completing their short service
commissions. The same is being done
by the Army and the Air Force.
Observing that the center seemed
hesitant in taking the step, the court
said that nothing could come in the

way of womens steady progress and
opportunities being offered to them,
and ruled that it would not brook such
a retrograde step.
Women officers, both retired and in
service, from different units of Indian
Navy had approached the court,
pleading they be granted permanent
commission.
A query on road-naming
he Delhi High Court asked the
New Delhi Municipal Council
(NDMC) what was the procedure followed to change the name
of the Aurangzeb Road to Dr APJ
Abdul Kalam Road and sought a
reply by September 22. It, however,
refrained from staying the namechange move or issuing notice to
the municipal body.
Lawyer Shahid Ali had approached the court with a petition
20
September 30, 2015
that questioned the NDMCs decision to go for the name-change and

pleaded that it was in violation of a
1975 guideline of the center that
mandated that names of existing
roads could not be changed,
The counsel for NDMC, however, contended that the civic body
had the powers to change names
of roads that fell under its jurisdiction, under the NDMC Act and the
renaming was not unprecedented.
Farooqui
denied bail
eepli Live co-director Mahmood
Farooqui, who is in judicial custody
since June 20 for allegedly assaulting an American researcher sexually was
denied bail by a trial court in Delhi.
The court also framed rape charges
against him. It further ruled that the daily
trial would start from September 9 and the
woman would appear on September 14.
Farooquis bail plea will be taken up once
the court has looked at all the evidence
presented by the complainant.
The court also asked the forensic science laboratory to submit its report on
case quickly as the visa of the US national
will expire by October 5.
P
Decision awaited
on Sushil Sharma
he Delhi High Court asked the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and the Delhi
government to take a call on whether
the convict in the Tandoor murder case,
Sushil Sharma, be set free from prison. The
former youth Congress leader is undergoing
life imprisonment for the murder of his wife
Naina Sahni on July 2, 1995 and trying to
burn her body in an oven of a restaurant.
Sharma had pleaded before the high court
that he was entitled to premature release
under the rules of the Sentence Review Board
as he had already served more than 20 years
in prison.
The Supreme Court had on October 8,
2013, commuted his death penalty into life
imprisonment.
Verdict begins on CG scam

entencing began in the 2010 Commonwealth Games scam in early September. Out of the 10 cases filed, the first to
be disposed of by the
judiciary was on the
scam in the street-lighting contract that led to a
loss of `1.4 crore to the
exchequer.
A trial court pronounced jail terms for
six people in the street
lighting case. Out of
them, four are officials
of the former Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

The other two were director (JP Singh)
and managing director (TP Singh) of a private
firm Sweka Power-tech
Engineering Pvt Ltd,
which was said to have
been unduly favored.
While the four MCD
officials and JP Singh
were awarded a rigorous
imprisonment of four
years, TP Singh was
sentenced to a six-year
jail term.
Paramilitary officers
get a gift
t was a huge relief for Group A
paramilitary personnel when the
Delhi High Court declared such
forces as organized services.
Paramilitary services include
CRPF, BSF, ITBP, CISF and SSB. The
ruling is expected to not only bring
them monetary benefits but also
provide them better options as far as
promotion and deputation are concerned, on par with administrative
service officers of the government.
The court took a positive stand
on the petition of some 200 Group A
officers, who pleaded that there
were not enough promotional avenues for them due to inadequate
posts, and significantly, most of the
top posts were given to IPS officers.
Their counsel lamented that all
these factors affected their career
progression and that all this was
severely impacting the morale and
output of officers often posted in
sensitive areas under challenging
conditions.
Jail term to
Nirbhaya convicts
he death row convictsVinay
Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Mukesh and Pawan Guptain the
Nirbhaya rape and murder case had
actually robbed a carpenter in the
same bus before they committed the
gruesome and dastardly act on the
night of December 6, 2012.
A trial court in Delhi held them
guilty for the offense and sentenced
them to 10 years in jail. It also asked
them to pay `1.01 each as a fine.
Compiled by Prabir Biswas

21
LEAD/ OROP
Served with
Little Gravy
and No Grace
22
September 30, 2015
Though the One

Rank, One Pension
scheme for the
armed forces has
been announced,
protests by
ex-servicemen
continue. Why are
the governments
assurances like
weak tea and
lacking in sincerity?
By Bikram Vohra
FIGHT FOR RIGHTS

(Left and below) Veterans of the Indian armed
forces continue their hunger strike for OROP at
Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, saying the government
is offering it in diluted form; the hunger strike had
entered the 87th day when this photograph was
taken on September 9
Y aunts husband
died on duty
when his fighter
aircraft crashed in
Kalaikunda
in
1962. His brother
died in a military
mountain climbing expedition 10 years later.
My closest friend was killed while he was a
test pilot in Bangalore in 1982. He was practicing maneuvers for a group of MPs expected to visit the next day and his jet failed to go
into a climb. My father retired as a majorgeneral and received the pension of an officer
of that rank dated 1979 after 38 years of
military service.
He and his three younger brothers all
became generals, the only four brothers in
any army in the world to attain that rank in
the same corps. Between them, they served
150 years in the Indian army. One of them
won the Mahavir Chakra.
All these individuals or their widows, as
the case may be, received totally disparate
pensions. Only the IAS enjoys the One Rank,
One Pension (OROP) equality.
Photos: Anil Shakya
23
LEAD/ OROP
By its half-hearted
acceptance, the
government has
robbed the
armed forces of
the satisfaction
of being given
their just dues.
Even if the OROP
is reinstated in full
measure, the
crockery of
reluctance that it
is served on
makes it
unpalatable.
THEY DESERVE
MORE
Defense Minister
Manohar Parrikar
pays homage to
martyrs of Kargil war
on Kargil Vijay
Diwas, July 26
In
1973,
when
Indira Gandhi swooped
in and happily gave off
the fifth star to Sam
Manekshaw but ignored Air Chief Marshal
PC Lal and Admiral SM
Nanda within two years
of the war with
Pakistan, she scrapped
the OROP concept.
For 37 years, the
issue lay frozen and no
one did it any reverence. It was in December 2011 that the
Koshyari Committee
comprising 10 MPs was
asked to make a report
and did just that. Clear,
concise and valid.
Unanimous.
Give the armed forces OROP and balance
out the pensions as per
rank and length of service. There is no ambiguity about it. It was simply a matter of
implementing it correctly.
Ironically, it still is ambiguous.
TEPID EFFORT
When Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar
announced the implementation of the
OROP, it was clear by his tepid effort that he
really did not know what was going on. Any
jubilation was short-circuited by the statement that those who took advantage of the
Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) would
be outside the ambit of OROP. He had no
clue that VRS is not an option in the armed
forces. Officers have to complete 20 years
before seeking premature retirement and at
that mark, they have earned their pension.
24
September 30, 2015
Although the faux pas was retracted later, it

soured the waters totally. All other aspects
that were open to debate became areas of
suspicion. Paramount was the five-year
review for pensions and the need for a wider
panel to go into the implementation of
OROP than merely one judge. The servicemen want three reps on that panel who know
the military ethos.
These seem like reasonable demands, as
does the call to ensure that one month should
be the time limit and not six months for the
panel to conclude its functions.
One tends to feel that the haphazard way
in which the OROP was made public and the
presence of three chiefs to flank Parrikar to
give it authenticity was aimed at getting the
ex-servicemen to disband and leave Jantar
Mantar. That they saw through this intent

compelled them to reject the offer in its present form. They know that once they pack up,
they can really not come back because the
movement will run out of gas. That gambit, if
it was a ruse, has failed. These men will now
try to up the pressure by calling for an allIndia backing.
In the interim, while the government can
gloat over having kept its promise, the cruel
truth is that the veterans have not got off the
Jantar Mantar stage.
There would be two schools of thought on
this issue. One would say quite emphatically
that the ex-servicemen are reaching out a bit
more than is acceptable and getting touchy
over technical glitches. The other school
would say that the movement led by Major-
General Satbir Singh has

grave doubts about the
confusion that the
announcement has caused and if, indeed, the
technical points are
minor, why not just unilaterally remove them?
After all, why the resistance and why sour the
cream before giving it?
If the government
wished to score a point
by clearing the decks on
this issue, why is the
protest not only still on
but gathering nationwide momentum? The
reason for this is that the
assurances given of
addressing the doubts
raised are like weak tea
and seem to be more in
the realm of a fobbing
off than a measure of
sincerity.
For those who feel
the government has
done enough by accepting the concept of the
OROP and announced
its open-ended implementation sans any
UNI
timeline, perhaps the
case earlier in the week of Lance Naik Mohan
Nath Goswami comes as a sad, yet stellar
example, of valor. Goswami killed 10 insurgents in Kashmir in 10 days, but was killed
himself on Day 11.
The IAS made

sure they got
OROP eternally,
but others dont.
The highest
government pay is
`80,000 fixed. The
invention of this
Fixed pay was
meant to shield
them forever from
the ill-effects of the
formula they
devised for others.
SEIZE THE MOMENT

Truth be told, this would be the ideal occasion for the government to show its muchheralded affection for its men and women in
uniform and honor Goswamis sacrifice with
tangible offerings, including the highest
medal for gallantry. There should be no delay
in announcing ex-gratias and other emoluments because his death epitomizes the role
of our soldiers, sailors and airmen in keeping
the nation secure. Think for a moment how
many lives Goswami saved because 10
25
LEAD/ OROP
Politicians parade
their affection for
the uniform, but
when it comes to
honoring them,
they baulk. On
this canvas, the
so-called green
signal given to
the OROP rings
hollow. Nor is
there any
originality in this.
insurgents were eliminated who were capable of causing havoc.

It is with dismay that while one talks of
OROP, yet Goswamis death is just a one-day
news item. Politicians parade their affection
for the uniform, but when it comes to honoring them, they baulk. On this canvas, the socalled green signal given to the OROP rings
hollow. Nor is there any originality in this latest concession.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi integrated the OROP into his election promise,
mentioned it on glaciers, in rallies and on
INS Vikramaditya. At no stage were the codicils mentioned and till there is a deadline,
the matter is moot. As it is already functional
in the IAS, who needs a fresh interpretation?
The veterans have grounds to feel there is
deliberate foot-dragging on the issue and the
attempt is populist for the present.
The second myth is the cost to the exchequer. It is not a crippling amount. The current
defense budget is `2,46,727 crore and
`10,000 crore (which will go in implementing OROP) is about four percent of it.
On the contrary, there is even no need to
be concerned about the retrospect angle.
Most of the senior ex-servicemen whose pension is at the low end of the scale having
retired years ago, are, to put it bluntly, dead.
A large majority of them are octogenarians.
There is no huge mass of ex-soldiers out
there seeking this upgrade in their salaries.
That is a myth.
When the government announced OROP
and labeled it historic, it specially offered
benediction to war widows who were numbered at six lakh. How this number was
arrived at is difficult to calibrate. It should
be more in the region of 30,000 but needs
clarification.
IAS LOBBY
If there is a wave of rage, it is because of the
disparity between the armed forces and their
civil service compatriots. I have to quote a
piece that was mysteriously sent to me with
no byline: The IAS crafted the Pension
Fixation Formula in such a manner that they
are immune to any post-Pay Commission
disadvantage to the old retirees.
A few decades ago, the IAS invented a
26
September 30, 2015
Photos: UNI
secret magic wand to make sure that they get

OROP eternally and surreptitiously, but others dont. This is how it was manipulated:
The highest pay in the government currently
is `80,000 fixed, called the Apex Scale
(though it is not a scale in the true sense as it
does not scale up). Only the three defense
chiefs and the cabinet secretary get the higher fixed pay of `90,000. The invention of this
concept of Fixed pay was meant to shield
them forever from the ill-effects of the formula they devised for others.
It was contrived that the pension of the
Apex Scale retirees would always be linked to
whatever the revised Apex Scale is in future.
Since most of the IAS/IFS officers retire in
the Apex Scale, this decree eternally ensured
OROP for this class. To meet any murmur to
the stratagem, some Apex Scale peanuts were
also flung at a few posts in some other services, including the defense forces. Army commanders and a large number of Lt Generals
and their equivalents in the other two forces
were also granted this privileged scale.
The main thrust has always been to
PARITY AT THE TOP

(L-R) Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh, Navy Chief Admiral RK Dhowan and Air
Chief Marshal Arup Raha; the three defense chiefs fall in the same fixed pay
bracket as seniormost IAS officials
ensure that no senior person gets less than a

junior. That is common sense but currently
this is not the situation.
This lacuna is further exacerbated by the
fact that though the law on OROP was
settled by the Supreme Court seven years ago
in the SPS Vains case, it was applied by the
government only to the petitioners rank, i.e.
major-general.
It defies logic because what it means is
that every rank in the armed forces must
petition the courts separately and seek relief
or so the government would want. While
retired IPS officers were practically granted
OROP when they challenged the pension
fixation formula and are now in litigation
with the government over it being implemented, the IAS cheerfully sail on, enjoying
the benefit.
Herein lies the rub. Lets repeat the
mantra. If it is valid for the IAS, why is it not
valid for the armed forces? Why should old
retirees get the same pension as new retirees? Why dont they apply the same principle to their own class? Why should old
retired secretaries get the same pension as

newly retired secretaries? Doesnt it speak of
their double standards? asks a brigadier.
Eloquently.
DIFFERENT RULES
Lets leave aside all other considerations,
including the sizeable gaps in temporary
duty compensations, special sops for the
ITBP, the BSF and the CRPF. Whats more,
the privileges being given to persons who
earn gallantry awards are better than what is
being given to army personnel. A senior exserviceman said to me: What is even more
surprising is the fact that if an army man is
on deputation with any force under the
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), he gets the
same privileges that the MHA gives to CPOs
(Central Police Organization). But if the
award was earned under the Ministry of
Defense (MoD), the privileges are less. Plus,
all CPOs get temporary duty allowance and
special disturbance allowance if they are
employed in CI/CT (counter insurgency and
counter terrorism) grid and if they carry
27
LEAD/ OROP
MEN OF
METTLE
A retired
armyman with
his medals at the
Jantar Mantar
protest
out patrolling beyond some three km of the

headquarters! No army guy can claim that,
whereas most CPO persons file such claims
as a routine!
Even if we take all these issues and place
them in cold storage and just seek the reintroduction of the OROP in its plainest
form, we still find official resistance and that
is what one cannot understand. By this inordinate half-hearted acceptance, the government has robbed the armed forces of the satisfaction of being given their just dues. It
now looks like a tooth is being pulled out and
even if the OROP is reinstated in full measure, the crockery of reluctance that it is
served on makes it unpalatable.
HITTING MORALE
When you renege on a promise and finally
surrender, it not only spawns disenchantment but also generates bitterness that is
often translated into more demands.
And while a government can think it
safe to take liberty with retired service personnel, it fails to appreciate that those in
service can feel the ripple effect. This is dangerous. You do not want those in active service to conclude they are merely tolerated.
After all, they will also retire one day.
Much of the civilian indifference is bed-
28
September 30, 2015
rocked in the history of peace. Those

not in uniform find it easy to downplay the forces when security is not
threatened. It has been 44 years since
the last all-out war in 1971.
Such a large standing force in a
time when weaponry has changed the
paradigm produces the foolish notion
that such a force is not needed. The
truth is that not only is it needed, but
it must be constantly combat-ready.
Part of that readiness is morale and if
morale droops, then the readiness is
compromised.
Equally integral to this state of
mind is the comfort derived from
knowing that if anything happens to
the soldier, his family will be looked
after. In fact, one of the provisos
should be the parity given to war
widows in pensions. That makes
good sense.
It is far too easy to forget that peace is
predicated to a strong defense and there is
no other deterrent quite like it. From the chill
of Aksai Chin to Jalep La and Nathu La,
from the heat of the desert in Rajasthan
to the rugged terrain of the western front,
from protecting our skies and our coastal
waters, these men and women wear their
uniform with pride. And every day, place
their lives at risk.
Suffice to say the OROP per se is not only
justified, it is so overdue that with every passing day, the schism gets wider. India cannot
afford that.
Put a timeline on OROP implementation
so that it wins itself some credibility.
When will the oldest war widow get the
revised pension? When will the soldier without a limb find a swollen paycheck? When
will the retired general from 20 years ago
find parity with the general who retired yesterday? After the six months given to the
judge to make his report and no limit on
studying it? At the time of review after five
years when this government may not even be
in power? Next year? The year after?
No one has answer...because no answer
has been given.
When does my aunt get her OROP pension...echo answers when. IL
LEAD/ OROP/Supreme Court
Rapped on
the Knuckles
The government was pulled up by the

