‘…True faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India…’

I, Narendra Damodardas Modi, do swear in the name of God that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India as by law established, that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India, that I will faithfully and conscientiously discharge my duties as Prime Minister of the Union and that I will do right to all manner of people in accordance with the Constitution and the law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.” This is the oath Modi took when he assumed office, the first time on May 26, 2014, and again on May 30, 2019. It doesn’t seem like a difficult oath to keep, for it makes no demands on personal honesty or integrity, transparency, probity or even truthfulness. Yet, there are disturbing signs that people close to him are preventing him from keeping his solemn pledge to the nation.

Two events of the recent past raise fundamental questions on the nature of our Republic and the direction in which it is headed. Some facts are clear: ‘Rule of law’ is under serious threat from the very agencies that are meant to uphold the law and enforce order. The police force in some states have become vigilante forces of the ruling party. And finally, Muslims and Dalits are no longer regarded as equal citizens of our Republic.

Now for the details. The Special CBI Court judge on the criminal conspiracy behind the destruction of the Babri Masjid, who wrote the 2,300-page judgement, found that there was neither a ‘planned conspiracy’ nor was anyone responsible for demolishing the mosque. It flies in the face of the Supreme Court’s observation that the destruction of the mosque was “an egregious violation of the rule of law.” The Babri Masjid demolition case verdict puts a lid on any hope of ‘rule of law’. But the judge’s inability to convict anyone was due to the result of an utterly incompetent investigation by the CBI or the lack of adequate evidence presented by them. It should be a matter of serious concern to the Prime Minister and the nation that our premier investigative agency is so lacking in competence and merit.

The second is the incident of gang-rape and heinous murder of a Dalit girl in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh. Tragically, rapes seem commonplace in our country -- 87 girls are raped every day on average in India. What is shocking in Uttar Pradesh is the State support to criminals, with the police themselves destroying all evidence of the crime. The subsequent efforts to forcibly keep the family of the victim away from the media and the curfew imposed on Hathras have raised questions on the police’s complicity in, at the very least, suppressing the voice of the family. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has decided to hand over the investigation to the CBI, the agency that has now become infamous for its media trials rather than for successfully pursuing its cases in the courts, where it has a dismal record.

Further, going after the victims of crimes as perpetrators of a crime themselves is a new weapon of statecraft practiced by BJP governments at the Centre and in the states since the days of mob lynching of Muslims in the name of cow protection, and now perfected with the anti-CAA riots case. Over 1,500 students and ordinary citizens, along with a few prominent ones, have been booked for protesting against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and dozens have been detained under the draconian UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) wherein no bail can be granted. What is worse, the Delhi Police have linked the protesters to the East Delhi riots in late February 2020, while brazenly ignoring the open calls to violence made by Union ministers and leaders of the BJP. Almost all the accused belong to the very community that suffered the maximum casualties in the violence.

The hostility of the police is not reserved for Muslims alone. The Dalits, too, have borne the brunt of their attacks, from as early as January 2018 as evidenced in the Bhima-Koregaon protests in Maharashtra. The Mahars had gathered under the banner of Elgar Parishad to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Mahar Regiment’s victory against Peshwa Baji Rao II. When a group of upper caste Hindus attacked the peaceful gathering, there was widespread violence in the state. Instead of arresting the culprits, several prominent social activists such as Varvara Rao, Sudha Bhardwaj, Gautam Navlakha and Prof Anand Teltumbde were arrested under the UAP Act.

“I will do right to all manner of people in accordance with the Constitution and the law, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will” is the oath the Prime Minister has sworn by the Constitution. The responsibility of the Prime Minister in both cases is direct as the CBI functions under him and the Uttar Pradesh government is headed by his trusted lieutenant.

To be true to his oath, the Prime Minister must sack the entire team that investigated the Babri Masjid case and order the CBI to go on appeal against the special court verdict. Further, he should ask UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to crack the whip and sack the police officials complicit in destroying the evidence in the Hathras gang-rape and murder case. That again is not much to ask, for what is at stake is the sanctity of the oath of office. Surely, this affects his reputation and image, though one is not clear which comes first for him.

Yet, it is early days in his second term and much good can still come out of it if the Prime Minister keeps his pledge to the nation.

(The writer, a former Cabinet Secretariat official, is Visiting Fellow, ORF, New Delhi)