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GS Paper: GS2

  • Setting right the focal point of Jammu and Kashmir tribal politics

    Context

    The Jammu and Kashmir Delimitation Commission has recently shared its interim report. One of the salient features of the report is the proposed reservation of nine seats for Scheduled Tribes (ST).

    Reservation for STs in Legislative Assembly

    •  It is for the first time that seats have been reserved for the ST community in the Legislative Assembly of J&K.
    • The commission has also proposed reserving seven seats for Scheduled Castes (SCs).
    • In the erstwhile Legislative Assembly, there were also seven seats reserved for SCs, but there was no such reservation for STs.
    • This denial of constitutionally guaranteed reservation under Article 332 post-1991 when four communities (the Gujjars, Bakerwals, Gaddis and Sippis) were granted ST status is a pointer to the harsh reality that discrimination has largely been deliberate.

    Issue of reservation for STs in J&K

    • No role of Article 370: Nothing in Article 370 has prevented the provision of political reservation to STs or extension of the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 to J&K.
    • The presence of Article 370 has often been given as a reason for the absence of reservation for the tribals in J&K though this is untrue.
    • Reservation for SCs: SCs in J&K had reservations even before the dilution of Article 370, and it was provided under the J&K Constitution. 
    • This lack of political will stemmed from an unwillingness to share power with groups ethnically and culturally different from both Dogras and the Kashmiris, the two predominant power groups in J&K.

    What has changed now?

    • The dilution of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, and the subsequent Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 changed political dynamics in the region.
    • As far as tribals are concerned, it promised them political reservation under Article 332 and led to the extension of the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
    •  Essentially, it has changed the nature of tribal politics in J&K as well, which had largely centered around these two major objectives.

    Way forward

    • Economic and social empowerment: The focus of tribal politics has to shift toward the economic and social empowerment of tribal communities.
    • Implementation of the Forest Rights Act has to be a major issue as it has the potential to significantly empower these communities.
    • The political mobilization of STs began many years ago, and the interim report has thrown up new challenges before STs than merely empowering them.
    • Awareness: It will not change after reservation unless there is an awareness and conscious attempt by the leadership to prioritize tribal interests over party politics.
    • Political relevance: The tendency to limit tribal politics to Rajouri and Poonch (which the interim report has also done) is the extension of past practice though the reality is that more than 68% of the ST population lives outside these districts.
    • Political relevance is a major challenge that tribal politics in J&K faces.
    • Community leaders, especially tribal youth, need to understand the significance of the tribal vote.
    • Tribal politics also have to address the political, social, and economic empowerment of marginal tribes such as the Bakerwals, Gaddis and Sippis.
    • Women empowerment: Women have to play a major role in tribal politics, and their participation and leadership have to be made feasible and suitably promoted.
    • They have proven their leadership in the District Development Council (DDC) elections, and it needs to be strengthened further.

    Conclusion

    The focus of tribal politics has to shift toward the economic and social empowerment of tribal communities, with a special focus on the effective implementation of welfare schemes and policies for STs in J&K.

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  • Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)

    India has hit out at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), saying it was “hijacked by vested interests” over its remark on Karnataka Hijab Row.

    What is OIC?

    • The OIC — formerly Organisation of the Islamic Conference — is the world’s second-largest inter-governmental organization after the UN, with a membership of 57 states.
    • The OIC’s stated objective is “to safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world”.
    • OIC has reserved membership for Muslim-majority countries. Russia, Thailand, and a couple of other small countries have Observer status.

    India and OIC

    • At the 45th session of the Foreign Ministers’ Summit in 2018, Bangladesh suggested that India, where more than 10% of the world’s Muslims live, should be given Observer status.
    • In 1969, India was dis-invited from the Conference of Islamic Countries in Rabat, Morocco at Pakistan’s behest.
    • Then Agriculture Minister Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed was dis-invited upon arrival in Morocco after Pakistan President Yahya Khan lobbied against Indian participation.

    Recent developments

    • In 2019, India made its maiden appearance at the OIC Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Abu Dhabi, as a “guest of honor”.
    • This first-time invitation was seen as a diplomatic victory for New Delhi, especially at a time of heightened tensions with Pakistan following the Pulwama attack.
    • Pakistan had opposed the invitation to Swaraj and it boycotted the plenary after the UAE turned down its demand to rescind the invitation.