Supreme Court over delay in implementing
OROP and had a contempt petition coming
up against it on September 28
By Venkatasubramanian
HE timing of the decision to

implement OROP suggests
that the ruling party at the
center might have been concerned about an adverse
political fall-out if it was delayed any longer. However, a plausible reason
behind the timing is that any further delay
might have led to a serious embarrassment in
the Supreme Court. This is because on
This was
part of your
manifesto for
the Lok Sabha
elections. You
must keep your
word.
Justice TS Thakur
who heard the
contempt petition on
OROP along with
Justice Adarsh
Kumar Goel
30
September 30, 2015
September 28, a contempt petition against

the government for not complying with its
direction to implement OROP, as given in its
2008 judgment, was slated to come up for
hearing before a two-judge bench.
It was only on February 16 this year, that
a two-Judge bench, comprising Justices TS
Thakur and Adarsh Kumar Goel, while hearing this contempt petition, granted three
months time to work out the modalities for
implementation of the OROP. The bench had
then warned that no further time would be
granted for its implementation. Reports said
Justice Thakur reminded the government:
This was part of your manifesto for the Lok
Sabha elections. You must keep your word.
Yet, when the same matter came up on
July 8 before another bench comprising
Justices Thakur and R Banumathi, the
Justice R
Banumathi,
along with
Justice Thakur,
gave more time
to the center to
implement
OROP, perhaps
trusting its
word.
matter got adjourned to September 28, as the

bench probably trusted the central governments word that steps were being taken to
implement it and that it would come up with
its decision at the next hearing. It is unlikely,
observers say, that the bench would have
accepted any further excuses on the part of
the government to delay the decision.
hat apart, the Supreme Courts judgment in 2008 in the case of Union of
India vs SPS Vains (Retd) and others,
which is the basis for the contempt petition
before it, offers complete justification for
OROP. Delivered by Justices Altamas Kabir
and Markandey Katju, this judgment written
by Justice Kabir, had held that there could
not be disparity in payment of pension to
officers of the same rank, who had retired
prior to the introduction of the revised pay
scales, with those who retired thereafter.
Respondents in this case had urged the
court to consider differentiation between
officers holding the same rank on the date of
retirement as erroneous and violative of the
right to equality guaranteed under Article 14
of the constitution.
The central government had argued that
the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which
had decided this case under appeal in the
Supreme Court, had erred in directing that
the pay of major-generals who had retired
prior to January 1, 1996, be refixed according

to the revised pay scales so as to give them
the benefit of higher pension.
The respondents in the case had, however,
contended that in view of the Constitution
Bench decision of the Supreme Court in DS
Nakara and others vs Union of India (1983),
the fixation of a cut-off date as a result of
which equals were treated as unequals, was
wholly arbitrary and had been rightly interfered with by the High Court.
In DS Nakara, the Supreme Court had
held that a class of pensioners could not
Justices
Altamas Kabir
and Markandey
Katju held in
2008 that there
could not be
disparity in
payment of
pension to
officers of the
same rank.
31
LEAD/ OROP/Supreme Court
Legal expert
Dr Ashok
Dhamija
supports the
right to receive
the same
pension when
armymen and
civilians retire
from the same
position with the
same length of
service,
irrespective of
the date of
retirement.
32
September 30, 2015
ing of the contempt petition.

A corollary to this decision of the government is whether OROP could apply to civilian pensioners. It is argued that military personnel do not serve for as long as their civilian counterparts as most soldiers retire
between the ages of 38-40, while most officers retire at 55. This means that those joining the armed forces are expected to lose several years income. But the case for extending
the OROP formula to civilian pensioners
cannot be dismissed on this ground alone.
be divided for the purpose of entitlement and

payment of pension into those who retired by
a certain date and those who retired thereafter. Such a classification cannot stand the
test of Article 14, the Court had held.
The central government justified the cutoff date in view of the limited financial
resources available to cover the additional
expenses if the pay scales were revised.
The respondents had warned that the
arbitrary decision to discriminate between
the two sets of officers belonging to the same
rank in the matter of payment of pension was
bound to adversely affect the morale of senior
officers of the rank of major-general, which
was, in fact, the feeder post to the rank of
lieutenant-general from amongst whom the
chief of army staff is ultimately chosen.
The Supreme Court had, in this case, dismissed the governments appeal by directing
that the pay of all pensioners in the rank of
major-general and its equivalent rank in the
two other wings of the defense services be
notionally fixed at the rate given to similar
officers of the same rank after the revision of
pay scales with effect from January 1, 1996.
The court had directed the government to
pay the pensioners with prospective effect
from the date of filing of the writ petition and
to pay them the difference within three
months from the date of the judgment, that
is, September 9, 2008, with interest at 10 per
cent per annum. It is the central governments failure to comply with this directive of
the Supreme Court, which has led to the fil-
n 1971, a Constitution Bench of the apex

court had held that pension is not a
bounty payable on the sweet will of the
government and that the right to pension is a
valuable right vesting in a government servant. More significant, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT)s Principal Bench, in
the case of All India S-30 Pensioners
Association vs Union of India, (OA 937/2010
decided on 20.11.2014) had held that SPS
Vains decision of the Supreme Court would
hold good in the case of civilian officers also.
Thus, CAT held that the office memorandum dated 18.11.2009 of the central government (which said that the Supreme Courts
ruling in SPS Vains case was not applicable
to civil pensioners) was illegal. It said it was
contrary to the law laid down by the Supreme
Court in SPS Vains and DS Nakara cases and
the same was quashed and set aside by CAT.
As this decision of CAT still holds the
field, the government cannot legally refuse to
extend OROP to civilian pensioners unless it
is successful in getting it overruled by the
Supreme Court.
On May 29, 2015, legal expert Dr Ashok
Dhamija in a post on his website,
tilakmarg.com, supported this decision and
suggested that any contrary rule would violate the fundamental right to equality guaranteed to the pensioners under Article 14.
This Article mentions the right to receive the
same pension when they retire from the same
position with the same length of service, irrespective of the date of retirement.
The case for extending OROP to civilian
pensioners appears to have some legal basis
unless the government comes up with more
convincing arguments against it. IL
NATIONAL BRIEFS
SC stays libel cases

against Swamy
THE SUPREME COURT, on September 7, stayed
three cases of criminal defamation, filed against
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy by the Tamil Nadu
government after Swamy allegedly made comments
about Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on social media.
Swamy argued that the charges against him in this
case were a violation of freedom of expression and
said sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code
violated the fundamental rights guaranteed by the
constitution.
Indian woman withdraws

case against Uber
AN INDIAN national, who had filed a case against
Uber Technologies in a US federal court in January, voluntarily withdrew her case recently. The court docket
sheet did not mention the reason for the withdrawal of
the lawsuit. The woman had, in December, accused an
Uber driver, Shiv Kumar Yadav, of rape and alleged that
he had threatened to kill her. The victims lawyer, in a
statement, held Uber responsible for the significant
physical and emotional harm caused to the woman.
Beef ban in J&K

ON HEARING a PIL against cow slaughter, the J&K High
Court has directed the state government to implement a
ban on the sale of beef. The PIL said that slaughtering and
sale of bovine animals is rampant in parts of the state and
this affected the religious sentiments of a section of society.
The court directed the police to ensure there is no sale of
beef and take strict action against those who indulge in it.
It reportedly observed that the Divisional Commissioner of
Kashmir did not file a proper response on the smuggling
and slaughtering of bovine animals and the sale of the meat.
Is Nabam Tuki above law?

IS ARUNACHAL PRADESH CM Nabam Tuki
(right) the most powerful head of state in India as far
as taking the judiciary head on is concerned?
As PWD minister in the state, Tuki had awarded
various contracts to his family members, which
included his wife and brother. He even cocked a
snook at a stay on the matter from the Gauhati High
Court, (GHC) and continued awarding contracts to
his family members. A PIL in this regard was pending in the GHC for over a decade.
When Justice J Chelameswar of the Supreme
Durga Puja
for sex
workers
THE CALCUTTA High Court, on September 4, allowed

the sex workers of Sonagachi
(known as Asias largest red
light area), in Kolkata, to take
on rent a community hall to
organize their Durga Puja celebrations. Hearing a plea filed
by Durbar Mahila Samanwaya
Samiti (DMSS), which works
for the rights of the sex workers, Justice Dipankar Datta
permitted sex workers to use
the Shubham community hall
inside the red light area.
The hall, which is run by
the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, will now be used to
organize largescale pujas so
that more and more people
can participate in the festivities. Sex workers from 60 red
light areas are expected to
attend and enjoy the festivities
at Sonagachi.
Court was the chief justice of the GHC, he had made

an observation that the matter needed to be investigated by an independent agency. Since then, this
matter was pending.
When the issue was taken up by the acting chief
justice of the GHC, K Sreedhar Rao, Tuki tried to get
the matter adjourned at any cost. Ultimately, some of
the lawyers appearing for Tuki called for a strike in
the Bar. That has been declared illegal by the GHC.
But the matter was decided and a direction was given
for a CBI inquiry. After this order, lawyers of Tuki
met the CJI with one representative of the Bar, and
the next day Tuki got a stay against the CBI enquiry.
33
MEDIA/ Defamation Cases
Defamation
Deluge
This year has already seen 11 defamation suits against the media. In
one case, the Bombay High Court stepped in and asked NSE to pay
damages to Moneylife, giving a shot in the arm for the Fourth Estate
By Ajith Pillai
W
IN MEDIAS
FAVOR
(Right) The
Moneylife
report on the
Bombay High
Courts verdict,
quashing the
`100-crore
defamation suit
filed by NSE
against it
34
September 30, 2015
ILL 2015 go down as the

year of defamation cases
against the media in
India? Already 11 suits of
a serious nature involving substantial demands for compensation have been filed. The
latest one, last month, was the whopping
`5,000-crore damages sought from Bennett,
Coleman & Company Limited (BCCL), the
publishers of The Times of India, by BSES
Ltd, a power distribution firm run by the Anil
Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). The
paper was served the notice because it published a series of articles based on a draft
report of the CAG which allegedly damaged
the image of BSES.
Given this backdrop of the press caught in
legal wrangles, the September 9 judgment of
the Bombay High Court dismissing the `100
crore defamation suit filed by the National
Stock Exchange (NSE) against the financial
news and investment portal, Moneylife, is a
significant shot in the arm for the media. The
court not only dismissed NSEs demand but
directed the bourse to pay `1.5 lakh each to
Sucheta Dalal, the managing editor of
Moneylife and Debashis Basu, the editor and

publisher of the portal, as costs.
In addition, the court also imposed a penalty of `47 lakh on NSE and directed it to
deposit the money to Tata Memorial Hospital
and Masina Hospital, Mumbai.
o why did NSE drag Moneylife to

court? The story has its origin in
January 2015 when an anonymous
whistleblower dashed off a note to BK Gupta,
a senior official with market regulator
Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI). In it, he alleged that market manipulation involving vast sums of monies was taking place because the sophisticated computerized system was speedily accessed by certain vested brokers to get market price information ahead of the rest of the market and
thus enabling them to front-run the rest of
the market. A copy of the whistleblowers
note was marked to Sucheta Dalal.
The website was wary of publishing it
The import of the high courts verdict cant

be overstated. Journalists are often
confronted by allegations from aggrieved
parties that their response was not sought.
without checking the veracity of the allegations made. Finally, five months after it
received the anonymous note from the
whistleblower, Moneylife approached SEBI
as well as the NSE management for their
reaction. On June 11, Dalal sent an email to
SEBI chairman UK Sinha, a copy of which
was marked to NSEs CEO Chitra Ramakrishnan and vice-chairman Ravi Narain.
There was no response and a reminder was
sent on June 15, followed by text messages.
When no answer was forthcoming, Dalal
decided to put the whistleblowers note in the
public domain on June 19.
In his order dismissing the NSEs
EXPOSING
CORRUPTION
(Below) The anonymous
note from a
whistleblower to SEBI,
alleging irregularities
committed by
vested brokers
35
MEDIA/ Defamation Cases
reports against the exchange.

