Facebook Pixel Democracy on Trial: From the Rule of Law to Rule by Law | The New Indian Express Tiruchy - newspaper - Lees dit verhaal op Magzter.com
Ga onbeperkt met Magzter GOLD

Ga onbeperkt met Magzter GOLD

Krijg onbeperkte toegang tot meer dan 9000 tijdschriften, kranten en Premium-verhalen voor slechts

$149.99
 
$74.99/Jaar

Poging GOUD - Vrij

Democracy on Trial: From the Rule of Law to Rule by Law

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

|

August 25, 2025

The growing use of laws like UAPA and PMLA to target political opponents and dissenters reveals a disturbing trend of abuse of legal frameworks. The latest Bills pave the way for a new form of dictatorship.

- KAPIL SIBAL

Democracy is to weaponise laws and target those opposing the government. This government seems to have converted this into an art.

I recall the day the amendment to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA), was taken up for discussion in Parliament. The Home Minister openly stated that this was necessary, for none could oppose the inclusion of terrorists and terrorist organisations in the First Schedule of the UAPA, seeking to destabilise our Republic. I intervened and expressed my fears that these laws are likely to be used against our citizens; it has turned out to be a reality. The prosecution of young students, like Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, under those laws has resulted in them languishing in jail for years without a trial. Such laws have been used against journalists, academics, and members of religious communities in this country. The obvious intent was to silence them.

The weaponisation of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) is evident in its widespread use against political opponents, including chief ministers and ministers from opposition-ruled states, such as Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain, Hemant Soren, and Farooq Abdullah, among others. Valiant attempts were made to move against Siddaramaiah, but they came to nought. These laws have also been used to instil fear in several leaders who were once part of the opposition but have been persuaded to join the BJP to save themselves from prosecution and imprisonment. The BJP has, particularly in Maharashtra, rewarded opposition leaders against whom serious allegations of corruption were publicly made for causing a split in their erstwhile parties. They are now part of the coalition ruling Maharashtra.

MEER VERHALEN VAN The New Indian Express Tiruchy

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

Destination wedding, Agniveers in Saini focus

THE Haryana government has proposed to set up three ‘wedding cities’ in the state in the next financial year that will attract guests from all around the world for destination weddings.

time to read

1 mins

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

LoP status: Cong asks Uddhav to give up claim on lone Maha RS seat

Fierce contest for seat

time to read

1 min

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

AI agents to power India’s next technology leap: Ashok Krish

ARTIFICIAL intelligence will define India’s next technological leap, and building a scalable ecosystem of Al agents is key to that transformation, said Ashok Krish, Global Head — Advisory and Consulting, AI Cloud, Tata Consultancy Services, at ThinkEdu Conclave 2026 on Monday.

time to read

1 mins

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

Important to recognise our progress, says ex-IIM prof

FORMER professor at IIM Bangalore, Dr R Vaidyanathan, dove deeper into how strategic alignment between the population, policy and productivity becomes critical to growth during a discussion on the theme ‘Advantage Bharat: Technology, Economy and Demography as Growth Drivers’, moderated by TNIE’s editor Santwana Bhattacharya on Monday.

time to read

1 mins

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

SC flags 'AI-generated fake verdicts' of court, terms it misconduct

TAKING serious exception to a trial court relying on alleged AI (Artificial Intelligence) generated judgments, the Supreme Court recently said a decision based on such fake verdicts would not be an error in decision-making but would amount to misconduct.

time to read

1 min

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

‘India to get 3 home-grown chip plants’

INDIA plans to roll out three additional homegrown semiconductor plants this year, S Krishnan, secretary in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), said on Monday, adding that the projects would expand the country’s nascent manufacturing base.

time to read

1 min

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

HC flags delay by govt in filing appeals, orders probe

Such cases should be examined by the vigilance department to find whether the delay was result of gross negligence or a case of connivance

time to read

1 mins

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

SAMSON FINDS BALANCE AS INDIA EXCEL IN CITY OF JOY

Batter scripts a dream turnaround at Eden Gardens, where his slide began in Jan last year

time to read

3 mins

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

'Social media now a tool of polarisation'

FORMER union minister Smriti Z Irani said the future of India lies in science and technology, and cautioned that social media has shifted from being a tool of democratisation to an instrument of polarisation, during a conversation titled 'From Welfare to Development: Women in Viksit Bharat 2047' with Prabhu Chawla, editorial director of TNIE, at the 14th edition of the ThinkEdu Conclave on Monday.

time to read

1 min

March 03, 2026

The New Indian Express Tiruchy

DMK the only strong force that can defeat communal forces: Jawahirullah

AMID ongoing tensions within the DMK-led alliance over seat sharing and the demand by some parties to contest on their own symbols instead of the DMK’s ‘rising sun’, Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK) president M H Jawahirullah has firmly defended his stand.

time to read

3 mins

March 03, 2026

Listen

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size