More than ambitious rulings needed
Laws and judicial directives do not emerge from within a vacuum. They are part of a societal space where different agents interact. If the positive framework of the state doesn’t apply to a functionally lawless part of the land, an ambitious piece of legislation might seem akin to a spoilt boy-king of yore commanding the sun to rise from the west for once. Yes, that is how unactionable, in the short-to-long term, certain variables are.
The court’s recent ruling about no agency being able to detain anyone without the registration of an FIR was obviously not only well-intentioned, but was also a reaffirmation of the constitutional liberties that are due to the citizens of our republic. Will it do any good, however?
We already have a code for criminal procedure in the country. It says, derived from our constitution, that no one could be detained without being made to appear in front of a civil magistrate within 24 hours. Our spooks are scandalously violating this unequivocal law, what good will the current ruling do?
The fact of the matter remains that examples have to be set and protocols need to be laid out. The role of the intelligence agencies is to collect intelligence, not pick people up. If certain extenuating circumstances demand a particular mode of action, there should be constant judicial monitoring of the matter. Furthermore, it should be made clear to the operatives of these intelligence agencies, regardless of their level in their respective organisations, that they cannot follow orders blindly. That they will be as liable to prosecution as the commanding officers who gave them illegal orders.
The ball, as ever, is in the courts’ court.