    What is the OIC’s stand on Kashmir?

    • It has been generally supportive of Pakistan’s stand on Kashmir and has issued statements criticizing India.
    • Last year, after India revoked Article 370 in Kashmir, Pakistan lobbied with the OIC for their condemnation of the move.
    • To Pakistan’s surprise, Saudi Arabia and the UAE — both top leaders among the Muslim countries — issued nuanced statements, and were not as harshly critical of New Delhi as Islamabad had hoped.
    • Since then, Islamabad has tried to rouse sentiments among the Islamic countries, but only a handful of them — Turkey and Malaysia — publicly criticized India.

    How has India been responding?

    • India has consistently underlined that J&K is an integral part of India and is a matter strictly internal to India.
    • The strength with which India has made this assertion has varied slightly at times, but never the core message.
    • It has maintained its “consistent and well known” stand that the OIC had no locus standi.
    • This time, India went a step ahead and said the grouping continues to allow itself to be used by a certain country “which has a record on religious tolerance, radicalism, and persecution of minorities”.

    OIC members and India

    • Individually, India has good relations with almost all member nations. Ties with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, especially, have looked up significantly in recent years.
    • The OIC includes two of India’s close neighbors, Bangladesh and Maldives.
    • Indian diplomats say both countries privately admit they do not want to complicate their bilateral ties with India on Kashmir but play along with OIC.

    Way ahead

    • India now sees the duality of the OIC as untenable, since many of these countries have good bilateral ties and convey to India to ignore OIC statements.
    • But these countries sign off on the joint statements which are largely drafted by Pakistan.
    • India feels it important to challenge the double-speak since Pakistan’s campaign and currency on the Kashmir issue has hardly any takers in the international community.

     

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  • Maharashtra may become 8th state to opt out of PMFBY

    Maharashtra may follow several other big states and opt-out Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), the government’s much-highlighted crop insurance scheme.

    Why do many states want to opt-out?

    • The major reasons are denial and delay of claims along with a huge subsidy burden on state governments.
    • The farmers are facing a problem with timely claim settlement.
    • Maharashtra is studying the Beed Model for insurance settlement.

    Who else has stepped out?

    • Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana, Bihar, Gujarat (PM’s home state), Punjab and West Bengal — all predominantly agriculture states — have already opted out of the scheme.
    • Some of these states have their own insurance schemes.

    What is PMFBY?

    • The PMFBY was launched in February 2016. It is being administered by Ministry of Agriculture.
    • It provides a comprehensive insurance cover against failure of the crop thus helping in stabilising the income of the farmers.
    • It is implemented by empanelled general insurance companies.
    • The scheme is compulsory for loanee farmers availing Crop Loan /KCC account for notified crops and voluntary for other others.

    Its functioning

    • PMFBY insures farmers against all non-preventable natural risks from pre-sowing to post-harvest.
    • Farmers have to pay a maximum of 2 per cent of the total premium of the insured amount for kharif crops, 1.5 per cent for rabi food crops and oilseeds as well as 5 per cent for commercial / horticultural crops.
    • The balance premium is shared by the Union and state governments on a 50:50 basis and on a 90:10 basis in the case of northeastern states.

    Farmers covered

    • All farmers growing notified crops in a notified area during the season who have insurable interest in the crop are eligible.
    • To address the demand of farmers, the scheme has been made voluntary for all farmers from Kharif 2020.
    • Earlier to Kharif 2020, the enrolment under the scheme was compulsory for following categories of farmers:
    1. Farmers in the notified area who possess a Crop Loan account/KCC account (called as Loanee Farmers) to whom credit limit is sanctioned/renewed for the notified crop during the crop season. and
    2. Such other farmers whom the Government may decide to include from time to time.

    Risks covered under the scheme

    • Comprehensive risk insurance is provided to cover yield losses due to non-preventable risks, such as Natural Fire and Lightning, Storm, Hailstorm, Cyclone, Typhoon, Tempest, Hurricane, Tornado.
    • Risks due to Flood, Inundation and Landslide, Drought, Dry spells, Pests/ Diseases also will be covered.
    • In post-harvest losses, coverage will be available up to a maximum period of 14 days from harvesting for those crops which are kept in “cut & spread” condition to dry in the field.
    • For certain localized problems, Loss/damage resulting from the occurrence of identified localized risks like hailstorm, landslide, and Inundation affecting isolated farms in the notified area would also be covered.

