UAPA misuse not a model for Viksit Bharat: SC judge

NEW DELHI: SC judge Ujjal Bhuyan Sunday said the political executive's goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047 requires more room for debate and dissent without criminalising these, and erasure of "deep social fault lines" reflected in caste-based discrimination and atrocities on Dalits.

Addressing the first national conference of SC Bar Association in Bengaluru, Justice Bhuyan said mindless arrests under anti-terrorism law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act with minuscule convictions "cannot be a model of Viksit Bharat". He said, "My model of Viksit Bharat is equal distribution of wealth and disappearance of acute disparity... which is also the goal set in directive principles of state policies in Constitution." He said in Viksit Bharat, "judiciary must remain judiciary... it can't be an eternal critic or a cheerleader."

‘Low convictions under UAPA show overuse, if not misuse, of the law’

Presenting data — from 2019 till 2023 — of people arrested under UAPA, he said thousands have been arrested, but the average conviction rate hovered around 5%. “It shows consistently low conviction. What does it indicate — overuse if not misuse (of the law) and its impact on the criminal justice system. How much burden does it put on courts? This shows the vast majority were arrested but could not be convicted. This indicates many arrests were premature and unsupported by sufficient evidence,” he said.

“With a general conviction rate of 5% or less, and acquittal of more than 95% of UAPA cases, why should an accused be kept in jail without even filing a chargesheet against him? This can’t be a model of Viksit Bharat,” said Justice Bhuyan, adding that such case overload causes backlog, pendency, and delay in justice delivery, together impacting the general principle of ‘bail is the norm and jail the exception’.




He said in Viksit Bharat there should be more room for debate and dissent. “Debate should not be criminalised. There should be more tolerance towards diverse views. Divergent views should be respected. There should be more tolerance towards diverse views and criticism,” he said.

Justice Bhuyan said the political executive has fixed a goal for a developed India. “With all key players in the economic and social sector performing well, this is certainly an achievable target. After all, why should India not be a developed country for so long.” But, he said at the end of the day it is a political statement, recalling that the political executive had created a catchy slogan like ‘garibi hatao’ in the 1970s.

“I have doubts whether the judiciary, though an organ of the State, but separate and distinct from other organs, should join this bandwagon. Without meaning any disrespect, the appropriate target for the judiciary should be the year 2050.”

“By then, both our Constitution and SC would have completed 100 years, which is a significant milestone to look back and take stock of how we have travelled this far and what is the roadmap ahead,” he said.

Referring to the Aug 1986 SC judgment in the Bijoe Emmanuel case in which the court had ruled in favour of children from Jehovah’s Witnesses sect refusing to sing the national anthem in school, Justice Bhuyan said only a courageous judge like O Chinnappa Reddy could have penned such a judgment. He said tolerance, which is taught by our tradition and Constitution, must be practiced.

On societal imbalances caused by atrocities on Dalits coupled with caste-based discriminations, Justice Bhuyan said, “Deep social fault lines are there. Viksit Bharat cannot countenance such fault lines.”

“Parents cannot insist that their children will not have food prepared by a Dalit woman. That cannot be a Viksit Bharat model. We cannot have Viksit Bharat when Dalit people are made to stand in the corridor and people urinate on them. This can’t be the model of development. Respect for the individual must be protected.”
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