Context
The Supreme Court has expressed disapproval over “bulldozer justice” wherein houses of accused individuals are demolished.
About
- ‘Bulldozer justice’, also known as bulldozer politics, refers to the exercise of the usage of the heavy-duty piece of machinery to demolish houses of alleged criminals, communal violence rioters and accused criminals.
- As a part of ‘bulldozer justice’, houses, stores and small institutions have been bulldozed throughout India, in particular in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Assam and Maharashtra.
Supreme Court Ruling
- The Supreme Court said that no property can be demolished just because the accused is involved in a criminal offence.
- Even if he is a convict, nevertheless it can’t be carried out without following the method as prescribed by law.
- The court underscored the significance of due process and natural justice before any demolitions are done and expressed the need for nationwide guidelines to deal with this issue.
Issues with Bulldozer Justice
- Targeting Marginalized Communities: Bulldozer justice disproportionately affects marginalized and minority communities, perpetuating existing inequalities and social divisions.
- Undermining the Rule of Law: Bulldozer justice bypasses established legal methods, undermining the standards of rule of law and due method, which erode public belief in political establishments.
- Violation of Human Rights: The practice of bulldozer justice frequently violates basic human rights, including the right to shelter and protection from arbitrary state action.
- The loss of resettlement or compensation for the ones evicted increases critical moral concerns.
- Ethical issues: Bulldozer justice conflates the roles of judge, jury, and executioner, leading to unjust outcomes. Punishments should be proportional and directed at the guilty, not innocent family members.
- Psychological Trauma: The surprising and often violent nature of demolitions can cause high psychological trauma, not only for the people at once affected, but for entire communities.
Way Ahead
- Bulldozer Justice creates a tradition of worry and retribution, where humans are punished without a truthful trial in which they are able to guard themselves.
- This technique is essentially at odds with the concepts of justice and the rule of law, the ethos India’s founding fathers considered to be an critical issue of a civilized democracy.
- In a democratic society, justice has to not be about retribution, and punitive measures have to be aimed at reforming the responsible.
What is Retributive justice?
- It is a principle of justice that emphasizes punishment as the primary reaction to wrong doing.
- According to this principle, while someone commits a criminal offense, they need to be punished in share to the severity in their offense.
- The underlying precept is that punishment must be morally suitable to the crime committed, reflecting a balance among the harm done by the offender and the suffering they are made to endure as a consequence.
Source: The Indian Express