The exchange has sought
withdrawal of those reports
etc, as well as, has made a
claim of `100 crore (which
can be revised upwards).
LEGAL VICTORY
(From left)
Sucheta Dalal,
the managing
editor of
Moneylife and
Debashis Basu,
the editor and
publisher of
the portal
defamation suit, Justice Gautam S Patel of

the Bombay High Court took cognisance of
the emails and text messages and observed
that ....NSE ignored three messages sent
across by Ms Dalal seeking a response before
the story was published. This shows that
either the NSE was arrogant or there was an
element of truth in the allegations, and that
NSE had nothing to say.
he import of this observation cannot

be overstated. As a journalist, one is
often confronted by allegations from
aggrieved parties that their response was not
solicited. The receipt of letters, emails and
text messages are often conveniently denied.
In this case, the emails sent to SEBI and NSE
were factored in by the judge when dismissing the defamation petition.
NSE initially took time to act. It was a little over a month after the whistleblowers
note became public that it decided to file the
defamation suit.
Its press note released on July 22 was
terse: The National Stock Exchange has
filed a defamation suit today, against an
organisation and its representatives who
published unsubstantiated and misleading
36
September 30, 2015
he eight-page whistleblowers note which is

at the centre of the
controversy is not easy to
comprehend. It is punctuated by complex technical references which cannot be easily understood for those
unfamiliar with the working
of a modern digitalized stock
exchange. Dalal, in the June
19 story accompanying the
note, puts things in proper
perspective and also explains
why Moneylife decided to
publish a copy of the whistleblowers letter.
To quote: High-frequency trading using
collocation (direct data transfers through
computers hooked to stock exchange servers
which helps select brokers access prices a
split second before others) that give traders
advantages by a few milliseconds have come
to occupy the centrestage of equity markets
all over the world. Such automated trading,
which executes pre-programmed instructions, generating thousands to millions of
trades every trading day come out of black
boxes designed by whiz kids in the secret corners of trading firms. If deployed unfairly, a
tiny unfair advantage can translate into
crores of rupees of illegal or unfair profit.
Moneylife has repeatedly argued that
India has no system of monitoring complex
automated systems, leave along trading
transaction. Consequently, organisations
that operate such technology have become a
law unto themselves, supervised by nobody.
Even when there is a major glitch or a fat finger trade, no report is put into the public
domain... Fortunately, we have in our possession a detailed document that blows the
whistle on whats possibly going on in NSE.
The whistleblower, who works in the
technical wing of a hedge fund company in
Singapore, is someone who obviously understands the working of the system in NSE. His
letter details how faster connectivity and
access to information about stock prices was
being provided to select brokers who were
trading in huge volumes, outwitting competition and raking in profits.
....NSE ignored three

messages sent across
by Ms Dalal seeking a
response before the
story was published.
This shows that either
the NSE was arrogant or
there was an element of
truth in the allegations,
and that NSE had
nothing to say.
Justice Gautam S Patel of
Bombay High Court
According to him, the difference between

a few microseconds can translate into crores
in profits. Such high frequency trade (HFT)
is reflected in huge ups and downs or
froth in the market. Those with speedy
access can hedge the price in such a way that
they can exit just milliseconds before the
price normalizes.
The editors of Moneylife have welcomed
the high court ruling although they did not
wish to comment on it without reading the
order in detail.
The NSE spokesperson was understandably defensive: The motion is dismissed.
Since we have not received the final copy
from the court, we are not in a position to
comment further. However, it goes without
saying that, whatever is the court order, NSE
will respect that.
It is pertinent to end with an observation
reportedly made by Justice Gautam Patel on
July 24 while hearing the NSE petition:
You cannot use defamation to gag the
press. How is it defamation when Ms Dalal
sent you questions before publishing the
article and you (NSE) chose not to respond
to the query? IL
MEGA DEFAMATION
(Above) This is one of the
stories in The Times of India
which was based on a draft
CAG report that invited a
`5,000-crore damage suit
by BSES
37
LEGAL EYE/ Death Penalty
Tied up in I
Painful Knots
Contrary to the notion that hanging a
person can bring unconsciousness
and painless death, errors can cause
some to die with intense pain. Is there a
more humane way to execute?
By Sachin Dhawan
Anthony Lawrence
38
September 30, 2015
N the wake of Yakub Memoms execution, much ink has been spilled on debating the desirability of retaining the death
penalty in India. But what has not been
examined as closely is the means by
which the death penalty is administered.
Abandoned in many other parts of the world, judicial hanging is still relied upon in India to carry
out death sentences.
Section 354 (5) of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, 1973, specifies that a person sentenced
to die shall be hanged by the neck till he is dead.
While earlier incarnations of the noose might
have been rudimentary and unscientific, the long
drop method currently in use allegedly brings
about immediate unconsciousness and painless
death via dislocation of the cervical vertebrae
(cervical fracture).
GRUESOME DEATH
However, recent evidence generated by medical
studies undermines the view that hanging is painless. As a result of errors that preclude the occurrence of cervical fractures, hangings can be painful
and gruesome. A 1992 investigation conducted in
the UK found cervical fractures in only six out of
34 people hanged by the long drop method.
Another study, conducted in 2009, confirmed
that cervical fracture is only one of many pathways by which death will result in a hanging. An
American appeals court, referring to the long drop
method, confirms that the legendary hangman's
fracture or cervical fracture is one of the less common routes to unconsciousness and death.
These findings show that there is no way to
ensure that cervical fracture will always or even
routinely occur in a hanging. Hanging is thus akin
to a game of chance, wherein a cervical fracture
may or may not occur. Not surprisingly, Rajesh
Pande, a critical care specialist in Delhi and secretary of the Indian Society of Critical Care
Medicine, National Capital Region, concludes that
a more humane method of execution would be
lethal injection.
In the absence of cervical fractures, hanging is
undoubtedly accompanied by intense physical torture and pain in the words of Justice PN
Bhagwati. In fact, painful and gruesome routes to
death like strangulation and decapitation occur
with an alarming degree of frequency. For instance, the 1992 investigation referred to above found
DEATH BY
HANGING
(L-R) Justice PN
Bhagwati feels
hanging inflicts
physical torture
and pain; Yakub
Memon, who was
hanged after his
mercy plea was
rejected in July
that almost half of the hanged persons died

partially or entirely due to strangulation.
CRUEL DEATH
It turns out, moreover, that hanging victims
can experience intense pain even when
cervical fractures occur. Dr Phillip D
Swanson, former head of the neurology
department at the University of Washington
has testified that even if the spinal cord is
severed instantaneously (resulting in a
cervical fracture), this does not necessarily
cause unconsciousness. The conscious victim undergoes a torturous experience
wherein he feels the intense pain of his neck
being dislocated. Such lingering deaths are
cruel and degrading.
Making matters worse is the severe shortage of hangmen in India. As journalist
Haima Deshpande points out, central prisons across the country cannot secure the
services of hangmen even though the candidate need not have any previous experience
nor does he have to be literate. Both the
Supreme Court of Washington and in India
endorse the notion that hanging involves
considerable skill. But India cannot even
secure the services of unskilled and inexperienced hangmen.
Even if India were to secure the services of
people willing to do the job of hangmen,

unlikely though that circumstance may
be, hangings are still unlikely to become
scientific. This is because they are performed
so infrequently that experience and skill
are that much harder to accumulate. So
the chances of a botched hanging remain
intolerably high.
Distressingly, even skill by hangmen
would probably not make hanging an errorfree science, as experiences in both the UK
and the US attest. In his book, A History of
Capital Punishment, author John Lawrence
says: [e]ven in nineteenth-century England when professional and experienced
hangmen followed carefully calculated tables
and conducted hangings regularly, it was not
uncommon for the executioner to select
either too short a ropeor too long a rope...
The American case, State v. Frampton highlights similar accounts of botched long drop
hangings. So the chances that hangings will
be conducted scientifically in a climate of
scarcity of skilled and experienced hangmen
are extremely low.
Thus, medical evidence clearly shows that
errors in hanging cause some people to die
very painfully and gruesomely. Subjecting
someone to such a risk of error is anything
but just, fair and reasonable. IL
The conscious
victim
undergoes a
torturous
experience
wherein he
feels the
intense pain
of his neck
being
dislocated.
39
LEGAL EYE/ Undertrials
Innocent &
Framed!
Two judgments highlight

serious flaws in the criminal
justice system, which lets
undertrials languish in jails
and innocents be framed and
even sentenced to death
By Kaushik Joshi in
Ahmedabad
HOULD the poor who cannot furnish their bail bond due to financial
constraints languish in jail? Or
should the state step in and help?
And what about our investigative
agenciesshould the judiciary repose
complete faith in the conclusions
they draw? The first two questions were examined by
the social justice bench of Justice Madan B Lokur
and Justice UU Lalit of the Supreme Court in the
course of hearing a PIL alleging inhuman conditions
in 1,382 prisons across India. The court crucially
observed that poverty cant be a ground for keeping
undertrials in custody.
In their order dated April 24, 2015, the judges
directed the empanelled lawyers of all the State Legal
Services Authorities to take up cases of prisoners
accused of compoundable offenses and undertrials,
who have completed half of the jail term which they
would undergo in case of conviction. The court also
asked all state governments and union territories to
co-operate. It took note of the fact that 67 percent of
inmates in our prisons are undertrials.
CONVICTS PSYCHE
The situation clearly underlines the fact that there
are systemic flaws in our criminal justice system
including arbitrariness in investigation and inordinate delay in trial. It also brings into focus, particularly in the light of the Yakub Memon case controversy, whether our criminal justice system can be relied
upon to mete out a sentence of such extreme nature
as the death penalty. It often does not take into
account the impact of the grave penalty on the psyche
of the convict and financial and social
implications for his or her family. A big question
mark looms large on whether we should continue
Lalit khitoliya
40
September 30, 2015
with death penalty when many countries

have done away with it.
In the Bachan Singh vs State of Punjab
and Santoshkumar Bariyar vs State of Maharashtra, the Supreme Court lamented the
lack of empirical research on death penalty in
India. In the bewildering labyrinth of our
criminal justice system, access to legal aid is
often denied. A majority of the death row
convicts are found to be from backward
castes, Dalits and minorities. And most of
them are often convicted on the basis of
recoveries arising out of confessions in a
police station, which is inadmissible as evidence in a court of law.
This brings up the question of whether
our police allow undertrials access to the
safeguards, if any, in our criminal justice system. The apex court judgment (May 16,
2014) in the infamous terror attack on
Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar (September 24, 2002) throws some light on this
aspect. The Supreme Court, while acquitting
all the six accused, of whom three were earlier sentenced to death, observed that fiction
must make sense. This is a telling comment
on the capricious narrative of the investigators. The court further observed: One needs
to express anguish at the incompetence with
which the investigating agencies conducted
the investigation of the case of such a grievous nature, involving the integrity and security of the nation. Instead of booking the real
culprits responsible for taking so many precious lives, the police caught innocent people
and framed grievous charges against them,
which resulted in their conviction and subsequent sentencing. There is a need to reinvestigate the dreaded terror attack and unveil
the real culprits.
INHUMAN TREATMENT
I met two of the three death row convicts
acquitted by the Supreme Court. One of
them, Mufti Abdul Qayyum Mansuri, has
even written a published account detailing
the maltreatment he underwent while in custody. The book11 Years Behind Barshas a
story to tell and must be read by politicians,
journalists, police officers and those who
serve in the judicial system because of the
insight it provides on the extent investigators
UNI
NO ROOM
FOR MERCY
(Above and left) The
then DCP DG Vanzara
investigated several
terrorist-related cases,
including the
Akshardham attack
can go to when they decide to frame an innocent citizen.

Since, 42-year-old Mansuri has a photographic memory he recorded his experiences
behind bars in great detail after he was
acquitted in the Akshardham terror attack.
Originally written in Urdu, the book has
since been translated into English. What
happened in the 11 years while he was in custody is a blood-curdling account.
In the course of his narrative, Mansuri
describes what he calls a typical club party
that he witnessed at the Crime Branch in
Ahmedabad. A group of about six burly cops
brutally clubbed the detainees. They
pounced upon the detainees like hungry
The Supreme
Court, while
acquitting all the
six accused in
the 2002
Akshardham
attack, observed
that the police
caught innocent
people and
framed grievous
charges against
them, which
led to their
conviction and
sentencing.
41
LEGAL EYE/ Undertrials
wolves with clubs...they used to beat them

until they themselves got tired or the victim
became unconscious, he alleges. Mansuri
further alleges that bullets were fired at him
while he was blindfolded only to frighten
him. According to him, once, those at the
party even poured petrol into his anus and
gave electric shocks on his genitals.
At the Crime Branch, they hit me on the
palm, on the back and on the soles, Manuri
further alleges. When I prayed to God, the
DCP, would tell me: Your Allah has deserted
you and come to us. We have the power,
authority and everything. What do you have?
If God is with you, break the chains and
get free.
CASES TO
REFER?
(Top and above)
The Godhra
carnage; the
slain Gujarat
home minister
Haren Pandya
42
September 30, 2015
JUDICIAL CUSTODY
The torture was such that Mansuri says he
and other co-accused felt a sense of relief
when they were chargesheeted in the Akshardham attack case and taken to the Sabarmati prison. Judicial custody meant they
would escape the barbarity they were subjected to at the Crime Branch.
Mansuris world has changed a lot during
the 11 years he spent in prison. His father is
dead and his son, then a child, has become an
adolescent. And his family has shifted residence. The main evidence against him was
the two letters allegedly written by him,
which were recovered from the two fidayeens
involved and killed in the attack. This evidence, Mansuri alleges, was concocted. For
three days and nights, they made me copy a
letter that they had given me. They would ask
me to copy it several times to ensure that
each copy looked like the other. They beat me
to the pulp and even took me

out to stage an encounter. I was
very frightened and did what
they asked me to do, he writes.
Luckily for Mansuri, the
prosecution failed to substantiate how the letters were found
unsoiled and unstained when
the bodies of the fidayeens were
ridden with bullets and lay in
blood. If anything, Mansuris
book and the apex courts verdict in the case brings up one
vital point for consideration of
the lower judiciaryit must look beyond
police versions of an incident.
BROKEN LIVES
The other accused I met was Adambhai
Suleiman Ajmeri. Now 52, he is absolutely
shattered. He was arrested 11 months after
the September 2002 shootout at Akshardham temple and charged with picking up
two Pakistan-based fidayeens from Ahmedabad railway station, sheltering them and taking them on reconnaissance missions. If I
were involved in the attack, I would have left
home and fled. I have no history of any crime
in any police station of India, let alone
Ahmedabad, Adambhai says. During his
interrogation, he maintained that he had no
knowledge of the dastardly attack.
Adambhai alleges that he was asked by a
senior police officer to choose the crime he
should be charged with from the three terrorism-related cases being investigated by the
Crime Branch. One was the Godhra train
carnage; the other two were former Gujarat
home minister Haren Pandyas murder and
the Akshardham attack. Adambhai says
there was no let up in the torture to extract a
confession from him. He got relief only when
the case came up before the Supreme Court.
However, for every instance of truth being
upheld, there are thousands of cases where
the innocent are punished. There are still
others who are accused and do not have the
financial ability to afford legal help or to
attain bail. Such undertrials crowd our jails
and eke out a miserable existence. There
surely is a strong case for reforming the
police and our judicial system. IL
TECH/ Surveillance Tools
Canvas
Fingerprinting:
Business
over Privacy
A new kind of tracking tool,
canvas fingerprinting, is being
used to follow visitors to
thousands of top websites,
from WhiteHouse.gov
to YouPorn
By Julia Angwin
RAISING ALARM
Princeton Universitys
Arvind Narayanan raised
questions about privacy
being compromised with
the use of canvas
fingerprinting technology
irst documented in a paper by researchers