    Back2Basics: Beed Model

    • The model of crop insurance in place in Maharashtra’s Beed district is being studied by a central government panel set up to suggest suitable working models for PMFBY.
    • In the Beed model, there is a cap on the profit of the insurance companies.
    • If the claims exceed the insurance cover, the state government pays the bridge amount.
    • If the claims are less than the premium collected, the insurance company keeps 20 per cent of the amount as handling charges and reimburses the rest to the state government.
    • This is expected to reduce burden of subsidies from state.

     

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  • India to prepare digital maps of all villages

    India plans to prepare digital maps of all its 6,00,000 villages and pan-India 3D maps will be prepared for 100 cities to mark a year of the updated geospatial policy guidelines under the SVAMITVA Scheme.

    What is SVAMITVA Scheme?

    • SVAMITVA stands for Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas.
    • Under the scheme, the latest surveying technology such as drones will be used for measuring the inhabited land in villages and rural areas.
    • The mapping and survey will be conducted in collaboration with the Survey of India, State Revenue Department and State Panchayati Raj Department under the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
    • The drones will draw the digital map of every property falling in the geographical limit of each Indian village.
    • Property Cards will be prepared and given to the respective owners.

    Broad Objectives

    1. Leveraging property as a financial asset by the citizens of rural India
    2. Creation of accurate land records for rural planning
    3. Provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India
    4. Serve as a means of reduction in property-related disputes. Facilitate with the determination of property tax
    5. Creation of survey infrastructure and GIS (Geographic Information System) maps that can be used by any department or agency

    Features of the Scheme

    • Accurate survey: SVAMITVA Scheme uses the combination of Survey Grade Drones and CORS network (Continuously Operated Reference Stations) to accurately survey large areas in a very short span of time.
    • High resolution: The 1:500 scale maps generated through the drone survey are of very high accuracy i.e., 3-5 cms, which the conventional methodology does not provide.
    • Geo-tagging: Moreover, editable and geo-tagged maps are produced at a fraction of the cost without the need for line-of-sight.
    • Permanent records: These maps facilitate the creation of the most durable record of property holdings in areas with no legacy revenue records.

    What are the updated guidelines?

    • The updated guidelines help private companies to prepare a variety of maps without needing approvals from a host of ministries.
    • They aim to make it easier to use drones and develop applications via location mapping.
    • It encompasses the trinity of geospatial Systems, Drone Policy, and unlocked Space Sector will be the hallmark of India’s future economic progress.

     

    Also read:

    [Yojana Archive] SVAMITVA Scheme

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  • Local job laws that raise constitutional questions

    Context

    Last week, the Punjab and Haryana High Court admitted a petition challenging the constitutionality of the Act, and stayed the implementation until it heard the case.

    Laws raises constitutional questions

    • There are at least three important constitutional questions that arise from this Act.

    [1] Violation of Article 19(1)(g)

    • Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution guarantees freedom to carry out any occupation, trade or business.
    • There may be reasonable restrictions “in the interests of the general public”, and in particular related to specifying any professional or technical qualifications, or to reserve a sector for government monopoly.
    • This Act, by requiring private businesses to reserve 75% of lower end jobs for locals, encroaches upon their right to carry out any occupation.
    • In 2005, in the P.A. Inamdar case, Supreme Court said that reservation cannot be mandated on educational institutions that do not receive financial aid from the state, as that would affect the freedom of occupation.

    [2] Violation of Article 16

    • The provision of reservation by virtue of domicile or residence may be unconstitutional.
    • Article 16 of the Constitution specifically provides for equality of opportunity for all citizens in public employment.
    • It prohibits discrimination on several grounds including place of birth and residence.
    • However, it permits Parliament to make law that requires residence within a State for appointment to a public office.
    • This enabling provision is for public employment and not for private sector jobs.
    • And the law needs to be made by Parliament, and not by a State legislature.

