Frontline – August 02, 2019

COMMUNALISM

MADHYA PRADESHis on its
wayto becoming thefirst Statein
Indiato introduce a law against
lynching.TheCabinet,led by Chief
MinisterKamalNath,hasproposed
an amendmentto theexisting law
againstcowslaughterto dealwith
therecentspikein lynchings.The
amendment,if ratified by the State’s
Assembly,willequipthe existinglaw
withprovisionsto combat andcon-
tainmobviolence. Theseincludea
jail termof six monthsto threeyears,
accordingto sourcesin theMadhya
Pradesh government. Thelegislation
is likelyto be tabledin theongoing
monsoonsessionof theAssembly,
whichstartedon July8.
Therehavebeen 128 casesof mob
violencesince2011,leaving47 dead
and 305 severely injured.According
to thefindingsof IndiaSpend,a non-
profit organisationthatanalysesthe
country’s policy decisions, 97 per
centof theviolenceoverbovineis-
suestookplace aftertheNational
DemocraticAllianceledby Naren-
draModicameto powerin May
2014;32 of 63 casestookplace in
Statesruledby the BharatiyaJanata
Party(BJP).
In 2019,therehave beenfive
lynchings so far. The lynchings,
whichmoreoftenthannot targetre-
ligiousandcasteminorities,appear
all the moregraveamidthe govern-
ment’sevidentlackof intentto end
theperpetrators’senseof impunity.
Theopposition,too,hasnotshown

the politicalwillto resistthe trend or

to talkaboutit withthe seriousnessit

deserves.BJPlawmakershavere-

peatedly issuedstatements virtually

endorsingtheemergingcultureof

cowvigilantism,withlittleor no con-

demnationof the Hindurightwing’s

demonisingof minorities andthe

wayfalseallegations of cowsmug-

glingandslaughter are usedto trig-

ger an organisedbacklash.

In June2018,foursuspects were

arrested in Godda district of

Jharkhandafterthe lynchingof two

Muslimmen. TheBJP MPfrom

Godda,Nishikant Dubey,vowed to

providelegalaid to the suspects.“To

peoplewhocan’tfight theircase,the

governmentprovideslegalaid.And

sinceI amtheirMP,I, in my capa-

city,willtakecareof everysingle ex-

pensethattheywillincurinfighting

theircasefromthe lowercourtto the

Supreme Court,” he wasquotedby a

newschannelas saying. Thefollow-

ingmonth, UnionMinisterJayant

Sinhametandgarlandedeightmen

whohadbeenconvictedby a trial

courtin thelynchingof a Muslim

man, Alimuddin Ansari, in

Ramgarh, Jharkhand,andwerere-

leasedon bailby the HighCourt.

NATIONALSECURITYACTINVOKED

TheCongresshasbeenmorepreoc-

cupiedwithits ownelectoral pro-

spects than with resisting this

dangeroustrend.Its oppositionto

Hinduright-wingforceshasbeen

muted.Aheadof thegeneralelec-

tion,it signalledthatit wassecondto

nonewhenit cameto enforcingthe

banon cowslaughter.In February,

theMadhya Pradesh government

APROTESTagainstlynchings, at the
historical Iqbal Maidanafterthe Friday
namazin BhopalonJune28.

Pointless punishment

Madhya Pradeshproposeschangestothelawagainstcowslaughterin

anattempttostoplynching, butsectionsoftheState’srulingCongress

feelthat itsprovisions aretoosoft.BYANANDO BHAKTO