at Princeton University and KU Leuven
University in Belgium, this type of tracking, called canvas fingerprinting, works by
instructing the visitors Web browser
to draw a hidden image. Because each computer draws
the image slightly differently, the images can be used
to assign each users device a number that uniquely
identifies it.
Like other tracking tools, canvas fingerprints are
used to build profiles of users based on the websites
they visitprofiles that shape which ads, news articles,
or other types of content are displayed to them.
But fingerprints are unusually hard to block: They
cant be prevented by using standard Web browser privacy settings or using anti-tracking tools such as
AdBlock Plus.
The researchers found canvas fingerprinting
computer code, primarily written by a company
called AddThis, on 5 percent of the top 100,000 websites. Most of the code was on websites that use
43
TECH/ Surveillance Tools
Forcing
users to take
AddThis at its
word about
how their
data will be
used, is not
the best
privacy
assurance
A NEW WAY OF
TRACKING
(Above) Homepage of
AddThis website;
(Right) Rich Harris, chief
executive of AddThis,
says the company
tried to use canvas
fingerprinting as a
possible way to replace
cookies, the traditional
way of tracking users
AddThis social media sharing tools. Other

fingerprinters include the German digital
marketer Ligatus and the Canadian dating
site Plentyoffish.
Rich Harris, chief executive of AddThis,
said that the company began testing canvas
fingerprinting earlier this year as a possible
way to replace cookies, the traditional way
that users are tracked, via text files installed
on their computers.
Were looking for a cookie alternative,
Harris said in an interview.
Harris said the company considered the
privacy implications of canvas fingerprinting
before launching the test, but decided this is
well within the rules and regulations and
44
September 30, 2015
laws and policies that we have.

He added that the company has only used
the data collected from canvas fingerprints
for internal research and development.
The company wont use the data for ad
targeting or personalization if users install
the AddThis opt-out cookie on their
computers, he said.
Arvind Narayanan, the computer science
professor who led the Princeton research
team, countered that forcing users to take
AddThis at its word about how their data will
be used, is not the best privacy assurance.
Device fingerprints rely on the fact that
every computer is slightly different: Each
contains different fonts, different software,
different clock settings and other distinctive
features. Computers automatically broadcast
some of their attributes when they connect to
another computer over the Internet.
Tracking companies have long sought to
use those differences to uniquely identify
devices for online advertising purposes, particularly as Web users are increasingly using
ad-blocking software and deleting cookies.
In May 2012, researchers at the
University of California, San Diego, noticed
that a Web programming feature called canvas could allow for a new type of fingerprintby pulling in different attributes than
a typical device fingerprint.
In June, the Tor Project added a feature to
its privacy-protecting Web browser to notify
users when a website attempts to use the canvas feature and sends a blank canvas image.
But other Web browsers did not add
notifications for canvas fingerprinting.

A year later, Russian programmer
Valentin Vasilyev noticed the study and
added a canvas feature to freely available fingerprint code that he had posted on the
Internet. The code was immediately popular.
But Vasilyev said that the company he was
working for at the time decided against using
the fingerprint technology. We collected several million fingerprints but we decided
against using them because accuracy was 90
percent, he said, and many of our customers were on mobile and the fingerprinting doesnt work well on mobile. Vasilyev
added that he wasnt worried about the privacy concerns of fingerprinting. The fingerprint itself is a number which in no way is
related to a personality, he said.
AddThis improved upon Vasilyevs code
by adding new tests and using the canvas to
draw a pangram Cwm fjordbank glyphs vext
quiza sentence that uses every letter of the
alphabet at least once. This allows the company to capture slight variations in how each
letter is displayed.
AddThis said it rolled out the feature to a
small portion of the 13 million websites on
which its technology appears, but is
considering ending its test soon. Its not
uniquely identifying enough, Harris said.
AddThis did not notify the websites on which
the code was placed because we conduct
R&D projects in live environments to get
the best results from testing, according
to a spokeswoman.
She added that the company does not use
any of the data it collectswhether from
canvas fingerprints or traditional cookiebased trackingfrom government websites
including WhiteHouse.gov for ad targeting
or personalization.
The company offered no such assurances
about data it routinely collects from visitors
to other sites, such as YouPorn.com.
YouPorn.com did not respond to inquiries
from ProPublica about whether it was aware
of AddThis test of canvas fingerprinting
on its website.
Update: After this article was published,
YouPorn contacted us to say it had removed
AddThis technology from its website, saying
that the website was "completely unaware
How You Can Try to Thwart Canvas Fingerprinting

Use the Tor browser (Warning:

can be slow)
Block JavaScript from loading
in your browser (Warning: breaks
a lot of web sites)
Use NoScript browser
extension to block JavaScript
from known fingerprinters such as
AddThis (Warning: requires a lot
of research and decision-making)
Use a browser extension that
blocks JavaScript from known ad
tracking companies such as
AddThis. Extensions include
Disconnect orAdBlockPlus
browser extension with the Easy-
Privacy filter installed. (Warning:

Only blocks known ad tracking
companies; other websites could
still employ canvas fingerprinting)
Try the experimental browser

extension Chameleon that is
designed to block fingerprinting
(Warning: only recommended for
tech-savvy users at this point)
Install opt-out cookies from

known fingerprinters such as
AddThis (Warning: fingerprint
will likely still be collected,
companies simply pledge not
to use the data for ad targeting
or personalization)
that AddThis contained a tracking software

that had the potential to jeopardize the privacy of our users." A spokeswoman for the
German digital marketer Ligatus also said
that is no longer running its test of canvas
fingerprinting, and that it has no plans to use
it in the future. IL
Julia Angwin is a senior reporter at

ProPublica. From 2000 to 2013, she was a
reporter at The Wall Street Journal, where
she led a privacy investigative team that was
a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory
Reporting in 2011 and won a Gerald Loeb
Award in 2010.
Courtesy ProPublica
45
FOCUS/ Gambling
To Deal
or Not
To Deal
Many experts advocate

legalizing betting in India so
that it can be regulated and
earns the government
revenue. With Goa and
Sikkim having already given
it legal sanction is the rest
of India ready for it?
By Kaushik Joshi
46
September 30, 2015
ONSIDERING the widespread betting market in India and ruthless

tricksters who make fools part with
their money, its time that betting
was regulated. Several professionals
and online forums have urged the
government to introduce legal but
regulated gambling in India to bring this underground economy out of the grip of the mafia. Often,
illegal profits generated by bookies are used to fund
terrorism and drug trafficking.
Prof Dheeraj Sharma, who teaches marketing at
IIM, Ahmedabad, recently did a study: Should betting
be legalized in India? and is all for legalizing it. He
says: Legal but adequately regulated betting in the
country would not only benefit the Indian economy
but society at large. Gambling in India is heavily
restricted except in select categories like lotteries and
horse racing. Betting or gambling is illegal in India
but there is no law that makes online betting illegal.
Photo Courtesy: chancesgoa.com
PHONE OPERATIONS
Offshore betting companies are apparently
using this loophole to lure Indians to bet on
almost everything. Most betting syndicates,
modules and rackets are operated through
phones. Sharma says: Online gambling is a
global business. Bet365 is a UK-based gambling company having 14 million customers
in 200 countries.
Indian laws do not apply here as the company operates under a UK gambling license
and facilitates the use of the e-wallet. With
no servers or advertising in India, Indian
authorities cant do anything to stop Bet365
from servicing Indian punters and customers
who can gamble on matches, including IPL
cricket, at such sites.
Presently, there are some 85 countries
which have legalized internet gambling. In
India, Goa and Sikkim are well-known gam-
bling destinations, besides Daman. Sikkim is

the first state to legalize online gambling,
with Playwin, a popular lottery game, being
run by the government of Sikkim.
In Goa, casinos operate on land and in
ships and in 2013, brought in `135.45 crore
revenue. Gambling is largely governed under
the Goa, Daman and Diu Public Gambling
Act of 1976.
The study found that the UK and South
Africa have a regulation board and law that
can keep tabs on gambling operations like
match-fixing in sports. In the same way,
India can protect every sport from match-fixing and spot-fixing scandals. Sharma proposes limiting the age of bettors to above 18
years, preferably 25, and also limiting the
number of transactions in a given period. He
also wants a warning for gambling similar to
the one for smoking, something like
FREE TO GAMBLE
Goa offers plenty
of options
Betting Market
in India
`3,00,000 crore.
Possible rate of tax: 20
percent of profits.
Possible revenue to the
government: `12,000
crore to `19,000 crore.
Source: KPMG Report
47
FOCUS/ Gambling
A Gambling Panel?
Justice Mukul Mudgal, former chief justice, Punjab and Haryana High Court,
and Carl Rohsler, a global thought leader on sports betting and gambling
laws, have suggested that a regulator like the UK Gambling Commission
should be established in India for sports betting.
The UK Gambling Commission performs the following functions:
Assessment of applicants for betting.
Investigation of key officers and owners of operating business.
Audit of betting operators to ensure they comply with licensing rules.
Investigation of complaints against operators.
Power to review and revoke licenses.
Power to bring criminal prosecution on its own.
Power to deal with disputes on betting and void a bet in case of suspicion.
Betting leads to losses.

Advocating legislation for betting, Sharma has this to point out: We dont have the
resources to stop betting. How many cops
would you post to check it? And how many
judicial officers would you engage to deal
with gambling cases?
ADVERSE CONSEQUENCES
Jashwant Jajal, 60, a chartered accountant,
however, says there is no point in legalizing
betting. Would anyone support legalizing
prostitution? Or for that matter prohibition?
What is the use of revenue if legalizing proves
suicidal for society? he asks. Prakruti Vyas, a
homemaker, is also dead set against legalizing gambling. When you legalize anything,
people think its alright to do it. Even adolescents might try it for fun. And the lure of
easy money translates into behavioral
addiction which leads to
adverse social consequences,
she says.
Kiran Pithwa, a sportsman who played cricket for
LIC, Ahmedabad division,
Jashwant Jajal
Chartered Accountant
He is against legalizing betting.

Would anyone support
legalizing prostitution? Or for
that matter prohibition? What is
the use of revenue if legalizing
proves suicidal for society?
supports regulated betting. What people
would do stealthily, should be made legal, but
cautiously, so that no loopholes are left. Even
without a law, sports betting with players is
unpatriotic because it affects Team India and
its prestige. Betting on who will win the toss,
for example, is not that serious. We should
rein in match-fixing in cricket through law.
Entry 34 of the State List under Schedule
VII of the constitution allows all Indian
states to have their own laws on betting and
gambling. Despite prohibition and arrests, a
great amount of money is being bet on
sports. And a large amount flows to unlicensed offshore internet sites or illegal
bookies, many of whom are allied with
organized crime. So, why not regulate it and
earn some revenue for the exchequer?
Unregulated sports betting raises several
issues such as:
Prof Dheeraj Sharma (left), who teaches

marketing at IIM Ahmedabad, has done a
study on whether betting be made legal in
India, and feels that it should be legalized.
48
September 30, 2015
Prakruti Vyas
A Homemaker
Kiran Pithwa
A Sportsman
She is against legalizing

gambling. When you legalize
anything, people think its
alright to do it. The lure of
easy money translates into
behavioral addiction.
He supports regulated betting.

What people would do
stealthily, should be made legal,
but cautiously, so that no loopholes are left. Even sans a law,
sports betting is unpatriotic.
Lack of information on the gambling

industry as most of it is in the black market.
No accountability on money flows and loss
to the exchequer.
No way to monitor pattern of bets.
Gives boost to criminal activities like
match-fixing.
Bookies may be dealing with minors.
MANY POSITIVES
Regulating betting would make it easier to
track and catch anomalies, which can be
monitored. Also, authorities can limit the
amount of money and opportunities available with fixers and thus, make it less lucrative for them. The police would then be a regulatory authority rather than a preventive
one as bookies will be required to keep
records of transactions or else have their
licenses cancelled. Tracking cash exchanges
among betting agents would be easier.
Earlier, authorities focused on controlling
the physical premises to prevent gambling.
But gambling now has gone beyond state and
national boundaries, thanks to the internet.
In the present scenario, internet-enabled
sports betting could be checked by making
regulations
under
the
Information
Technology Act, 2000. The government
could amend the Public Gambling Act, 1867,

to include a section on authorized games,
the approach adopted by Goa. Also, regulations could be made under Entry 42 of the
Union List which pertains to interstate
trade and commerce and Entry 31 which
deals with posts and telegraphs, telephones,
wireless, broadcasting and other forms of
communication. But the big question is
whether such regulation will actually check
the gambling menace? IL
BLAZING A TRAIL
Sikkim is the first state
to legalize online
gambling in India
49
HEALTH/ HPV Vaccine Trial
Shot of trouble
US-based PATH and ICMR are under the lens for alleged unethical
vaccine trials against cervical cancer on thousands of Indian girls. The
case is now in the Supreme Court
By Meena Menon
QUESTIONABLE
HEALTH
PRIORITIES
(Above) Girls in a
Gujarat school hold
up their immunization cards after
receiving their first
dose of HPV vaccine
50
September 30, 2015
n 2009, Kampally Swathi, 13, and

Sode Sayamma Kumari, 14, were
among 14,000 girls in Andhra
Pradesh who were administered
Gardasil, the HPV vaccine against
cervical cancer. In Gujarat, 16,000 girls were
similarly targeted. They were part of a
so-called demonstration project by ICMR
and US-based PATH (Program for App-
ropriate Technology in Health). These trials

were later found riddled with unethical practices and led to the death of these girls and
five others.
After investigations by NGOs and
activists, writ petitions were filed in the Supreme Court in 2012 by Kalpana Mehta and
others and in 2013 by Sama Resource Group
for Women. The matter, which was last heard
on August 8, 2015, has now been moved to