    [3] Breaching of 50% limit

    • In the Indra Sawhney case in 1992, the Supreme Court capped reservations in public services at 50%.
    • It however said that there may be extraordinary situations which may need a relaxation in this rule.
    • It also specified that “in doing so, extreme caution is to be exercised and a special case made out”.
    • That is, the onus is on the State to make a special case of exceptional circumstances, for the 50% upper limit on reservations to be relaxed.
    • It stated that the 50% limit is “to fulfil the objective of equality”, and that to breach the limit “is to have a society which is not founded on equality but on caste rule”.
    • The Haryana Act does not further “caste rule” as it is for all residents of the State irrespective of caste but it breaches the notion of equality of all citizens of India.

    [4] Against the conception of India as a one nation

    •  The Constitution conceptualises India as one nation with all citizens having equal rights to live, travel and work anywhere in the country.
    • These State laws go against this vision by restricting the right of out-of-State citizens to find employment in the State.
    • This restriction may also indirectly affect the right to reside across India as finding employment becomes difficult.
    • If more States follow similar policies, it would be difficult for citizens to migrate from their State to other States to find work.

    [5] Economic implications

    • The move may potentially increase the costs for companies.
    • There may also be an increase in income inequality across States as citizens of poorer States with fewer job opportunities are trapped within their States.

    Conclusion

    The courts, while looking at the narrow questions of whether these laws violate fundamental rights, should also examine whether they breach the basic structure of the Constitution that views India as one nation which is a union of States, and not as a conglomeration of independent States.

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  • Back in debate: Uniform Civil Code

    Poll-bound Uttarakhand CM’s announcement to prepare a draft of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the State, raises questions over whether an individual State can bring its own family law code.

    What is a Uniform Civil Code?

    • A Uniform Civil Code is one that would provide for one law for the entire country, applicable to all religious communities in their personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, etc.
    • Article 44, one of the directive principles of the Constitution lays down that the state shall endeavor to secure a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.
    • These, as defined in Article 37, are not justiciable (not enforceable by any court) but the principles laid down therein are fundamental in governance.

    Why need UCC?

    • UCC would provide equal status to all citizens
    • It would promote gender parity in Indian society.
    • UCC would accommodate the aspirations of the young population who imbibe liberal ideology.
    • Its implementation would thus support the national integration.

    Hurdles to UCC implementation

    • There are practical difficulties due to religious and cultural diversity in India.
    • The UCC is often perceived by the minorities as an encroachment on religious freedom.
    • It is often regarded as interference of the state in personal matters of the minorities.
    • Experts often argue that the time is not ripe for Indian society to embrace such UCC.

     UCC vs. Right to Freedom of Religion

    • Article 25 lays down an individual’s fundamental right to religion;
    • Article 26(b) upholds the right of each religious denomination or any section thereof to “manage its own affairs in matters of religion”;
    • Article 29 defines the right to conserve distinctive culture.
    • An individual’s freedom of religion under Article 25 is subject to “public order, health, morality” and other provisions relating to FRs, but a group’s freedom under Article 26 has not been subjected to other FRs.
    • In the Constituent Assembly, there was division on the issue of putting UCC in the fundamental rights chapter. The matter was settled by a vote.
    • By a 5:4 majority, the fundamental rights sub-committee headed by Sardar Patel held that the provision was outside the scope of FRs and therefore the UCC was made less important.

    Enacting and Enforcing UCC: A reality check

    • Fundamental rights are enforceable in a court of law.
    • While Article 44 uses the words “the state shall endeavor”, other Articles in the ‘Directive Principles’ chapter use words such as “in particular strive”; “shall, in particular, direct its policy”; “shall be an obligation of the state” etc.
    • Article 43 mentions “state shall endeavor by suitable legislation” while the phrase “by suitable legislation” is absent in Article 44.
    • All this implies that the duty of the state is greater in other directive principles than in Article 44.

    What are more important — fundamental rights or directive principles?

    • There is no doubt that fundamental rights are more important.
    • The Supreme Court held in Minerva Mills (1980): Indian Constitution is founded on the bedrock of the balance between Parts III (Fundamental Rights) and IV (Directive Principles).
    • To give absolute primacy to one over the other is to disturb the harmony of the Constitution.
    • Article 31C inserted by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, however, lays down that if a law is made to implement any directive principle, it cannot be challenged on the ground of being violative of the FRs under Articles 14 and 19.

