Amar Sharma| The News Minute| July 22, 2014| 3.00 pm IST
In politics as, in every other facet of life, TIMING occupies a great significance. A whistle blower blowing the whistle when something wrong is happening is a big deal. It can draw attention to the `wrong’ and help nip it in the bud. But whistle being blown after the thief has bolted cannot be accorded the same respect & must be looked at suspiciously.
Recently, we have had two such instances-
One of the Head of the AIIMS Forensic Department Dr. Sudhir Gupta claiming that he was coerced/influenced by the powers that be to dilute/manipulate/conceal facts in the sensational death of Ms. Sunanda Pushkar, wife of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor. Soon after, AIIMS denied the charges levelled by this doctor and it was revealed that he had an axe to grind with AIIMS management relating to his career prospects, promotions etc.
The second one is that of highly respected retired Supreme Court Judge and presently Press Council of India Chairman, Justice Markandey Katju’s revelations about a corrupt Madras High Court judge being appointed as Supreme Court Judge despite an adverse report from the Intelligence Bureau.
Both these relate to events that occurred during the tenure of UPA I government. But surprisingly, neither the doctor in question nor Justice Katju blew the whistle at the appropriate time. They both waited for a regime antagonistic to the UPA government to occupy the seat of power in Delhi before spilling the beans, if one can use the term.
Among the two persons involved here, Justice Katju occupies a comparatively widely respected position in public eye than a career-ist doctor fighting for a promotion here & an increment there. Also, as author of some landmark judgements as a judge, one has higher expectations from Justice Katju. It therefore becomes important that Justice (Retd) Markandey Katju answers these critical questions without losing temper or walking out of studios in a huff or without getting into a reprisal mode-
1. Sir, Why didn’t you blow the whistle on this Madras High Court Judge story earlier. It has been three years since you retired from Supreme Court in September 2011.
2. Were you waiting for the UPA Govt. (that appointed you as Chairman of the Press Council) to go so that you don’t annoy the guys who gave you this post-retirement position within a few days of your retirement & thereby risk being removed from this post?
3. By raising it now and giving it an anti-UPA twist, are you trying in some way to score brownie points in the eyes of the NDA regime which is soon going to take a decision on appointing a Press Council Chairman once you retire on October 4, this year?
So Justice Katju, are you doing this in the hope of getting an extension by somehow impressing upon the regime that you are on their side & they can count on you?
The above questions do not in any way dilute the positive impact & desirability of whistle blowing, if the term can be applied to justice Katju’s recent disclosures. The judiciary, like every other arm of our system, needs to be cleansed & purged of corrupt elements, including seemingly `soft’ corruption that doesn't involve illicit transfer of cash or valuable physical assets between two persons – one in position of power & the other at the receiving end of his/her power.
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Once upon a time Amar used to be a working journalist having served both, the print as well as Electronic media, mainly the latter. This was an age when he truly believed that journalism equals public good, truth & what not. He still believes that good days of true journalism are waiting somewhere, perhaps at the outer signal cabin. Till then, he has taken to the still unfettered social media to keep in touch with journalism, his first love or whatever is left of it.
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