At 'Insaaf' Launch, Kapil Sibal Speaks About Judicial Reforms, Alleges Misuse Of ED & CBI ; Says 'India Needs Change'

“People from Arunachal Pradesh or Kerala should not have to come to Delhi to seek justice. In fact, it is prohibitively expensive for people from far-flung regions of the country to come to the capital to file a petition before the Supreme Court. India should be divided into four regions, each of which should have a final court of appeal that would finally decide cases that come out of the state high courts. The Supreme Court at Delhi should only have 13 judges and hear matters dealing with the Constitution.”

Sibal was speaking on Saturday at a public meeting hosted to formally launch his latest initiative, a non-electoral, non-partisan platform to fight injustice in India called ‘Insaaf ke Sipahi’ (Soldier of Justice). The goal of the platform, he said, was to present a new vision for India and to galvanise support to realise the vision. Also in attendance at the meeting was senior advocate and Rajya Sabha member, Vivek Tankha.

Addressing a gathering at Jantar Mantar on Saturday, the legislator spoke out against, inter alia, the alleged targeting of opposition leaders, journalists, academicians, activists, artists, and even, students by federal agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Directorate of Enforcement, Bharatiya Janata Party’s purported role in the collapse of elected governments, and the climate of hate in the country and communal violence. The schools in India, Sibal further said, were understaffed and ill-equipped to provide quality education. The appointment of ‘RSS vice-chancellors in universities, and the incidents of violence inside the premises of colleges and universities due to the increasing influence of right-wing student organisation Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, was alarming, he said. “How will intellectual property be developed in such a setting? How will progress happen?” Sibal asked. In this connection, he also pointed out that our spending on research and development is dismal when compared to that of the United States of America or China. “But what are the talking points of this government? ‘Love jihad’,” Sibal exclaimed, in a tone of incredulity.

“India has reached a juncture where we need change, which could only be introduced by a people’s movement for justice. It should be remembered that justice is the very foundation of our Constitution. Our preamble speaks of social, economic, and political justice. But the question is, have they been secured to the people of India, which is our preambular aspiration? We no longer view people through the lens of humanity or citizenship, only as members of a certain religion or caste. Our constitution is a four-wheeled vehicle, which has been held hostage by Modi, since he controls the three wheels of the parliament, election commission, and executive, and is vehemently trying to control the judiciary, which is the fourth wheel. What kind of democracy is this? What will happen to our children and grandchildren?”

Sibal also offered a number of suggestions – from inaugurating central and state services to permanently recruit teachers and regulate their pay, offering tax incentives to industrialists to set up schools for children belonging to marginalised communities, and vocational training institutions to train, and eventually recruit, students who have completed higher secondary education, barring elected representatives who defect to other parties from contesting elections for five years, to setting up of four final courts of appeal in different parts of the country. These, Sibal passionately claimed, would transform India of today which “belongs only to Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh” into India of tomorrow which belongs to everyone.

The veteran lawyer also weighed in on the issue of the role of the collegium in judicial appointments in superior courts, saying, “The government and the top court are currently grappling for the power to appoint judges. I feel that the government should never be the final decision-making authority in this regard, but the way the collegium is currently functioning necessitates new thought and a new system.”

“If you look at the history of mankind, whenever there has been a major change, be it the American War of Independence, the French Revolution, or the Indian freedom struggle, lawyers have always been at the forefront of the change,” Sibal said, as he remembered the transformational role of renowned lawyers like Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Maulana Azad, and many others. Therefore, not just the common people and politicians, but also advocates across the country, in particular, should fight against injustices, the senior counsel said, while urging district and state bar associations across the country to encourage their members to be a part of his organisation. “We ask advocates to stand up against injustices and even approach the courts. We will take this message to all districts and states,” Sibal promised.