November 2015.
While the trials were stopped in 2010
after the deaths and protests, an inquiry
committee was appointed by the government
to look into the matter. However, the 72nd
Parliamentary Standing Committee Report
(August 2013) on Alleged Irregularities in
the Conduct of Studies Using Human
Papilloma Virus (HPV) by PATH in India
found serious conflict of interest among
members of this government committee.
UNLAWFUL MANNER
The parliamentary committee report said a
clinical trial under the titlePost Licensure
observational study of the Human Papilloma
Virus (HPV) VaccinationDemonstration
Projectwas carried out by PATH in 2009.
It was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation and ICMR lent its platform to
PATH in an improper and unlawful manner.
The report said PATH had resorted to an
element of subterfuge, as one of its objectives
in the proposal submitted to ICMR was to
introduce the HPV vaccine into the Universal Immunization Program (UIP). This looks
imminent now, with the government asking
the National Technical Group on Immunization (NTAGI) to conduct a feasibility
study on the vaccine so that it can be introduced in the country.
By calling the clinical trials observational
studies or a demonstration project, it would
avoid the arduous and strictly regulated rules
of clinical trials, the parliamentary committee said.
The nature of the PATH project made it a
post-marketing Phase IV clinical trial under
the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, the committee
pointed out. It also slammed ICMR for committing to support a vaccine (in 2007) even
before it was approved in India in 2008 or to
commit to including the drug in the UIP. The
Drugs Controller-General of India (DCGI)
was charged with irregular approvals for trials and the committee felt his role should be
inquired into too.
Calling for action against PATH, the committee was concerned that it could set up an
office in India without mandatory approvals.
It further said it should be made accountable
Amarjeet Singh
for the project and it had violated all laws

and regulations laid down for clinical trials.
PATH countered all this criticism by saying that ICMR had approved the protocol for
the project. It further said it was not a clinical
trial, but a post licensure observational study.
WHITHER MEDICAL
ETHICS?
(Above) Many health
trials dont properly
inform the poor about
effects of vaccines
CRUCIAL QUESTIONS
After the petitions were filed in the apex
court, the bench asked the government what
action was taken on the parliamentary committee report, if the drug was accepted to be
used as a vaccine in India and if the DCGI
and the ICMR had followed due procedure.
It said the states of Gujarat, Telangana and
Andhra Pradesh should be impleaded as
parties and asked for the file by which the
DGCI had approved the vaccine for introduction in India.
The Supreme Court also addressed the
crucial question of consent in these trials.
Lawyers for the petitioners submitted that
innovative explanations had been submitted by the state governments for the deaths of
the girls, including snake bite and fever,
when in actuality, it was due to the vaccination. Strangely, there was no data on the
adverse effects the girls suffered from after
they were given the vaccine.
The court wanted to know the procedure
to be followed for consent and what steps are
required to find out the suffering of those
51
HEALTH/ HPV Vaccine Trial
A parliamentary panel report said PATH had

resorted to subterfuge, as one of its
objectives was to introduce the HPV vaccine
into the Universal Immunization Program.
NEED FOR A
THOROUGH
PROBE
(Above) The
apex court has
raised several
questions
about the
administering of
HPV vaccines
vaccinated, the liability of compensation, if

any, and whose liability it would be. It also
wanted to know the reasons for choosing
Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat for the vaccines
and what caused the deaths and ailments of
those who were given the vaccine, the protocol for such trials, steps taken to monitor the
vaccine and whether consent was taken from
the guardians/parents of the girls.
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
It all began in 2005 when the ICMR entered
into a memorandum of understanding with
MSD Pharma Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of Merck,
on HPV vaccine research in India. It was only
in 2006 that the US FDA licensed Gardasil,
Mercks HPV vaccine, aimed at preventing
cervical cancer.
Merck entered into partnership with
PATH to find ways of bringing the vaccine
into developing countries, according to the
52
September 30, 2015
petition filed by Mehta. In 2007, PATH

signed an MoU with ICMR for its Global
HPV VaccinesEvidence for Impact project, a five-year study with three phases
formative research, demonstration project
and operations.
Two drugs were to be used, Cervarix (not
licensed anywhere) and Gardasil (not
licensed in India), the petition said. In 2007,
Merck began a seven-month trial of Gardasil
on 110 girls between 9 and 15 years in violation of both DGCI and ICMR guidelines. It
was allowed to do this trial without first carrying out a study on adults, the petition said.
On July 9, 2009, AP, along with ICMR
and PATH, launched a demonstration project for vaccination against cervical cancer.
Gardasil was given to 14,091 girls
(between 10 and 14 years) in the three
mandals of Bhadrachalam, Kothagudem and
Thirumalayapelam in Khammam district of
AP. A similar project was kicked off in August
2009 in Gujarat in three blocks of Vadodara
districtDabhoi, Kawant and Shinor
aimed at 16,000 girls aged between 10 to
14 years.
According to Samas report, Trial and
Error Ethical Violations of HPV Vaccination
Trials in India in 2010, children who were
part of this project were from poor socio-economic backgrounds and a majority of them
were tribal girls whose parents were laborers.
Wardens of residential schools where the
girls studied were asked to sign consent
forms and the parents were not informed.
Activists said that there are several layers
of violations and the government could not
get away by saying there can be no penalty.
Why did you go and select vulnerable participants and why were there no autopsy
reports after the deaths. Why should no
action be taken against all the offenders?
Also, government machinery was used,
including the logo of the National Rural
Health Mission. This gave the impression to
people that it was an official project and that
is a serious issue, said an activist.
Will justice be meted out to the
victims? IL
The author has served as deputy editor

of The Hindu
HEALTH/ NDPS Act
Caught in Red Tape

Changes in the
legislation banning
access to pain
management drugs like
morphine used by
cancer patients has
come as a relief. But
the amended law
needs more effective
implementation
By Dinesh C Sharma
ISEASE patterns in
India are changing
fast. Non-communicable diseases have
overtaken communicable ones in terms of
total disease burden.
Heart disease and cancer have emerged as
major health challenges due to changing
lifestyles and growing population of the ageing. Although communicable diseases
remain a common cause of mortality, noncommunicable diseases like cancer now
account for more than half of deaths in India.
The overall occurrence of cancer in India is
lower than in most high-income countries,
but the rate of people dying of cancer in India
is relatively higher.
Lalit khitoliya
54
September 30, 2015
At any given time, India has 2.8 million

cancer patients. Two-thirds of cancer cases in
India are diagnosed at an advanced stage and
more than a million cancer patients every
year are estimated to be suffering from moderate to severe pain. Studies in different cancer centers in India have shown that over 90
per cent of patients suffer from pain when
they come for help. While treatment of cancer does get attention from the government
and policy makers, pain management
remains a neglected area not just for cancer
patients but for all those suffering from other
diseases like HIV as well. Millions of people
have to suffer silently in pain because laws
and rules limit access to cheap painkillers.
LEGAL OBSTACLE
The piece of legislation that has become an
obstacle in pain relief for cancer and other
patients is the Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act of
1985. The NDPS Act in its original form was
a harsh law introduced in mid-1980s as part
of the so-called war on drugs and has provision for death penalty as the highest punishment for repeat violations. Till 1985, illicit
trade in narcotics was covered under various
British era legislations - The Opium Act,
1857, The Opium Act, 1878 and The
Dangerous Drugs Act, 1930. The need for a
new, modern law also became necessary as
India had to meet its obligations under various international treaties and conventions to
curb trafficking of illicit drugs including the
UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs
1961, the Convention on Psychotropic
Substances 1971, and the Convention on
Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances, 1988.
Though the main objective of NDPS Act
was to control illicit trade in narcotic drugs,
it curbed access to these for pain care as well.
The availability of morphine (which is
derived from concentrated poppy straw) for
pain relief was reasonably good till 1985.
This draconian legislation brought in stiff
penalties which could even be applicable to
minor clerical errors. So gradually pharmacies stopped stocking morphine. The Act
mandated several different licenses, typically
four to five, all of which needed to be valid at
This draconian legislation (The NDPS Act)

brought in stiff penalties which could even be
applicable to minor clerical errors.
MR Rajagopal, founder, Pallium India
the same time. These licenses had to be
issued with the concurrence of several
government departments making the system
next to non-functional, pointed out
MR Rajagopal leading palliative expert
and founder of Thiruvananthapurambased group, Pallium India. Between 1985
and 1998, morphine consumption in the
country, for medical reasons, fell by an
alarming 92 per cent.
AMENDMENT FOR RELIEF
It has taken over two decades for palliative
experts like Rajagopal, health activists,
national and international, human rights
groups, and patient groups to get this law
amended. Patient groups also took the matter to the Supreme Court arguing that lack of
access to palliative care violated an
55
HEALTH/ NDPS Act
EXACERBATING
MISERY
Millions of people
suffer in pain due
to draconian laws
that limit access
to painkillers
Patient groups argued that lack of access to

palliative care violated an individuals
fundamental right to life with dignity that was
guaranteed by the Constitution of India.
individuals fundamental right to life with
dignity that was guaranteed by the
Constitution of India. The department of
revenue in the Ministry of Finance, which
administers the NDPS Act, finally was convinced that the law needs to be amended to
ease restrictions on use of opioids for pain
relief. The legislation seeking to amend
NDPS Act was introduced in the parliament
in 2011 but it was referred to the standing
committee. An updated amendment bill was
introduced in 2014 and finally passed.
The 2014 amendments basically broadened the objective of NDPS Act from containing illicit use to also promoting medical
and scientific use of narcotic drugs and
psychotropic substances. A new category of
essential narcotic drugs was added in
56
September 30, 2015
section 2(viiia) of the Act. This is a list which

the central government can notify to meet
demands of medical practice. Essential
drugs will be subject to central rules that
will apply uniformly throughout the country.
Earlier pharmacies had to obtain multiple
licenses from state governments for possession, transport, purchase, sale, distribution,
use and consumption.
GLITCHES REMAIN
The amendment was passed in February
2014, but it took another 15 months for the
government to notify the rules. Even after the
rules were notified in May 2015, availability
of pain killers has not improved for various
reasons. Some ambiguities still remain in
these new rules and they are expected to be
clarified in a forthcoming government order.
The department of revenue and the Ministry
of Health together are likely to announce
standard operating procedures (SOPs) which
the governments of 29 Indian states and 6
union territories would be obliged to follow,
informed Dr Rajagopal.
The NDPS Amendment

Act 2014:
Expands the objective of the law
from preventing illicit use to also
promoting the medical and scientific
use of opioid medications
Creates a new category Essential
Narcotic Drugs which the central
government can specify and about
which the power of legislation has
been shifted from the state
government to central government
State rules to be announced by
the Department of Revenue,
Government of India, would be
applicable in all the states
Currently regulations vary from
state to state. The amendment will
make them uniform for all states
and union territories.
The power to amend the rules of
Essential Narcotic Drugs (Morphine,
Fentanyl and Methadone) will be
vested with Central Government,
ensuring uniformity.
Each medical institution will require
only a single order approving them as
a Recognized Medical Institution
(RMI) instead of the current system of
4-5 different licenses
In each state, instead of multiple

agencies being involved in the
process of licensing, there will
be only onethe drugs
controller, thus eliminating the
interdepartmental red tape
Does it mean that as soon as the SOPs are

announced, opioid access for pain relief
would improve? Unfortunately not. From
previous experience we know that creation of
new rules does not automatically result in
practical implementation. A typical example
is the amendment of the NDPS Act by the
Government of West Bengal in 2012. Nearly
three years later, the old redundant rules are
still being followed and opioid access continues to be difficult in West Bengal, he added.
The amendment to the NDPS Act has not yet

made availability of drugs for pain relief of cancer
patients any easier. Currently, only hospitals and
hospices have access to these drugs, not
homes or dharamshalas.
YK Sapru, founder chairman,
Cancer Patients Aid Association
Moreover, the regulatory reform will not
improve opioid access unless doctors and
nurses learn modern principles of pain
management and palliative care is included
in medical education.
This pessimism still persists. Many
believe that on the ground, accessing the
drugs will not be easy, at least for now. Points
out YK Sapru, founder chairman, Cancer
Patients Aid Association, Mumbai: In
practice, the amendment to NDPS Act has
not yet made availability of drugs such as
morphine or pethidine for pain relief in cancer patients in their last stage any easier.
Currently only hospitals and hospices have
access to both these drugs that makes it
impossible to take care of cancer patients in
pain at homes or dharamshalas. Very clearly
something has to be done to make the
amended law more effective. IL
57
STATES/ Himachal Pradesh / Construction Mess
Queen of the
Downhills
The Himachal Pradesh Apartment and
Property Regulation Act has failed to stall
the infrastructural mess in Shimla, which
has been fuelled by greedy builders, selfish
politicians and lackadaisical officials
By Raja Awasthi in Shimla
PRISTINE CHARM
Shimla, the hill station, as designed by the British
58
September 30, 2015
HIMLA, the Queen of the

Hills, is being ravaged. In
fact, more than half of underconstruction structures there
are unauthorized, say officials
of the Himachal Pradesh
Town Planning Department.
With rapid urbanization, Shimla is on the
brink of an ecological disaster.
In an effort to preserve its already threatened ecological balance, a commission led by
Justice (retd) DP Sood had, in 2009, urged
the Himachal Pradesh government to scrap
the Himachal Pradesh Apartment and
Property Regulation Act, 2005. The precursor of this act was the HP Town and Country
Planning Act, 1977, which allowed the development of apartments and colonies. The
2005 Act was introduced by the then Congress government and was meant to help
builders construct flats for the labor class.
DISASTROUS
PLANNING
(Left) Rampant
construction has
destroyed the
natural beauty
of Shimla
Instead, it inadvertently helped land-grabbing and unplanned construction.

