The Hypocrisy of Liberals

Favour of the self-proclaimed 'liberals' is lost the minute religion intervenes

- Saiyyad Mohammad Nizamuddin Pasha

THE much criticised judgement of the Supreme Court of January 5, 2026 has brought into sharp focus the draconian nature of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 with its vague definition of 'terrorism' and related unlawful acts, that increasingly serve as convenient tools to stifle dissent in the country.

It has also sparked a debate on the manner in which the Supreme Court, and more generally the judiciary in India, has come to tailor justice to the size of the Chancellor's foot.

But the judgement is, in fact, unique for one more reason. It marks the first time in public discourse that Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam were spoken about in the same breath and the two were painted with the same brush. All the narrative before that, and much of the public debate since has centred on Khalid, relegating Imam to, at best, a byline and, at worst, a figure who was, in fact, deserving of the treatment being meted out by the Indian State. This dichotomy has exposed the greatest shortcoming of the liberal discourse.