    What about Personal Laws?

    • Citizens belonging to different religions and denominations follow different property and matrimonial laws which are an affront to the nation’s unity.
    • If the framers of the Constitution had intended to have a UCC, they would have given exclusive jurisdiction to Parliament in respect of personal laws, by including this subject in the Union List.
    • But “personal laws” are mentioned in the Concurrent List.

    Various customary laws

    • All Hindus of the country are not governed by one law, nor are all Muslims or all Christians.
    • Muslims of Kashmir were governed by a customary law, which in many ways was at variance with Muslim Personal Law in the rest of the country and was, in fact, closer to Hindu law.
    • Even on registration of marriage among Muslims, laws differ from place to place.
    • In the Northeast, there are more than 200 tribes with their own varied customary laws.
    • The Constitution itself protects local customs in Nagaland. Similar protections are enjoyed by Meghalaya and Mizoram.
    • Even reformed Hindu law, in spite of codification, protects customary practices.

    Minority opinion in the Constituent Assembly

    • Some members sought to immunize Muslim Personal Law from state regulation.
    • Mohammed Ismail, who thrice tried unsuccessfully to get Muslim Personal Law exempted from Article 44, said a secular state should not interfere with the personal law of people.
    • B Pocker Saheb said he had received representations against a common civil code from various organizations, including Hindu organizations.
    • Hussain Imam questioned whether there could ever be uniformity of personal laws in a diverse country like India.
    • B R Ambedkar said, “no government can use its provisions in a way that would force the Muslims to revolt”.
    • Alladi Krishnaswami, who was in favor of a UCC, conceded that it would be unwise to enact UCC ignoring strong opposition from any community.
    • Gender justice was never discussed in these debates.

     Conclusion

    • Article 44 of the Constitution creates an obligation upon the State to endeavour to secure for citizens a Uniform Civil Code throughout the country.
    • The purpose behind UCC is to strengthen the object of “Secular Democratic Republic” as enshrined in the Preamble of the Constitution.
    • This provision is provided to effect the integration of India by bringing communities on the common platform on matters which are at present governed by diverse personal laws.
    • Hence UCC should be enforced taking into confidence all the sections of Indian society.
    • Goa’s Portuguese Civil Code of 1867 is an example of a common family law existing in harmony.

     

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  • Centre extends Police Modernisation Scheme

    The Union government has approved the continuation of a police modernization scheme for five years up to 2025-26 with a financial outlay of ₹26,275 crores.

    What is the Modernization of Police Forces Scheme?

    • Police’ and ‘law and order’ fall under the category of subjects within the domain of the State as per Entry 2 of List II of the VIIth Schedule in the Constitution of India.
    • Thus, the principal responsibility for managing these subjects lies with the State Governments.
    • However, the States have not been able to fully modernize and equip their police forces up to the desired level due to financial constraints.
    • It is in this context that the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has been supplementing the efforts and resources of the States, from time to time, by implementing the MPF Scheme since 1969-70.

    Objectives:

    • The focus of the scheme is to strengthen police infrastructure at cutting edge level by constructing secure police stations, training centers, police housing (residential), equipping the police stations with the required mobility, modern weaponry, communication equipment, and forensic set-up, etc.

    Components of the scheme

    • The scheme included security-related expenditure in J&K, northeastern States, and Maoist-affected areas, for raising new battalions, developing high-tech forensic laboratories and other investigation tools.
    • Provisions have been made under the scheme for internal security, law and order, and the adoption of modern technology by the police.
    • Assistance will be given to the States for narcotics control and strengthening the criminal justice system by developing a robust forensic setup in the country.

    Funding pattern

    • Under the Scheme, the States are grouped into two categories, namely Category ‘A’ and Category ‘B’ for the purpose of funding both under ‘Non-Plan’ and Plan.
    • Category ‘A’ States, namely, J&K and 8 North Eastern States including Sikkim will be eligible to receive financial assistance on a 90:10 Centre: State sharing basis.
    • The remaining States will be in Category ‘B’ and will be eligible for financial assistance on a 60:40 Centre: State sharing basis.