The commission recommended that the
Act be withdrawn as its basic purpose had
been violated. Justice Sood said: Builders
are creating concrete jungles and spoiling the
natural forested environment of the state.
Since the government lacks the manpower to
check and monitor each and every construction activity, the Act should be withdrawn.
In 2013, an amendment was made to the
2005 Act and incorporated provisions relating to the registration of promoters and estate agents. Learning a hard lesson from the
tragedy in the neighboring hill state of Uttarakhand, the state government banned construction of buildings in densely populated
areas of the state. All government, semi-government departments and organizations
intending to construct new office buildings
or re-develop existing ones have been asked
to refrain from the same, particularly in central and densely built-up areas, including
peripheral regions, says Sudhir Sharma,
Himachal Pradesh urban development and
town and country planning minister.
any experts believe that Himachal

is fast becoming an urban nightmare, thanks to haphazard construction. Vast stretches of lush green have
been gobbled up in and around Shimla, leaving behind concrete jungles which are
spreading beyond the peripheral areas. Over
the last two years, many structures have
come up, violating the provisions of the Act,
in the adjoining villages of Puabo, Dudhli,
Bhatta Kufer, Baragaon, Lower Tutu, Chaili
and Panthaghati.
A government official says: Construction
in old Shimla areas will be banned and minimal construction will be allowed to come
Builders are
creating concrete
jungles and
spoiling the
natural forested
environment of
Himachal. Since
the government
lacks the
manpower to
check every
construction
activity, the HP
Apartment and
Property
Regulation Act
2005 should
be withdrawn.
Justice (retd)
DP Sood
59
STATES/ Himachal Pradesh / Construction Mess
LOSING CAUSE?
(L-R) Sudhir
Sharma, Himachal
Pradesh urban
development
minister, and Vijay
Singh Mankotia,
State Tourism
Development Board
vice-chairman, are
worried about
the mindless
construction in
the state
Haphazard
infrastructural
development
has also
taken a toll on
the states
tourism sector.
Despite many
tourism spots,
Himachals
share of
tourists is
a meager
1.3 percent of
total arrivals in
the country.
60
September 30, 2015
up in the new areas. The government is committed to preserving the depleted green cover
and in future, felling of trees, even on private
land, would not be allowed without the approval of the state cabinet.
However, officials in the Town and Country Planning Department disclose that despite the complete ban on any construction
activity, people with prime chunks of land
lying idle in the green belt area are trying to
pressurize the government to offer some kind
of relaxation. Instead of taking steps to
enforce the law to regulate construction
activity, the government has been coming out
with policies to provide a reprieve to the
offenders and in the process, encourages illegal constructions, says one official.
Anuj Puri, chairman and country head,
Jones Lang LaSalle, a global real estate services firm, says: Shimlas growth has been
unplanned and haphazard. A large number
of trees have been cut only to be replaced
with ugly buildings.
visit to the city, which is a tourist destination, reveals the sorry state it is
in. Most buildings are eyesores,
offices are spread out haphazardly, there is
litter all over and sewers and drains are
choked in many places.
Following the earlier relaxations, many
leading developers, sensing an opportunity,
entered the property market here. These
included DLF, Omaxe and other developers.
In Kasauli and Shimla, where DLF bought
large tracts of land, projects are in a state of
limbo now as permissions and sanctions are
yet to be given by the government. Initially,

DLF had developed around 20 villas in
Kasauli, which attracted buyers. All this land
was bought by developers during the BJP
regime. We have not given any permission to
them to develop, says Sudhir Sharma.
All this faulty planning is leading to a
dangerous situation. With choked sewer
pipes, parts of the city are showing signs of
sinking and collapsing. Today, town planners
are equipped with the latest techniques and
they should help the government to determine where they went wrong, what to plan
and where to plan.
Haphazard infrastructural development
has also taken a toll on the states tourism
sector, be it temple, heritage or adventure
tourism. Despite many tourism spots, Himachals share of tourists is a meager 1.3 percent
of total arrivals in the country.
Vice-chairman of the State Tourism
Development Board, Vijay Singh Mankotia,
says: The main reason for this is the lukewarm attitude of successive governments at
the center towards Himachal Pradesh. Central governments have failed to appreciate
and recognize the enormous revenue-generating potential that tourism holds, not just
for Himachal, but for all the Himalayan
states. He adds that the mercenaries who
had ravaged Shimla are also targeting other
destinations like Kullu-Manali, Dharamshala, Dalhousie and Kasauli.
Why wait for another disaster to strike in
the hills for wisdom to dawn on us? IL
The author is a senior journalist
GOVERNANCE/ Housing Issue
Humbler Abodes for ex-Ministers

Ambika Soni and Kumari Selja agree to move house as the Delhi High
Court sets aside the fine imposed on them by an earlier order
By India Legal Team
OLDING on to ministerial
bungalows in Lutyens Delhi
much after their tenure in
the Union cabinet is over is a
habit with our ex-mantris.
But both Ambika Soni and Kumari Selja,
Rajya Sabha members who were part of the
UPA-II government have now agreed to
move to humbler dwellings from the TypeVIII bungalows they were allotted in MarchApril 2014 towards the end of the UPA governments term in office.
A judge of the Delhi High Court had on
July 30 dismissed the pleas filed by Soni and
Selja against eviction orders issued by the
Directorate of Estates (DoE). It had also
directed the two MPs to pay `25,000 as costs
to the DoE.
The two Congress MPs had appealed
against the court order and initially sought a
complete reversal of the judgement passed by
the court. However, they revised their stand
through their counsel Kapil Sibal, with both
Soni and Selja agreeing to move to TypeVII
accommodation entitled to them as members
of the Upper House. However, the two MPs
raised objection to certain references made
by the judge to the effect that they had
wrongfully got the bungalows allotted to
obviate the possibility of being left without
such accommodation, should their party no
longer be in the government. The judge had
also observed that it did not behove well on
their part as elected representatives to contend that they were not bound by norms and
regulations.
On September 7, a division bench of the
Delhi High Court, comprising Justice Pradeep Nandrajog and Justice Rajiv Shakdher,
disposed off the petition filed by Ambika
MOVING OUT
(L-R)
Kumari Selja
and
Ambika Soni
Soni and Kumari Selja. It upheld the eviction notice served by the DoE but set aside
the `25,000 costs imposed on each of them.
The division bench also expunged certain
observations made in the earlier order objected to by the appellants. In our view, these
observations, were not perhaps necessary, in
order to reach a decision qua the central
issue raised in the petition, the judges noted.
This was relief of sorts for Soni and Selja,
although the division bench maintained that
as a matter of propriety, the appellants ought
to have held their hands till the declaration of
results before getting the bungalows allotted. Through her counsel, Soni informed the
court that she would shift from her present
accommodation on Akbar Road in six weeks
time. Kumari Selja assured the court that she
would vacate her present premises by
September 15 and shift to VP House till she
was allocated new accommodation which
falls vacant in March 2016. IL
The Delhi High

Court upheld
the eviction
notice served
by the
Directorate of
Estates but set
aside the
`25,000 costs
imposed on
each of the
two appellants.
61
BOOKS/ Parliamentary Questions: Glorious Beginning to an Uncertain Future
The Quest for
Questions A
The importance of Question Hour in
parliamentary democracy cannot
be overemphasized. This book
documents the questions asked from
pre-independent India to now, making it
a veritable gallery of history
By Bhartruhari Mahatab
62
September 30, 2015
CCOUNTABILITY of the
Executive to the Legislature is the lynchpin of
parliamentary
democracy. The framers of the
constitution always preferred accountability over
the stability of the Executive. The device of
question is a powerful tool of oversight and
accountability.
Members of parliament (MPs) need and
elicit information on a bewildering range of
issues through this medium. The right to ask
questions is an inherent and inalienable right
of members and this right is exercised to
press for action, to make a point on behalf of
the constituents, to bring the governments
stand on record with a view to quelling

doubts or misgivings or to bring to focus
numerous acts of omission and commission
of the government.
VAST OPPORTUNITY
It is said that by each question there hangs a
tale. More often, in the garb of seeking information, questions are slanted or loaded
as MPs have certain foreknowledge in many
cases.
This book rightly emphasizes the importance of questions by telling that no other
parliamentary device gives such a vast and
equal opportunity to MPs, the party bosses
and the backbenchers alike. After all, the ballot system or the shuffle is blind to consideration of party affiliation or seniority.
The author has painstakingly documented the evolution of parliamentary questions
right from the Indian Councils Act, 1853, the
successive doses of constitutional developments which the Britishers introduced halfheartedly and reluctantly and the rules governing the admissibility of questions framed
The book documents the representative subjects

on which questions were asked in British India,
mirroring the poignant socio-economic problems
and the simmering political disquiet of the times.
up to the 15th Lok Sabha.
The first question asked by the Raja of
Bhinga on 16th February, 1893, (under the
Indian Councils Act, 1892) raised the depredation let loose by a revenue official on villagers and shopkeepers who had to provide
provisions, fuel, fodder, etc, to the huge
entourage perforce. The rules, however, did
not permit any discussion on the answers
provided in the House.
Members got the right to ask supplementaries after the Indian Councils Act, 1909
came into force and regular Question Hour
started from 1921. The book documents the
representative subjects on which questions
were asked in pre-independent India,
mirroring the poignant socio-economic
problems and the simmering political
HALLOWED
CONVENTION
Question Hour started
from British India and
was also a part of the
constituent assembly
from 1946
63
BOOKS/ Parliamentary Questions: Glorious Beginning to an Uncertain Future
The first question was asked by the Raja of

Bhinga on 16th February, 1893. It raised the
depredation let loose by a revenue official
on villagers and shopkeepers.
disquiet of the times, making it a veritable
gallery of history.
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS:
GLORIOUS BEGINNING TO AN
UNCERTAIN FUTURE
By Devender Singh
Publisher: Orange Books International
Price: `595; Pages: 110
64
September 30, 2015
EXPOSE DEFICIENCIES
The book is replete with significant developments and incidents like the first instance
when an assurance was given in reply to a
question in February 1900 by the government and an instance of 1907 when a whole
day was consumed by the questions asked by
the Nawab of Dacca and answers given by the
government. The questions asked by nonofficial members reflect their unflinching
patriotic zeal as every opportunity was seized
to expose deficiencies, high-handedness and
the autocratic conduct of the rulers and their
machinery despite many restrictions and
limitations imposed.
The author has also foregrounded deep
popular concern about the looming uncertainty over the Question Hour. Indeed, the
orderly progression of Question Hour has
been besieged by, what look like, scenes of
power struggle, of one-upmanship, pandemonium and unruly conduct. He has
attempted answers to some of the frequently
asked questions, which are quite instructive
and fascinating. Arguably, the idea of asking
questions is not purely a Westminster technique, but rooted in India's great cultural
heritage and hoary traditions too.
The Hymn of Creation in the Rig Veda
speculates about the creation and the creator
and the Upanishads testify to the great argumentative traditions which are in the form of
questions and answers between seers, scholars and kings. Even students in the renowned
ancient centers of learning like Takshila and
Nalanda were granted admission if they
replied satisfactorily.
TIME WASTED
The lamentable tendency to troop to the well
of the House on the slightest provocation and
to force adjournments is not only a colossal
waste of time and resources but detrimental

to public interest as it blocks the flow of
information besides tarnishing the image of
parliament. There is an imperative need to
suspend the clamor and clash at least during Question Hour so that good use is made
of the device of questions to address pressing public problems. No other parliamentary device is so versatile and efficacious in
its deployment and reach as a simple,
innocuous-looking question. It is in recognition of the time-tested efficacy of questions and as a potentially powerful tool of
accountability that, unless directed otherwise, the first hour is earmarked for asking
and answering questions. Regardless of disruptions, the idea of shifting Question Hour
to another part of the day must be rejected
lock, stock and barrel.
There is no doubt that searching questions with tenacity of purpose by MPs
exposed scandals and forestalled many by
creating serious dread in the bureaucracy.
The shortcomings, deficiencies, delays, etc,
highlighted through questions receive the
attention of higher authorities and in great
many cases, prophylactic measures are
taken to redress the problems.
Disruptions and loss of Question Hour is
a great but unintended reprieve to those
who escape the scourge of oral questions.
However, despite the prevailing uncertainty
over the fate of Question Hour, the constant
increase in the notices of questions and the
concern to save it, there is a glimmer
of hope.
Once the realization dawns upon the
members and more so on the leaders of
political parties that the device of question
is a powerful tool of accountability and
oversight and the cornerstone of parliamentary democracy, I am quite sanguine that
Question Hour will run smoothly.
One hopes that the book, being a work of
scholarly research and abiding interest, is
translated into Hindi and other Indian languages. It will go well for the larger benefit
of legislators, researchers and students of
constitutional and parliamentary studies. IL
The writer is an MP and leader of
the BJD in parliament
MORE NEWS.../National
2006 train blast verdict

A MAHARASHTRA Control of
Organized Crime Act (MCOCA)
court on September 11 convicted
12 people out of the 13 accused in
the Mumbai suburban trains serial
blasts case. While one was acquitted, Kamal Ahamed Ansari, Tanvir
Ahmed Ansari , Mohd Faisal
Shaikh , Ehtesham Siddiqui,
Mohammad Majid Shafi, Shaikh
Alam Shaikh, Mohd Sajid Ansari,
Muzzammil Shaikh, Soheil
Mehmood Shaikh, Zamir Ahmad
Shaikh , Naveed Hussain Khan
and Asif Khan were convicted for

these blasts.
Seven RDX bombs had exploded in Mumbais suburban trains
on July 11, 2006, killing 188 people and injuring 829. The MCOCA
judge had concluded the trial on
August 19 last year. The examination of witnesses resumed after
two years since the Supreme Court
had stayed the trial in 2008. At
the time of the magazine going to
press, the quantum of punishment
had not been pronounced.
MS Dhoni moves apex court

CRICKETER MAHENDRA SINGH DHONI approached the Supreme Court for quashing a case against
him for posing as Lord Vishnu in a publication and
allegedly insulting the deity. Dhoni moved the apex
court following the refusal of the Karnataka High Court
to quash the criminal proceedings against him.
The complaint, filed by social activist Jayakumar
Hiremath, had alleged that Dhoni was seen on the cover
of a business magazine as Lord Vishnu, holding several
things, including a shoe. The additional chief metropolitan magistrate had registered a case against Dhoni
under Section 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship
with intent to insult the religion of any class) along with
Section 34 of the IPC (criminal acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).
Meat ban not feasible:

