FE Editorial : The judge’s allegation

The Financial Express
Posted: Monday, Jul 06, 2009 at 2156 hrs IST
Updated: Monday, Jul 06, 2009 at 2156 hrs IST

Font Size

Print

Feedback

Email

Discuss

: The murder of the man who blew the lid on a scandalous mark sheet forgery scam in the MBBS course of Pondicherry University was a sordid cover-up attempt that could have been prevented if authorities had taken appropriate action at the right time.

Subsequently, the CBI took over the investigation in the aftermath of the whistleblower’s murder, and arrested two people allegedly involved in perpetrating the scam. It might have been the end of the matter had Justice Reghupathy of the Madras High Court not alleged that a Union minister had put pressure on him to arrive at a favourable judgment in the anticipatory bail hearing of the two accused. If there is any substance to this allegation, then the minister must be held to account. If there isn’t any substance to what Justice Reghupathy has allegedly said—the Chief Justice of India has reportedly said that there is no truth to any minister pressuring a judge—then a detailed explanation must be demanded from Justice Reghupathy.

The Union government’s response has been entirely unsatisfactory. By refusing to take up the matter or comment on it, the government is conveying an impression of another cover-up at work. Any illegitimate interference by the executive in the judiciary’s work is a serious breach of constitutional propriety. The UPA must use its own offices to find out if a minister is involved and if that’s the case, it must name the minister and hold an inquiry. The whole government should not be allowed to be engulfed in a scandal. The secrecy surrounding the case is entirely uncalled for. Additionally, the entire episode, from the root of the answer sheet scam, once again points to the urgent need for an effective whistleblower protection law. This is not the first time that a whistleblower has lost his life after exposing a massive scam. It won’t be the last if better laws are not enacted soon. Or else people may stop exposing scams fearing risk to their lives. The importance of whistleblowers in government and the private sector is critical—more often than not, they are the ones who are likely to alert authorities to a brewing scandal before it really erupts. The UPA’s task should be to think about such laws, but for now they must uncloak the veil of silence surrounding this particular case.

More from Edit & Column