     

     

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  • World Food Programme (WFP)

    India signed an agreement with the United Nation’s World Food Programme (WFP) for the distribution of 50,000 tonnes of wheat that it has committed to sending Afghanistan as part of humanitarian assistance.

    What is WFP?

    • The WFP is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations (UN).
    • It is the world’s largest humanitarian organization focused on hunger and food security, and the largest provider of school meals.
    • Founded in 1961, it is headquartered in Rome and has offices in 80 countries.
    • In addition to emergency food relief, WFP offers technical assistance and development aid, such as building capacity for emergency preparedness and response, managing supply chains and logistics, etc.
    • The agency is also a major provider of direct cash assistance and medical supplies and provides passenger services for humanitarian workers.

    Feats achieved

    • As of 2020, it served 115.5 million people in 80-plus countries, the largest since 2012.
    • The WFP was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020 for its efforts to provide food assistance in areas of conflict and to prevent the use of food as a weapon of war and conflict.

    WFP in Afghanistan

    • The wheat will be taken through Pakistan to the Afghan border crossing and handed over to WFP officials in Kandahar.
    • The WFP runs its own logistics network inside Afghanistan, partnering with civil society groups.

     

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  • Back in news: Liberation of Goa

    The PM recently took a jibe at then PM Nehru, saying that it could have liberated Goa in 1947 itself had Nehru sent the Indian Army there.

    What is the news?

    • Goa was liberated 15 years after India attained freedom.
    • PM Modi accused Nehru as guilty of leaving satyagrahis in the dismay, refusing to send the Indian Army to liberate Goa, even after 25 of them were shot dead by the Portuguese Army.

    Goa’s Colonization: A backgrounder

    • Goa became a Portuguese colony in 1510, when Admiral Afonso de Albuquerque defeated the forces of the sultan of Bjiapur, Yusuf Adil Shah.
    • The next four and a half centuries saw one of Asia’s longest colonial encounters — Goa found itself at the intersection of competing regional and global powers.
    • It received a religious and cultural ferment that lead eventually to the germination of a distinct Goan identity that continues to be a source of contestation even today.
    • By the turn of the twentieth century, Goa had started to witness an upsurge of nationalist sentiment opposed to Portugal’s colonial rule, in sync with the anti-British nationalist movement.

    Beginning of freedom movement

    • Tristao de Braganza Cunha, celebrated as the father of Goan nationalism, founded the Goa National Congress at the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress in 1928.
    • In 1946, the socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia led a historic rally in Goa that gave a call for civil liberties and freedom, and eventual integration with India.
    • This event became a watershed moment in Goa’s freedom struggle.
    • At the same time, there was a thinking that civil liberties could not be won by peaceful methods, and a more aggressive armed struggle was needed.
    • This was the view of the Azad Gomantak Dal (AGD), whose co-founder Prabhakar Sinari is one of the few freedom fighters still living today.
    • Finally, Goa was liberated on December 19, 1961 by swift Indian military action that lasted less than two days.

    Recognition of Goa

    • The Supreme Court of India recognized the validity of the annexation and rejected the continued applicability of the law of occupation.
    • In a treaty with retroactive effect, Portugal recognized Indian sovereignty in 1974.
    • Under the jus cogens rule, forceful annexations including the annexation of Goa are held as illegal since they have taken place after the UN Charter came into force.

    Why was Goa left un-colonized?

    As India moved towards independence, however, it became clear that Goa would not be free any time soon, because of a variety of complex factors.

    • No immediate war: Then PM Nehru felt that if he launched a military operation (like in Hyderabad) to oust the colonial rulers, his image as a global leader of peace would be impacted.
    • Trauma of Partition: The trauma of Partition and the massive rupture that followed, coupled with the war with Pakistan, kept the Government of India from opening another front.
    • Internationalization of the issue: This might have led the international community to get involved.
    • No demand from within: It was Gandhi’s opinion that a lot of groundwork was still needed to raise the consciousness of the people, and the diverse political voices emerging within be brought under a common umbrella.