Bombay HC
TAKING A critical view of the BJP-led government in
Maharashtra for implementing the meat ban, Bombay
High Court questioned the feasibility of the ban. Seeking a
response from the state and the civic body on a plea filed
by the Bombay Mutton Dealers Association, a division
bench of the HC said imposing a ban on animal slaughter
and sale of meat for four days was not feasible in a metropolitan city like Mumbai. Mumbai is a metropolitan city.
Such straight ban on meat cannot be a formula. Ban is on
slaughter and sale of the meat. What about other sources?
What about packaged meat that is already available in the
market? the bench headed by Justice Anoop M asked. The
petitioners claimed that the decision was unconstitutional
and affected the livelihood of a section of people.
66
September 30, 2015
NO I
HOLDS
BARRED
PATEL AGITATION:
Nightmare for Modi
Ray interviews
34 lonline.com
Shantanu Guha cutor Rohini Salianindialega
ww
www.in
Malegaon prose
`100
36
SURVEY:
Startling revelations about what Muslim

women think of Personal Law
44
TEE
STAS BAIL
Whats the polit :
ical significance?
NDIA L EGAL
E
L N
INDIAL EGAL
NDIA L EGA I
mines:
King Solomons troves
ure
Royal tussles over
ha, Mysore treas
Sree Padmanab
60
www.indialegalonline.com
`100
September 15, 2015
ABORTION AFTER
16
20 WEEKS:
Is it ethical?
2015
August 15,
August 31,
10
www.indialega
2015
lonline.com
`100
WHO
YAKOUULDB KILLED FTIL?
IN DE PE ND EN
FREEDO
Can we keepM
it?
The inside account of

how a series of legal
and bureaucratic
maneuvers led to
the arrest of
stock exchange
czar Jignesh Shah
and destroyed a true
Make in India
financial enterprise 22
SH
WE
SHOOTGTHERES?
MESSEN
ALSO
ess protection?cops 16
What pricetowitn
lawyers, judges,
Ajith Pillai talks
Pachauris
ignoble
exit from
TERI
38
Ramesh
Menon tells
to
you how
make an
online will
in
and rest
peace 63
:
TION LAW
DEFAMA
fellows 28
Strange bed
Legal lumina
Chief Justice HLries including
Minister SadanaDattu and Law
nda Gowda
speak out
20
Sadananda
THE GREAT
FALL OF
CHINA
What does it
mean for
India? 62
CE DA Y SP EC
IA L
Gowda
EDITORIAL
Judiciary
wields a
big stick
to improve
government
schools 03
POLITICAL
PARTIES
Hypocrisy
on RTI 14
SEX VIDEOS
Legal
loopholes 50
HR Bhardw
on injustic aj
Pravin Paree;
on law and kh
common
sense
24
Delhi Hig
h
Court Bar
Association
district barvs
association
s:
Why the
barricades?
18
HL Dattu
Politics:
Who
paralyzed
parl
iament?
34
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GLOBAL TRENDS/ Yuan fluctuation
When China Sneezes,

the World Catches a Cold
An analysis of how Chinas currency policies will change the world
By Stratfor Team
AN EMBARRASSED
DRAGON
(Below) Investors at a
brokerage house in
Shanghai after Chinese
stocks tumbled on
July 8, this year
HE recent fluctuations in
Chinas currency typify the
best and worst of a globalized world, where developments in one place can
instantly change the political and financial calculations of governments in others.
For most of human history, the communities, cultures and economies of the world
existed independently of one another, separated as they were by vast distances and diffi-
cult terrain. It would, for instance, take

months or even years for news of China to
reach Europe across the great Silk Road
trading route during the height of its use
some 1,000 years ago.
Even then, the communities along that
route could hardly be considered entirely
coherent. But that is clearly no longer
the case. And now, as China continues to
adjust the Yuan, markets throughout the
world will react accordingly, even as they
react differently.
Photos: UNI
68
September 30, 2015
ANALYSIS
There were several reasons behind Chinas
decision, but it nevertheless came as a surprise to many. In search of stability, China
has tied its currency to the US dollar since
1994, usually at a low value relative to the
dollar. During the 2000s, the connection
helped China keep its exports competitive,
with the developed world consuming its output. The Wests economic collapse in 2008
meant that this model could no longer function, and China began trying to grow consumption levels so that the domestic consumer might come to fill the hole left by the
faded international market.
CHANGING CHINA
Transforming from an export-led economic
model to a consumption-led one could be
described as changing from being like
Germany to being like the United States, and
China has tried to reproduce some of the
advantages that the United States has created for itself in the same role. One of those
Transforming from an export-led economic

model to a consumption-led one, China has tried
to reproduce some of the advantages that US
has created for itself in the same role.
advantages is the dominant position of the
US dollar in world trade, which means US
consumers can go deeply into debt and global
demand for dollars will delay the moment at
which this comes to a head by those debts
being catastrophically called in. Thus China
sought to grow international usage of the
Yuan, making strides in its attempts to do so.
The next step would be for the Yuan to be
accepted into the International Monetary
Funds currency, the Special Drawing
Right. However, the IMF has said that China
would need to liberalize its currency before
such a step could take place.
The IMF makes the decision every five
years, with one originally set for November
this year, but the institution recently
SMOOTH SAILING
(Above) The Grand Central
Market in Los Angeles, US
69
COURSE CORRECTION
(Right) Bank of England,
the central bank of UK
The depreciating Yuan has made Japan and the

eurozones currencies float upward. It is a
problem as both have gone for quantitative
easing policies to devalue their currencies.
pushed it back to October 2016.
Meanwhile, the peg to the dollar aided
Chinas strategy as the strengthening dollar
over the past two years enabled the Yuan to
rise alongside it relative to the worlds other
floating currencies, empowering Chinese
consumers and helping the changeover from
an export- to consumption-based economy.
But low global demand has not created a
good climate for such change, and growth
has been unsteady during this period, slipping to 7 percent this year. The baton pass
from an export-driven to consumption-driven economy is risky, and exports need to
hold up long enough for the Chinese consumerand building blocks such as the
reserve currencyto develop.
When export numbers for July showed an
8.3 percent fall year-on-year, all signs
seemed to point toward a loosening of controls, which would both please the IMF and,
if the Chinese currency continued to weaken
70
September 30, 2015
as many in the market expected it to, help

boost exports.
THE REPERCUSSIONS
In the globalized world, where every economy is interconnected with every other economy, the effects of a shift like China's can be
felt everywhere. The world's largest economies have tended to move in concert
throughout modern financial history, with
central banks choosing to tighten or loosen
interest rates, often in quick succession. But
actions over the past two years have diverged
from the rule. While one group is now considering raising interest rates for the first
time since 2008, another group is still pursuing quantitative easing programs, which are
partly designed to devalue currencies and
stimulate growth. Chinas dislocation from
the dollar, particularly if the Yuan devalues
further against the dollar, moves the country
from the first group toward the second, with
clear consequences:
THE US AND UK
Following the 2008 crisis, the United States
and the United Kingdom were arguably the
first to adopt forthright monetary policies to
stimulate their economies. Quantitative eas-
ing was pursued on both sides of the Atlantic,

and, possibly as a result, these two economies
have led the recovery in the past few years.
Consequently, for the last 12 months the financial world has focused on a key question:
When will the US Federal Reserve raise
interest rates for the first time since 2008?
The Bank of England is wrestling with a similar dilemma. The interest rate rise will be
seen as the first step toward normality following the extended period of ultra-low
rates, and capital has flowed from emerging
markets to the United States in anticipation.
Only sporadic growth and low productivity levels, along with stubbornly low inflation
figures in both countries, have caused their
central banks to delay the rate rise, but recent
strong job creation figures led many in the
market to expect the United States to make
the change in September 2015 (and the
United Kingdom in early-to-mid 2016). The
US economy does not particularly rely on
exports, insulating it from some of the drawbacks of currency strength, which usually
hurts exports. But Chinas latest move creates
another currency against which the dollar
can appreciate. Now, a rate hike would likely
strengthen the dollar even more, to the
extent that it might become an issue for the
US economy. Chinas reshuffle, then, may

have changed the answer to the biggest
financial question of the year; market expectations for the rate rise have slipped back to
December and may even move to 2016.
EMERGING MARKETS
Emerging markets have suffered a torrid few
years. Commodity exporters in Asia, Africa
and Latin America enjoyed a boom period
between 2000 and 2008, when China was
consuming their raw materials as part of its
production machine and Chinese investment sustained prices for a few years after.
But global commodity prices have fallen
since 2011, with the economies of Brazil,
Nigeria, Russia and several parts of Asia suffering the most, as evidenced by their steadily falling currencies. The Yuans depreciation
reduces Chinas spending power, and unsurprisingly emerging market currencies have
continued to decline. Every time the Yuan
weakens, it creates more problems for these
countries, as many welcomed Western capital during the good times and now have sizable dollar-denominated loans on private
balance sheets that are becoming harder to
pay back.
Meanwhile, the depreciating Yuan has
KEEPING A
CLOSE WATCH
(Above) Federal Reserve
Board in the US
The next step

would be for
the Yuan to be
accepted into
the IMFs
currency. But,
IMF has said
China must
liberalize its
currency before
such a thing
could happen.
71
The Yuans fall reduces Chinas spending power,

and emerging market currencies have continued
to decline. Every time the Yuan weakens, it
creates more problems for these countries.
SPILL-OFF EFFECT
(Above) Emerging markets
like India will face
problems, albeit indirectly
made Japan and the eurozones currencies

float upward. The development is problematic because both have undertaken quantitative easing policies, in part to devalue their
currencies.
JAPANS PROBLEMS
Since coming to power in December 2012,
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has
been pursuing a three-pronged strategy
designed to shock Japan out of its economic
funk of the past two decades.
The first of these arrows has involved
monetary easing, partly to drop the Yens
value and stimulate export-led growth and
inflation. The plan has not been working.
Inflation has remained stubbornly far below
its 2 percent target, exports in July were
down from the year before, and growth has
been highly unreliable, with second-quarter
GDP shrinking at an annualized rate of 1.6
percent. Even before China's currency reorganization, talk had begun that the pace of
quantitative easing, already redoubled in
2014, would need to be boosted further.
Falling Asian currencies relative to Japan
will only increase these calls, but there are
72
September 30, 2015
complications to redoubling quantitative easing.

So-called Abenomics
has been losing public
support. Even within the
administration, Abe and
Bank of Japan head
Haruhiko Kuroda have
been divided on the best
way to proceed. The former has pushed for more
easing. The latter, perhaps more aware of the
complications from the
Bank of Japan already
owning a sizable portion
of the available market
in Japanese sovereign bo-nds, has pushed for
fiscal consolidation.
This difference of opinion over Abe's decisions, such as to delay a planned consumption tax hike, and other policies regarding
Japans military, have garnered the administration its lowest popularity rating since
coming to power (in July it was 38 percent,
down from 46 percent in June).
Abes grand experiment is on the ropes,
constraining the prime ministers ability to
double down both politically and economically. The time may be approaching for
Abenomics to be called off. Under such circumstances, it is hard to imagine Abe
remaining in his post.
In Europe, the European Central Banks
quantitative easing program has also weakened the currency, improving eurozone
economies. Talk about the ECB extending
quantitative easing past its scheduled end in
September 2016 has already begun.
The decision would not technically be as
problematic as in Japan, since Europe's
quantitative easing has not gone on as long
and the ECB could overcome any lack of
available bonds by extending its own selfimposed limits to purchase more sovereign
bonds. Still, if Europe considers extending
its program, there could be difficulties convincing Germany of quantitative easing's
merits, potentially creating undue political
issues at a time when the Continent is
already deeply fragmented. IL
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42
DIPLOMACY/ Sri Lanka
New Dawn in
Emerald Isle
The defeat of Mahinda Rajapaksa in both the presidential and prime

ministerial polls has sown the seeds of a new political order, which will
be in Indias interest
By Shastri Ramachandaran
ven as Sri Lankan Prime

Minister Ranil Wickremesinghes call for a new political culture resonates in Sri Lanka, to
embrace this future, the island
republic needs to bury the ghosts that haunt
it from its past.
Given the resounding mandate of the two
elections held eight months apartthe presidential election on January 8 and the parliamentary election on August 17 this yearthis
task of breaking from the past may appear
easy. However, that would be a serious
misreading of the diverse challenges facing
President Maithripala Sirisena and
Wickremesinghe.
RAJAPAKSAS RELEVANCE
It is best to begin where the break with the
past has to begin, i.e. Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Much like in the aftermath of the 1977 Lok
Sabha elections in India, where Indira
Gandhi continued to haunt the Janata Party
government after her authoritarian regime,
including the Emergency, was overturned, in
DIVIDE AND RULE PAYS NO MORE

(Left) Mahinda Rajapaksa has lost
both the Presidential and Prime
Ministerial elections this year
Photos: UNI
74
September 30, 2015
Sri Lanka too, Rajapaksa is down but far

from out.
Unlike in India though, where Indira
Gandhi was trounced in the parliamentary
and subsequent state elections, in Sri Lanka,
Wickremesinghe did not win the elections
(either in January or August). It is Rajapaksa
who was defeated. And, on both occasions,
Rajapaksa conceded defeat even before the
full results were out, thereby proving wrong
those who had spread rumors of a palace
coup in January and a party split in August.
Rajapaksas vote share is not only sizable,
but big enough to cause trouble within the
Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which is
now led by Sirisena. In the August elections,
the Rajapaksa-led United Peoples Freedom
Alliance (UPFA) recorded a vote share of
42.4 percenta few notches below the 45.7
per cent secured by Wickremesinghes
United National Party (UNP).
The vote share is of more than academic
interest because central to the ushering in of
Wickremesinghes new political culture is
dismantling of the Rajapaksa regimes corrupt and authoritarian order, which thrived
on patronage and nepotism. Investigations
and prosecutions are bound to implicate
Rajapaksa and his family members.
Therefore, whether Rajapaksa withdraws
from the political arena (and lets down the
party members who look up to him), or stays
While India would be suspicious of Sri Lanka

cosying up to the US, Colombos posture of
equidistance between the Washington and
Beijing is a consolation to New Delhi.
as the elephant in the room, would be decided by the option that provides him better
protection from the actions of the new
government. There is also the matter of
wartime accountability, which could put
Rajapaksa in the dock.
Thus, Rajapaksas politics now would be
guided by how best to avoid being made accountable for his actions when he was president. This could be problematic for the new
government as Rajapaksa has to be dealt
with in a way that deprives him political mileage of the kind Indira Gandhi
squeezed out of the actions initiated
against her for Emergency excesses.
TOTAL POLARIZATION
The other challenges facing
the UNP-led coalition also
entail dealing with Rajapaksa and the vestiges of
his legacy, such as the
polarization of politics
as well as of Tamils
and Sinhalas. In
HERALDING NEW
POLITICAL CULTURE
(Below, L-R) Supporters of
Ranil Wickremesinghe rejoice
at his victory in the elections
held in August;
The Prime Minister is
committed to inclusiveness
in an island long beset with
Sinhalese-Tamil strife
DIPLOMACY/ Sri Lanka
CHALLENGES AHEAD
(Below) President
Maithripala Sirisena has
tough tasks cut out for
him, both nationally and
internationally
office and during the elections, he did everything, including spreading fear of the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
making a comeback in the event of a UNP
victory. Thus, he ensured total polarization of
the Tamils and Sinhalas and sustained the
ethnic divide to keep himself entrenched in
office. As elections approached, he succeeded
in splitting the Tamil parties and groups
(after all, he had held 18 rounds of talks with
these sections) and polarizing the Sinhala
majority between him and Sirisena.
As a result, resolving the
national question has become more complicated for
the UNP. It is no more a
matter of engaging Tamil
parties in credible pro-
cesses for Tamil-Sinhala reconciliation, but it

requires reconciliation of the divided Sinhala
polity. Negotiating the majoritarian fault
lines, winning over Sinhala Buddhist nationalist forces, engaging the disparate constituents of the Tamil National Alliance
(TNA) and not disappointing the smaller
Sinhala parties in the coalition is a formidable proposition even at the best of times.
The more radical Tamil outfits may not
have succeeded electorally, but their aggressive opposition to the government and the
TNA leadership, viz. the Ilankai Tamil Arasu
Kadchi (ITAK), which is the main Tamil
party, shows that on both sides of the ethnic
divide, there are competitive communalist
forces at work.
All of these add up to an extremely
fraught situation presently. Although the
August election reaffirmed the January elections rejection of authoritarian and divisive
politics, elements that can vitiate the atmosphere, obstruct reconciliation and thwart the
harmony and social stability required for an
economic revival are still at work.
Domestic recognition of these realities is
evident in the national governments continued striving for all-round consensus, reflected, for example, in former president Chandrika Kumaratunga being roped in to lead
the Reconciliation Task Force. Kumaratunga
is the Sinhala politician who went farthest to
win over the Tamils and became the president with maximum Tamil support. Her popularity among Tamils so unnerved the LTTE
that it tried to kill her. She survived the assassination attempt but lost an eye in the attack.
EXTERNAL ENDORSEMENT
External recognition of these risks is reflected in the decision of the US and the UN to
support the new government with a favorable, collaborative resolution in the September session of the Human Rights Council.
This is the second timethe first being in
March, after the presidential electionthat
the US and the UN have explicitly endorsed
an internal Sri Lankan investigation into
alleged war crimes.
Past US resolutions on the issue, which
India and China did not support, called for
an international probe, and the UN was seen
76
September 30, 2015
TRANSCENDING
POLITICAL DIVIDE
(Left) Former President
Chandrika
Kumaratunga, the most
acceptable face for
reconciliation task in Sri
Lanka, with Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
in New Delhi
as being excessively active.

