There is no denying about the fact that India undoubtedly is a corrupt country. The figures from the “Corruption Perceptions Index” by transparency international are a living proof to the fact that India is a corrupt nation and corruption has actually escalated in India in the past 2 decades. In the year 2000 India ranked 69th in the world while Finland was ranked no.1 (being the least corrupt country). In 2007 this rank was 72 which went up to 87 in 2010 and then to 94 in 2012 and 2013. The latest 2014 CPI results rank India at position 85.
It is well established that the politicians, the police and the administration are inherently corrupt and so are many other organisations. The fact of the matter is that in a country which is corrupt to the core, how can one assume the “Judiciary” to be corruption free. After all even the Judges come from the same resource pool from where the police, administrators or the politicians have emerged. Suffice to say that corruption is innate to the judiciary too. It is however important to mention that not everyone is corrupt but those who are corrupt have brought this sacrosanct institution into a disrepute.
While there are some measures in place to bring the corrupt to justice but no system exists to check the turpitude prevailing in the judiciary. Firstly there is no provision to report any wrongdoings and secondly, even if one attempts to expose the abhorrent practices in the judiciary, they earn the wrath of the power holding judges who can then hold anyone ransom at the behest of the law and slap charges like “contempt of court” or declare one “enemy of the state” in collusion with the police and the administration.
The rich and the powerful are the beneficiaries of such judicial system, whereas a common man despite being honest and righteous can be ground in this corrupt mill for ages only to face disappointment at the end. The hapless common man going through the drudgery of Indian judicial system is like a bird whose wings have been clipped with no voice to be heard.
Similar is the case of Sant Rampal Ji Maharaj and his followers on whom numerous cases are ongoing since 2006. The corrupt and the powerful have influenced the judiciary which in turn has left no stone unturned to inflict injustice. When an attempt was made to expose the malpractices of the corrupt judges by documenting it in a written format, the court took suo motu action and slapped charges of “contempt of court” to bury the voice.
No wonder if someone raises a voice against the corrupt judges, the corrupt would hold a grudge against them. As a result it is now only a matter of ego of the corrupt judges and the grudge they hold against Sant Rampal Ji and his disciples. Sant Rampal Ji has been against corruption and in the past even raised a finger on the corrupt political establishment and the administration of colluding with the judiciary. The mere fact that Sant Rampal Ji is now being dragged in to various cases and is being declared “enemy of the state” is the result of speaking the truth and not relenting to the demands of the corrupt judges.
Sant Rampal Ji has therefore been demanding a CBI enquiry in to the cases for a very long time. Everyone including the police and the judiciary knows that a CBI probe would bring out the truth and paint the police and the corrupt judges in a very bad light. The other viable option has been to allow video recording of the court proceedings in these cases which would fix the accountability of the judges and bind them to deliver justice and curb their malpractices. Hence no such requests are being entertained.
It is a misfortune of this country which superficially boasts of advancing to the 21st century and calls itself “developing” but deep down is rooted into corruption. The termite of corruption is hollowing the foundations of the nation and needs to be checked.