    Nehruvian dilemma

    • India’s global image: Nehru was headed in shaping India’s position in the comity of nations.
    • Trying peaceful options: He was trying to exhaust all options available to him given the circumstances that India was emerging from.
    • Portuguese obsession: Portugal had changed its constitution in 1951 to claim Goa not as a colonial possession, but as an overseas province.
    • Portugal in NATO: The move was apparently aimed at making Goa a part of the newly formed North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) military alliance. Hence the collective security clause of the treaty would be triggered.
    • Weak indigenous push: Nehru saw it prudent to pursue bilateral diplomatic measures with Portugal to negotiate a peaceful transfer while, at the same time, a more ‘overt’ indigenous push for liberation.

    Why did Nehru wait until December 1961 to launch a full-scale military offensive?

    India could no longer be seen to delay the liberation of Goa because:

    • Portuguese offensive against Satyagrahis: The firing incident also provoked a sharp response from the Government of India, which snapped diplomatic and consular ties with Portugal in 1955.
    • India as torchbearer of de-colonization: India got itself firmly established as a leader of the Non Aligned World and Afro Asian Unity, with decolonisation and anti-imperialism as the pillars of its policy.
    • Criticisms from African nations: An Indian Council of Africa seminar on Portuguese colonies organized in 1961 heard strong views from African as this was hampering their own struggles against the ruthless regime.
    • Weakening Colonialism: The delegates were certain that the Portuguese empire would collapse the day Goa was liberated.

    The debate in 2022

    • Politics needs to be charitable to history, because at some point it would be put to the same scrutiny and judgment as it becomes history itself.
    • Goa has seen 60 years of eventful liberation and successful amalgamation in the Indian Union.
    • It is more important for it to look ahead to its future than to rapidly receding, increasingly dim images in the rear-view mirror.

     

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  • What is Habeas Corpus?

    The Supreme Court has decided to examine a habeas corpus plea made by the children of a Pakistan national who they believe has been unlawfully detained for seven years.

    What is Habeas Corpus?

    • Habeas corpus is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court.
    • He/she can request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, to bring the prisoner to court, to determine whether the detention is lawful.
    • In India the power to issue a writ of habeas corpus is vested only in the Supreme Court and the High Court.
    • Habeas corpus is the writ which was visualized as an effective means to provide a quick remedy to a person who has lost his personal liberty without any legal justification.

    What is Article 32?

    • Article 32 deals with the ‘Right to Constitutional Remedies’, or affirms the right to move the Supreme Court by appropriate proceedings for the enforcement of the rights conferred in Part III of the Constitution.
    • It is one of the fundamental rights listed in the Constitution that each citizen is entitled.
    • It states that the Supreme Court “shall have the power to issue directions or orders or writs for the enforcement of any of the rights conferred by this Part”.
    • The right guaranteed by this Article “shall not be suspended except as otherwise provided for by this Constitution”.
    • Dr B R Ambedkar has called it the very soul and heart of the Constitution. It cannot be suspended except during the period of Emergency.

    Rights protected by A32

    • The article is included in Part III of the Constitution with other fundamental rights including to Equality, Freedom of Speech and Expression, Life and Personal Liberty, and Freedom of Religion.
    • Only if any of these fundamental rights is violated can a person can approach the Supreme Court directly under Article 32.

    Types of Writs under it

    Both the High Courts and the Supreme Court can be approached for violation or enactment of fundamental rights through five kinds of writs:

    1. Habeas corpus (related to personal liberty in cases of illegal detentions and wrongful arrests)
    2. Mandamus — directing public officials, governments, courts to perform a statutory duty;
    3. Quo Warranto — to show by what warrant is a person holding public office;
    4. Prohibition — directing judicial or quasi-judicial authorities to stop proceedings which it has no jurisdiction for; and
    5. Certiorari — re-examination of an order given by judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative authorities.
    • In civil or criminal matters, the first remedy available to an aggrieved person is that of trial courts, followed by an appeal in the High Court and then the Supreme Court.
    • When it comes to violation of fundamental rights, an individual can approach the High Court under Article 226 or the Supreme Court directly under Article 32.

     

     

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Which of the following is included in the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court?

    1. Dispute between the Government of India and one or more States
    2. A dispute regarding elections to either House of the parliament or that of Legislature of a State
    3. A dispute between the Government of India and Union Territory
    4. A dispute between two or more States.

    Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

    (a) 1 and 2

    (b) 2 and 3

    (c) 1 and 4

    (d) 3 and 4

     

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