This helps the new government in many
ways. On the home front, the nationalists
cannot raise a hue and cry over violation of
sovereignty; and the military leadership is
reassured that there would be no action
which affects the morale of the forces. At a
larger, diplomatic level, relations between Sri
Lanka and the US, which were severely
strained under Rajapaksa, have a more sustainable basis to go forward and this is of significant strategic advantage to the US.
This is a also a big boost for Wickremesinghe, who is perceived as pro-West and
market friendly. As a result, Sri Lanka may
be required to lean away from China and provide more economic and investment opportunities to the West. However, as Sirisena
realized, especially during a visit to China,
and Wickremesinghe indicated after the
election, Sri Lanka is unlikely to burn its
bridges with China.
INDIAN CONCERNS
After the crushing of the LTTE in 2009,
Chinas wooing of Sri Lanka as another allweather friend in the region caused concern
in India. Chinese submarines docking in Sri
Lankan ports heightened these concerns
Wickremesinghe did not win the elections, either

in January or August. It is Rajapaksa who was
defeated. On both occasions, he conceded
defeat even before the full results were out.
because in strategic terms, the island is
assumed to be in Indias zone of influence.
In the last eight months, Colombo
appears to have addressed these concerns to
New Delhis satisfaction. Although India
would be equally suspicious of Sri Lanka
cosying up to the US, Colombos current posture of equidistance between the Washington
and Beijing is a consolation to New Delhi.
Wickremesinghes quest for deeper, more
enduring ties with the US is not causing any
discomfiture in India because of the good
equation Prime Minister Narendra Modi
enjoys with him and President Sirisena.
There are also a large number of intermediaries, including partymen and businessmen,
who are regularly at work on keeping up relations between Modi and Wickremesinghe.
The unraveling of the new political
culture in Sri Lanka would be watched with
interest at home, in the region and other
IL
world capitals too.
77
IS THAT LEGAL?
Media Going Overboard

Media takes a lot of liberties while reporting on developing stories and
creates unnecessary hype. The Aarushi murder case, and more recently,
the Indrani case are prime examples. Are there any laws to check such
TRP-driven coverage? Can the concerned TV channels or media agencies
be sued for such a practice?
There is no law in India that restricts or bans TRP-driven coverage of the
media. However, reasonable restrictions can be imposed on media as per
Article 19(2) of the constitution in the interest of the sovereignty and
integrity of India and maintaining public order.
If an electronic media gives more footage to a particular story in order
to gain high TRP ratings, no restrictions can be imposed unless it violates
Article 19(2) of the constitution. The media agencies cant be sued
unless the story is found to be untrue, unreliable, false or manipulated.
Airline Blues
During international travel, if a connecting flight is cancelled and the airline
shirks all responsibility, what means of redressal can an Indian national seek?
If a passenger misses his connecting flight during international travel, he or she
can sue an airline company only if there is some kind of deficiency in services
on the part of the airline. However, passengers facing delays due to factors
beyond the airlines control like bad weather and air traffic congestion are not
entitled to any compensation.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) formulated rules in 2010
stating the conditions under which a passenger can claim compensation for
laxity in services offered by an airline. For example, if the passenger missed his
or her connecting flight due to heavy congestion at the airport or if the airline
had a genuine reason for such a delay in the interests of passengers, no
compensation can be claimed.
A Charge for Service

Customers have to shell out service charge at restaurants. Is the charge legal?
Can customers refuse to pay it?
Service charge is levied by restaurants for services rendered like providing food
and drinks, seating, the right ambience, etc. The charge is not levied by the
government but collected by restaurant owners and is optional on the part of
restaurants. They are free to charge any amount as service charge after
disclosing it in on the menu card.
The rate of service charge levied by restaurants may vary, although normally
it is in the range of 5 percent to 10 percent of the bill amount on the range of
food and drinks consumed.
The service charge is legal if it is clearly mentioned on the menu card.
Answers by Shailendra Singh
78
September 30, 2015
INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS
Israel bans media from expressing views

THE Israeli Parliament, the Knesset,
has passed a controversial law that
bans journalists from expressing
their opinions on the countys public broadcasting network.
According to a press release,
the new public broadcast law was
passed with 25 lawmakers approving the legislation and 18 voting
against. The law states that broad-
Nepal suspends
commercial surrogacy
Thailands legislature rejects

draft constitution
NEPALS Supreme Court has issued

an order to stop Nepalese women
from becoming surrogate mothers
on behalf of foreigners, reports The
Kathmandu Post.
The injunction was made by the
Supreme Court after a writ petition
was filed arguing that surrogacy
exploits poor women. Nepal has
become a favorite destination for foreigners seeking to have children
through surrogate mothers. Until
now, commercial surrogacy was
allowed in Nepal, as long as the
client was a foreign woman.
The Supreme Court has ordered
the government to respond to a
long list of questions regarding the
legal rights of parties involved,
including the rights and benefits of
the surrogate mother, the citizenship
of the child and responsibility of the
agencies, among others.
THAILANDS military backed legislature,

known as the National Reform Council, rejected a draft of a new constitution. The draft was
rejected by a vote of 135-105, with seven
abstentions.
A new 21-member drafting committee must
now be appointed to write a new constitution
within 180 days. After the new drafting committee finishes its work, the future draft constitution will be put for a public referendum.
The military abolished the previous constitution after it toppled Prime Minister Yingluck
Shina-watra last year and General Prayuth
Chan Ocha took over after months of unrest.
The Junta appointed the National Reform
Council to help write a new constitution.
casts should avoid one-sidedness, prejudice, expressing personal opinions, giving grades and
affixing labels, ignoring facts or
selectively emphasizing them not
according to their newsworthiness.
The law has come in for criticism. The Israel Press Council has
urged the Knesset to cancel the
law, saying it violates free speech.
Myanmar Prez signs

Monogamy Law
MYANMAR President Thein Sein signed the
Monogamy Bill into law recently prohibiting
marriage to more than one person, which
many view as an attack on the minority Muslim
population in the country. This was reported by
Al Jazeera. The bill is one of four recent laws
backed by the Committee for the Protection of
Nationality and Religion, Ma Ba Tha, a Buddhist group. These are collectively called Race
and Religion Protection Laws.
The Myanmar parliament also approved
the Religious Conversion Bill, wherein anyone
wishing to change their religion will have to get
the approval of a local board.
Chinese court accepts folly,

publicly apologizes
THE Peoples High Court for the eastern
Chinese province of Anhui has publicly
apologized to 19 people for their wrongful conviction. According to the Asian Correspondent,
the apology from the Peoples High Court
appeared in a local newspaper. The court said it
wished to help restore the reputations of the
individuals, all of whom were imprisoned in
2012 on charges of illegal fund-raising. The
court overturned the convictions and original

indictments. Previous convictions have been
overturned, but the courts apology was exceptional as this is a very rare.
79
CAMPUS UPDATE
All about forensic DNA

NATIONAL LAW University, Jodhpur, will organize a national symposium on the theme Forensic DNA: Isolation and Recovery from
Body Fluids on October 9 and 10. The symposium, organized in
association with the Indian Council of Medical Research, marks 30
years since the development of DNA fingerprinting technology. The
conference aims to create an inter-disciplinary approach by bringing
scientists, lawyers and judges at a common platform. The objective
is to enable experience-sharing of experts from these fieldsin the
laboratory as well as in the court room.
Coherence in Hyderabad
SYMBIOSIS LAW School, Hyderabad, is organizing a multi-disciplinary international law conferenceCoherence to be held on October
9 and 10. The theme for the conference is Inter-disciplinary
Integration for Legal Enrichment. Multi-disciplinary practices (MDP)
are said to increase efficiency and may also increase competency
and quality of work, since the problems in todays world are not
entirely legal or business, but an amalgamation of both. The
conference aims to bring to the fore, the importance of MDP in
enriching the domain of law and to create a platform for research in
multiple academic disciplines.
Restaurant taxes
PRANAV JAIN and Aroon Menon, students of National Law
University, Delhi, have developed a website to enable restaurantgoers to calculate the tax on their bill. The website
kitnatax.com calculates the taxes levied in a restaurant. It
helps users plan their meal in advance and also prevents restaurants from overcharging them. The duo is currently developing a
mobile application based on the website to make their service
more user-friendly. The website not only offers a tax calculator
but also reviews how tax-friendly various restaurants are.
Crime and punishment

A DIALOGUE on Punishment and Sentencing in a Democratic Society
will be organized by National Law University, Delhi, on October 30 and 31.
The dialogue would elicit the views of a cross-section of people, including
judges, advocates, legal academics, politicians, police, correctional
administrators, media and law students, on the above theme. Though
the dialogue would touch upon the diverse forms of punishment
deployed by the courts in the day-to-day administration of criminal justice,
special focus would remain on death sentence, life imprisonments and
probation sentencing.
80
September 30, 2015
1. Chimera.
A: Chinese camera
B: Fanciful conception
C: Venomous snake
D: No such word
2. Correct spelling?
A: Caesarean
B: Ceasarian
C: Cesarean
D. Ceasearian
3. Plural of octopus.
A: Octopus
B: Octopae
C: Octopuses
D: Octopusi
4. Fear of ugliness.
A: Vomitophobia
B: Cacophobia
C: Tachophobia
D: Dextrophobia
5. A tiltmaker makes....
A: canopies
B: mud walls
C: abstract paintings
D: scaffoldings
6. Cul-de-sac.
A: Blind alley
B: Kidney
C: Best performance
D: Insect home
7. Box and cox.
A: Twins
B: Brothers
C: Sharing same place
at different times
Have fun with English.

Get the right answers.
Play better scrabble.
By Mahesh Trivedi
D: Father and son

8. Audimeter measures.
A: TV viewing
B: Noise level
C: Cars efficiency
D: Halls sitting capacity
9. Shotgun marriage.
A: Live-in partnership
B: Forced marriage
C: Contract marriage
D: No-dowry marriage
10. Agora.
A: Monster
B: Pretty woman
C: Girls hostel
D: Market place
11. A gay Lothario.
A: Homosexual youth
B: Womaniser
C: Happy person
D: Happy farmer
12. Rough diamond.
A: Synthetic diamond
B: Good but lacks manners
C: Elderly person
D: Rare stone
13. Emetic.
A: Causes vomiting
B: Causes pain
C: No such word
D: Electronic waste
14. To cool ones heels.
A: To go to bed
B: To relax
C: To be kept waiting
D: To swim
15. The last round-up.
A: Death
B: Old age
C: Climax
D: Finale
16. Dogs-canine, catsfeline, but cattle-....
A: vulpine
B: caprine
C: bovine
D: asinine
17. The SMS read: G2H.
A: Go To Hell
B: Guy Too Hot
C: Girl Too Hot
D: Gift To Her
18. Cack-handed.
A. Weak
B. Powerful
C. Clumsy
D. Right-handed
19. The witching hour.
A: Midnight
B: Wee hours
C: After office hours
D: Time before death
20. Strictly for the birds.
A: For married couples
B: Unimportant
C: For children
D: Sex education
ANSWERS
1. Fanciful conception
2. Caesarean
3. Octopuses
4. Cacophobia
5. Canopies
6. Blind alley
7. Sharing same place at
different times
8. TV viewing
9. Forced marriage
10. Market place
11. Womaniser
12. Good but lacks
manners
13. Causes vomiting
14. To be kept waiting
15. Death
16. Bovine
17. Go To Hell
18. Clumsy
19. Midnight
20. Unimportant
Y
L
D
R
WO ISE
SCORES
0 to 7 correctYou
need to do this more
often.
8 to 12 correctGood,
get the scrabble
board out.
Above 12Bravo!
Keep it up!
textdoctor2@gmail.com
81
PEOPLE / Art Goes Kitsch
BRUSH WITH REALITY

Artists apply paint on a model, making him blend with the
background wall of an ancient building in Shanghai.
FACT AND FICTION Tourists play in front of a 3D painting on the wall of a
house in Luoyuan village, Zhejiang.
LETS FACE IT
An artist draws
a sketch before
spray-painting
a wall, for the
We Are In The
Streets festival
in Lima.
EYE OF THE TIGER A dancer gets his body

painted like a tiger before a performance
in Trichur.
GOD IS IN THE DETAILS Painters restoring a gold foil on the thousand-hands Bodhisattva in Chongqing.
82
Compiled by Kh Manglembi Devi

Photos: UNI
September 30, 2015
RNI No. UPENG/2007/25763
Postal Regd. No. UP/GBD-197/2014-16

3ULQWHGRQ HYHU\PRQWK 3RVWHGDW6XE3RVW2IFH6HFWRU1RLGD
COMING SOON ON TATA SKY

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CANVAS FINGERPRINTING: LEGALIZED BETTING:

September 30, 2015

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