Neta arrest bill: Tool for vindictive acts

The scepticism expressed by members of 0pposition parties with regard to the possible misuse of the Constitution (130th Amendment) Bill on Thursday is legitimate. The intent behind the bill is specious as it is all likely to be used against popularly elected chief ministers and their ministerial colleagues.

The provisions of the bill state that any minister, Chief Minister, or the Prime Minister, who is arrested and is in custody for over 30 days after being accused of an offence punishable by a jail term of five years or more, shall be removed from office. Given the record of vindictiveness of the current central dispensation against opposition parties-ruled states, the bill is all likely to be used to destabilise state governments as could be seen with the Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi.

The plea that it also includes Prime Minister is a smokescreen of defence as all probe agencies are directly administered by the Central Govt and are least likely to act against the executive head of state. Even viewed from the strictly legal angle, it contravenes the principles of justice as presumption of guilt based merely on allegation should be no ground for removal from office.

Moreover, going by the record of serious charges of corruption being dropped and investigation rolled back against leaders who joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, it could be imagined that a law of the nature in statute book is all likely to provide a handle to the Central government to either intimidate leaders ofrival parties or dislodge popular leaders from the opposition parties ruling in the states.

Probity in public life, for sure, is a cardinal rule of democracy. But punishing someone without a fair trial and establishment of guilt could have more ruinous consequences for the principles of justice.