LIVING in a housing society has it’s upsides and downsides, and somehow with the use of the law and a strict committee, people more or less learn to live with each other. A few months ago, I was told a neighbour was going to join two flats, one upstairs and the other below, with either a staircase or a lift and there would be a lot of noise from breaking, “But don’t worry,” he told me when I confronted him about the disturbance it would cause, “we will abide by all the rules, and have boarding of the windows done, so noise will be minimal for you.”
To be truthful, he has kept his word. But this morning I walked to the other side of the flats being reconstructed, and found that no boarding of any windows had been done to stop any inconvenient noise for the others. Let’s leave my friendly neighbour alone, and move to other instances where the law is applied differently to different people: A friend of mine in Pune, told me that during Christmas, his church decided to go to the local police station and distribute sweets and gifts to the police. “That’s very kind of you,” I said, “I hope you do the same to the firemen and municipal workers!”
“We don’t need firemen or municipal workers,” said my friend, “Once the police are happy with us, they will protect us, if there’s a problem!” And that’s how we function. The law is applied depending on how close you are to the law keeper, what gifts exchange hands, or how much noise you make. I heard of a recent incident in Mumbai, where a chapel was destroyed by a builder. The people went to the local police station but the police did not register an FIR, why?
Let’s not speculate if the police were given or not given a treat and gifts during Christmas, but as to why ever should such special treatment be given to guardians of the law, for simply doing the duty, for which they are paid with our taxes. Does the policeman have the right to decide who he should use the law on; the builder or the worshippers, or shouldn’t he register the complaint which is the right of every citizen of this country? I felt sad, seeing the worshippers of the broken chapel, singing hymns, outside the police station as a form of protest!
I believe, as soon as a policeman fails in his duty, the judiciary should see he is suspended, till an enquiry is conducted. Justice is blind, and not applied only to those who make a bigger noise, have a larger wallet or more clout. Till this starts taking place, building bigger Parliament buildings doesn’t make any sense..!
—Email: bobsbanter@gmail.com
