Skip to main content

Indian judiciary has failed poor, marginalised, other sub-altern groups

Participants at the convention
By Fr Cedric Prakash*
Ahmedabad witnessed a unique event on February 7 and 8, 2015, as a two-day State Level Convention brought together more than 500 women and men from all over Gujarat. They were local leaders; mainly adivasis, Dalits and other backward communities (OBCs). They had come together to highlight their many grievances, to increase their bonding and in solidarity to say to those who attempt to control their lives and destinies, that they can no longer be taken for granted.
The theme of the Convention was Chaalo Lokshahi melaviye (Come let us ensure People’s Rule: Democracy).
In his inaugural address to the Convention, Fr Francis Parmar, the Provincial of the Gujarat Jesuits, emphasised that the four pillars of justice, liberty, fraternity and equality should never be compromised. He called upon the people to be united so that they can achieve their goals; to be truly effective, he asserted, one needs to have the commitment to struggle to the very end.
The highlight of the programme was a Public Hearing presided over by Girish Patel, senior counsel of the Gujarat High Court and the doyen of the human rights movement of Gujarat. The other jury members were Dr Sudarshan Iyengar, former vice-chancellor of the Gujarat Vidyapith and Rohit Prajapati, environmental activist. Several local leaders representing various communities from across Gujarat made submissions about their pathetic conditions. These included issues related to ‘jal-jungle-jameen’ (water, forest and land), their right to shelter, their right to livelihood and work, atrocities on Dalits and on women; the way their land acquired by the big corporations and mega-projects like that of Ukai and issues related to Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA Act, 1996) and Panchayati Raj.
Girish Patel exhorted the huge gathering to come out in the open and together to demand their legitimate rights. “The rights belong to the people and the Government must realise this”, he said. “The judiciary has consistently failed the poor, the marginalised and the other sub-altern groups of the country.”
Several other eminent personalities and activists addressed the Convention; these included Hemant Shah, Anand Mazgaonkar, Mahesh Pandya and Trupti Shah. Added to the bonding of a memorable convention was a delightful programme consisting of adivasi dances and various plays which focused on different social themes.
Girish Patel addressing the convention
The convention concluded with an resolution which unanimously says, “We, leaders and other concerned citizens of Gujarat (representing 750 villages of 34 talukas and urban slums of Surat and Ahmedabad) at the conclusion of a State Level Peoples’ Convention held in Ahmedabad on February 7 and 8, 2015 on the theme ‘Chaalo Lokshahi melaviye’ (Come let us ensure People’s Rule: Democracy) resolve that: there are several issues which afflict us greatly; these include our forests’ lands, displacement, the north bank of the Ukai, non-implementation of the PESA law, the tardy delivery of justice on atrocities to the Dalits; the deliberate injustice by several Panchayats; the unresolved questions regarding housing for the poor in the cities – are just some of them. We, therefore strongly condemn the total inaction on the part of the Government. We call upon the Government and their relevant institutions to act promptly and to ensure that we get our legitimate rights and the justice due to us.”
This Peoples’ Convention was held under the aegis of PEOPLESJ (Promoting Effective Organisations, People’s Leadership for Equity, Solidarity & Justice) which is an initiative of JESA-Gujarat.

*Director, PRASHANT Centre for Human Rights, Justice and Peace, Ahmedabad

Comments

TRENDING

Campaign group urges INDIA alliance to release Jharkhand manifesto to counter BJP’s 'divisive' agenda

By Our Representative  The Loktantra Bachao Abhiyan, an advocacy group, has issued a press release urging the INDIA alliance to release a Jharkhand-specific manifesto to counter the BJP’s "divisive" electoral agenda. With just two weeks remaining before the assembly elections, the INDIA coalition has yet to announce its plans and priorities for the state. Meanwhile, the BJP's campaign, according to the press release, is centered around communalism, divisiveness, and distraction from Jharkhand's core issues.

Tributes paid to pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, who 'dodged' police for 60 yrs

By Harsh Thakor*  Jagjit Singh Sohal, known as Comrade Sharma, a pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, passed away on October 20 at the age of 96. Committed to the Naxalite cause and a prominent Maoist leader, Sohal, who succeeded Charu Majumdar, played hide and seek with the police for almost six decades. He was cremated in Patiala.

Israel's 'war crime': 18,000 children died not just from bomb explosions but also starvation

By Sandeep Pandey*  Last year 6 years old Madiha was a guest during Diwali at our home in Lucknow. Listening to the sound of fire crackers bursting outside she remarked, ‘It appears as if we’re in Gaza.’ She has probably no idea of the extent of damage and loss of life that has taken place in Palestine but can relate to sound of crackers as bombs exploding over Gaza.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Will Left victory in Sri Lanka deliver economic sovereignty plan, go beyond 'tired' IMF agenda?

By Atul Chandra, Vijay Prashad*  On September 22, 2024, the Sri Lankan election authority announced that Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance won the presidential election. Dissanayake, who has been the leader of the left-wing JVP since 2014, defeated 37 other candidates, including the incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP) and his closest challenger Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya. 

Will Bangladesh go Egypt way, where military ruler is in power for a decade?

By Vijay Prashad*  The day after former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka, I was on the phone with a friend who had spent some time on the streets that day. He told me about the atmosphere in Dhaka, how people with little previous political experience had joined in the large protests alongside the students—who seemed to be leading the agitation. I asked him about the political infrastructure of the students and about their political orientation. He said that the protests seemed well-organized and that the students had escalated their demands from an end to certain quotas for government jobs to an end to the government of Sheikh Hasina. Even hours before she left the country, it did not seem that this would be the outcome.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah  The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

How pseudo-liberals 'went wrong' in judging DY Chandrachud as Chief Justice India

By Shamsul Islam*  DY Chandrachud took charge as Chief Justice of the Indian Supreme Court (SC) on November 09, 2022. On this occasion many of the pseudo-liberals who claimed to be defenders of the democratic-secular polity of India manifested great happiness. They declared that the time of SC being an appendage of the RSS-BJP government headed by PM Modi was over as Justice Chandrachud was a liberal judge committed to the democratic-secular polity of India. 

In the pantheon of Indian cricket, VVS Laxman as symbol of elegance, resilience, unselfish brilliance

By Harsh Thakor*  On November 1st, legendary Indian cricketer VVS Laxman celebrates his 50th birthday. Known for his elegance, Laxman turned impossible matches on their heads with a style that captivated cricket fans worldwide. He wielded his bat like an artist’s brush, finding gaps on the field with surgical precision, creating innings as meticulously as a sculptor carves a masterpiece. Born in Hyderabad, Laxman inherited the stylistic lineage of local icons ML Jaisimha and Mohammad Azharuddin, blending it with a grace reminiscent of Gundappa Viswanath.