Interim bail granted
I write this letter as Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, and a former Union Minister for Law and Justice. The Supreme Court’s order granting interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal balances the sanctity of the fundamental right to personal liberty and freedom of expression in the election season with the necessity to observe the legal due process in a criminal investigation.
In as much as the Court’s order facilitates campaigning by Mr. Kejriwal and casting of his vote in the Lok Sabha elections, the order subserves the democratic cause in furtherance of the basic structure of the Constitution. At the same time, the order clearly suggests that interim bail to Mr. Kejriwal is upon its own facts and will not serve as a precedent nor be seen as a discriminatory concession to politicians consistent with the constitutional mandate of non-discrimination and equality under law.
The Court order reaffirms the legal principles for the grant of interim bail to those in custody, and is a fine balancing act in furtherance of the democratic fundamentals.
Ashwani Kumar,
New Delhi
The top court has proved, yet again, that justice is very much alive and kicking in our country. We can now expect the wounded tiger using all his might to see that the NDA has a difficult time. One hopes that Mr. Kejriwal makes the best use of this god-sent opportunity.
Tharcius S. Fernando,
Chennai
Mr. Kejriwal can now move to the campaign trail with new energy. It seems democracy in India is being guarded by the top court that is thwarting the machinations of an autocratic entity.
M.C. Vijay Shankar,
Chennai
Debt and China
China’s debt trap diplomacy is focused on nations that are either strategically located or rich in resources such as cobalt, oil or lithium. China’s signature foreign policy, the Belt and Road Initiative and its maritime version, is to connect Chinese ports on the South China Sea to seaports in the Indian Ocean, West Asia, and the Horn of Africa. These networks clearly benefit China through an increase in commerce, and when debts cannot be repaid, they renegotiate by conceding valuable and strategic national assets. It is true that no nation invests or lends enormous amounts in another country for altruistic reasons. China insists on sovereign guarantees for loans by the host governments. Sri Lanka has become a cautionary tale on the kind of problems Chinese projects can cause (Datapoint, Opinion page, May 9).
H.N. Ramakrishna,
Bengaluru
