The Supreme Court of India today essentially declared Nupur Sharma a blasphemer. The same court, which had once proudly proclaimed that dissent is the safety valve of democracy, has today blamed former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma and her speech for the brutal beheading of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur by two remorseless Islamists. They also, much like the Islamists who blame women for their loose conduct to justify their stoning, blamed Nupur Sharma for her “loose tongue” for the sectarian chaos that had transpired in the country recently.
In their comments, the venerated Milords also said that Nupur Sharma should apologise to the nation. They mocked with sarcasm when they were told that Nupur Sharma was cooperating with the investigation – ‘They must be red carpeting you’.
“Sometimes power goes into head”, the Milord said. “People think that I have backup and say anything”, he continued to thunder, shattering the myth that the judiciary would help a woman who was getting death threats and rape threats for merely making some comments on a televised debate show.
As per reports, Nupur Sharma had moved the SC seeking the transfer of all the FIRs registered against her, across several states to Delhi for further investigation. Sharma, in her application, stated that she is facing constant life threats. The SC has not stopped at just blaming one woman for violence and murder committed by religious fanatics in the name of Islam, it has also refused to grant any relief to Sharma and has rejected her application to transfer all FIRs against her to Delhi.
The Supreme Court, essentially said that it was owing to Nupur Sharma’s “loose tongue” that the Islamists went into a fit of rage, rioted, called for her death, her rape, and beheaded a Hindu man who had supported her. It was her loose tongue. The woman should have known her place. The damn woman should have kept her mouth shut. And now that she displayed the temerity of actually holding an opinion, she needs to be hanged, with the medieval crowds cheering and casting stones at the witch.
The Islamists, interestingly, have offered similar justifications for their calls for violence. They have said that any “Gustakh-e-Nabi” attracts the death penalty – if the courts won’t give it, they will. They have reiterated that they are a peaceful people and want to live in harmony, however, if their wishes and sentiments are not respected, then they can legitimately go on a murder spree because that would be protecting the sanctity of their religion, not murder per se. They claim this because for the Islamist, the law of the land means paltry little. They owe their allegiance to their religious law that sanctions the beheading of errant Kafirs.
The Supreme Court, however, is meant to uphold the law of the land and their comments go as far as to legitimise the street veto of the Islamists. With its comments, the Supreme Court has insinuated that it was legitimate for the Islamists to go on a beheading spree if comments, any comments, hurt their sentiments, thereby, ratifying the justification given by the murderers.
Since the Supreme Court seems to be convinced that Nupur Sharma’s “loose tongue” is responsible for the barbarity heaped on Kanhaiya Lal, they should perhaps introspect and wonder if their “loose tongues” are to be blamed for their judges being threatened after certain verdicts.
In March 2020, Judges of the Karnataka High Court, who had delivered the Hijab verdict, were issued threats and two Islamists were arrested for it. While Kovai Rahamathulla was arrested from Tirunelveli, S. Jamal Mohammad Usmani was taken into custody from Thanjaur. Both the arrests took place on Saturday night. The accused are office bearers of the Tamil Nadu Towheed Jamaat (TNTJ).
According to a Business Standard report, “A video of the accused Kovai Rahamathulla went viral where he allegedly instigates violence against the Karnataka judges. In his speech, the accused mentions a district judge in Jharkhand being mowed down last year while the latter was out on a morning walk. He even stated that people know where the Chief Justice of Karnataka goes to walk in the morning”.
Based on this, the accused was arrested.
Given the logic employed by the Supreme Court today in Nupur Sharma’s verdict, the Supreme Court must ask its own High Court Judges whether they agree with the contention that it was their “loose tongue” that “provoked” the Islamists to call for the murder of the judges. Clearly, what is good for the goose has to be good for the gander – or are a different set of standards supposed to be employed for average citizens and Milords, who we look upon when we need protection?
Would the Supreme Court ask the Karnataka High Court judges to apologise to the nation because the judgement inspired the Islamists to ask for their murder? Would the Supreme Court blame the Judge’s “loose tongue” for the chaos by Islamists that followed their verdict? Would the Supreme Court ask the HC judges to apologise to the nation? If it indeed is the Judge’s “loose tongue” that should be blamed, why were they given Y category security? And if they were given security, why did Nupur Sharma deserve the snark and the abhorrent comments stripping her of her dignity and fundamental right to free speech?
More recently, the judge who ordered the survey of the disputed structure called Gyanvapi mosque, received a threatening letter by Islamists. The letter was sent by Islamic Aaghaz Movement and accused the judge of also going ‘saffron’ in the times of ‘hateful politics’ in India. Calling him ‘kafir’ and ‘idol worshiper’, the Islamist group claimed that no Muslim can expect fairness from a ‘saffronised’ judge. The letter further accused him of siding with ‘extremist Hindus’ and under pressure from the Gujarati Prime Minister will declare Mughals as looters. Would the Supreme Court judges who made these remarks against Nupur Sharma blame the judge in this case and say that he got threats due to his “loose tongue”? The judge had expressed his anguish saying that an atmosphere of fear was being created – would the Supreme Court judges ask him to apologise to the nation?
Would the Supreme Court hold itself responsible if Islamists go on a rampage and harm the Ram Mandir being constructed at Ayodhya, given that despite the SC order, the Islamists have been threatening to bring the temple down to restore the illegal Babri Masjid structure? If Nupur Sharma meets the same fate as Kanhaiya Lal, would the Supreme Court hold its “loose tongue” responsible and “apologise to the nation”? Would it concede that “Sometimes the power goes into the head. People think that I have backup and say anything”? Would it?
The Judiciary, in its infinite wisdom, needs to decide if they wish to be Islamic clerics or maintain natural justice while dispensing cases. Today, it can be respectfully, but safely concluded, that the Judiciary has certainly not painted itself in glory with the insidious remarks made as Nupur Sharma was thrown to the Islamist wolves.