Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Communal punishment: On riots and demolitions

Communal punishment: On riots and demolitions

The Haryana government cannot use riots as a pretext (बहाना) to demolish Muslim homes

The idea of inflicting (दण्ड देना, सज़ा देना) collective punishment on the Muslim community soon after any riot or communal disturbance seems to be an ingrained (to implant or fix deeply and firmly, as in the nature or mind) part of governance in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled States. The use of excavators (उत्खनक, खनित्र) to demolish houses, shops and other establishments has now spread to Haryana, after it was practised with impunity (दण्डमुक्ति, छुटकारा) in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi last year. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has done well to stop authorities from continuing with their demolition drive in Gurugram and Nuh, that witnessed communal clashes, leaving six dead. Taking suo motu (on its own motion; the term is usually applied to actions by a judge taken without a prior motion or request from the parties) cognisance of reports about the demolition activity, the Bench has minced no words (to speak in a very direct and honest way without worrying about offending someone) in raising the question whether the action is a sort of “ethnic cleansing”, as buildings belonging to a particular community were being brought down “under the guise of a law and order problem”. It has observed that there appears to be no order to demolish the buildings or prior notice to its occupants and that the law and order situation was just a ruse (छल, चाल). Few would disagree with the court’s characterisation of the action in Haryana. The same dubious and ambivalent (उभयवृत्ति) messaging about the demolitions that one saw in other States is being witnessed in Haryana too. For legal purposes, officials will say the buildings are encroachments and are being removed as per law. For political purposes, it is made very clear that rioters are getting the treatment they deserve.

It requires no special knowledge of the law to say the demolitions are inherently illegal in the absence of any process. It is not clear what evidence is being used to identify buildings belonging to alleged rioters or to ascertain whether those not involved are also using the premises. Reports suggest that personal belongings and inventory are not allowed to be removed before a building is razed (ढहाना, नष्ट करना). There is one example of a house that provided refuge to a family during the violence being demolished. Using communal violence as a pretext to impose extra-legal punitive measures will invariably lead to bias, as officials implementing such orders will have no choice except to portray (चित्रण, वर्णन करना) the occupants of the buildings to be razed as encroachers to retain the fig-leaf (अंजीर पत्ती) of legal justification and as anti-social elements for moral justification. In any case, to escape the charge of ignoring encroachments all this while and waiting for a riot to take action, they will have to provide evidence of serving notices on the occupants and, if needed, backdate (पिछली तिथि डालना, मान्य करना) such notices. The judicial intervention should put an end to the pattern of using the state machinery to inflict misery on a section of the population.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.Pretext (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - बहाना
English Meaning - Something serving to conceal plans.

2.Inflict (Verb)

Hindi Meaning - दण्ड देना, सज़ा देना
English Meaning - Make (someone) do something unpleasant.

3.Excavator (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - उत्खनक, खनित्र
English Meaning - a powered machine for digging earth, gravel, sand, etc.

4.Impunity (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - दण्डमुक्ति, छुटकारा
English Meaning - Exemption from punishment or loss.

5.Ruse (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - छल, चाल
English Meaning - a way of doing something or of getting something by cheating somebody.

6.Ambivalent (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning - उभयवृत्ति
English Meaning - Uncertain or unable to decide about what course to follow.

7.Raze (Verb)

Hindi Meaning - ढहाना, नष्ट करना
English Meaning - Destroy (a building or buildings) so as to make nearly level the ground.

8.Portray (Verb)

Hindi Meaning - चित्रण, वर्णन करना
English Meaning - Describe in words.

9.Fig-leaf (Noun)

Hindi Meaning - अंजीर पत्ती
English Meaning - a thing intended to conceal a difficulty or embarrassment.

10.Backdate (Verb)

Hindi Meaning - पिछली तिथि डालना, मान्य करना
English Meaning - Make effective from an earlier date.

11.Ingrain (Verb)

English Meaning - to implant or fix deeply and firmly, as in the nature or mind.

12.Suo motu (Noun)

English Meaning - on its own motion; the term is usually applied to actions by a judge taken without a prior motion or request from the parties.

13.Mince no word (Noun)

English Meaning - to speak in a very direct and honest way without worrying about offending someone.