Justice has been the universal yearning of humanity. The hallmark of a civilized state is the dispensation of justice to its citizens and non-citizens residing in the State. The crux of the matter is: are people guaranteed safety to their person and property? Furthermore in case of disputes between members of the society, is there an impartial and independent body for adjudication? Justice has different facets. Our Constitution in its Preamble speaks of Justice, social, economic and political. Does not existence of vast disparities in wealth and income negate social justice which is the signature tune of our Constitution? Fundamental Rights of equality and privacy are guaranteed by our Constitution. However their effective implementation and realisation depends upon purposive judicial interpretation. An insensitive judiciary can render fundamental rights meaningless. What about the rights of widows and prisoners and, above all, of children. These topics are dealt with clarity and in depth in the book, Talking of Justice by Leila Seth, who was both a lawyer and a judge and the first woman Chief Justice of any High Court in India, in this case the Himachal Pradesh High Court.
It is unfortunate that in dealing with cases of rape the judiciary, rare exceptions apart, has betrayed insensitivity to the victim mainly owing to their mindset infected by prejudices. In the Chapter Gender Sensitization, Seth has dealt with this subject with commendable insight. She rightly says that judges “have to place themselves alternately in the shoes of the two disputants and appreciate the problem before giving an objective decision. This process of learning the language of equality is slow, but it must be continuously engaged in and encouraged. This can be done through discussion, refresher courses, workshops, debates, advocacy and education. Otherwise there will be no equality and no justice.” Well said. The Chapter ‘A Uniform Civil Code towards Gender Justice’ contains wealth of information about the stormy journey of Uniform Civil Code [UCC]. Seth considers that UCC will be an important measure to remove inequality faced by and consequent injustice engendered by it. In her words “we have a duty to the women of India to do away with all discrimination between men and women and make a personal law that will benefit all Indian women without distinction, be they Christian, Hindu, Muslim, Parsi, Sikh or Buddhist.” She urges for a discussion of this sensitive topic in a transparent manner “so that ignorance, which is the cradle of prejudice and fear, is removed.” The process must be open. She rightly warns that “we must not let the fundamentalists—Hindu, Muslim, Christian or secular take over.” She passionately urges that “we should bring the light of reason and humanity to bear on the subject and act tactfully but bravely” to remove this injustice. She concludes with the strong words of Martin Luther King, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
Prisoners are usually forgotten by their friends and even by their family members who are not concerned by the horrific derivation of their human rights when they are in prison. Seth has not forgotten them. She has done well to point out, quoting Lord Woolf, a distinguished judge of UK and Wales, “justice does not stop at the prison gates” and our great Krishna Iyer’s memorable statement that “a prisoner does not shed his basic constitutional rights at the prison gate.” Seth has made some noteworthy suggestions as alternatives to the prison system we have in India today. One of them is community service instead of imprisonment because the offender offers restitution to the whole community rather than to the individual victim.
Seth has also dealt with children’s rights and the girl child comprehensively and made some thoughtful suggestions to ameliorate their condition.
The real merit of the book lies in Seth’s simplicity of language and lucidity of thought, so essential for meaningful human rights discourse. The book is a must for every thinking Indian.