Orissa government’s knee-jerk reaction to Biranchi murder case

Heads have been rolling in the aftermath of the sensational Biranchi murder case, the latest one belongs to no lesser person than the commissioner of the police (Cuttack-Bhubaneswar) B.K. Behera. The top cop has been transferred after gangster Raja Acharya alleged that Behera had met him at least once after the former was released from jail. It comes across as a typical knee-jerk reaction by the state government which has been left rattled by the sensational murder case especially when the elections are round the corner. The state government denies media reports being the cause of the decision but it offers no explanation as to why the decision was taken at a high level meeting presided over by the Chief Minister.

More than a dozen policemen have already been transferred in the aftermath of the Judo coach’s murder case. Although most of these transfers have been described as routine transfers, no one, not even those in the administration really believe it. These are mostly triggered by media reports alleging gangster-police-politician nexus. So far the media as well as the administrators have not shown any tangible evidence to prove their contention. Allegations of gangster-politician nexus require no proof simply because a lot of times it becomes difficult to distinguish one from the other. However, more proofs are required in allegations of gangsters-police nexus. Need I say that when we talk of nexus we imply a rather pro-active role and not something passive and widespread such as corruption.

Behera’s transfer is most likely to be result of gangster Raja Acharya’s allegation that the he had a meeting with former Commissioner of Police before the high profile Biranchi murder case. The gangster who already is involved in more than 30 criminal cases is not known to be a particularly honest and truthful person on whose testimony one could rely enough to nail a top cop of the state. It should be borne in mind that already there have been too many twists and turns in the investigation of the Biranchi murder case. Media loves sensationalism and for the local media this high profile murder and the subsequent “revelations”, charges and counter-charges provided the perfect opportunity to capture their viewer’s attention. It went overboard covering this episode and in the process created an icon out of a psychopathic killer on the run. Local media’s weakness for sensationalism allowed it to be hijacked by criminals and outlaws. Gangsters and extortionists feed on the fear and insecurities of the ordinary people. This trend in criminal world is different from the traditional robbery, kidnapping, theft and other criminal methods so that in the former most of the times the extortionists don’t even have to attack the victim, the threat of an attack is enough to extort ransoms. In such circumstances it is the notoriety of the extortionist that is the key factor in the criminal operations.

For gangsters and extortionists who make fortunes by extorting exorbitant amount of money from ordinary people these sorts of media exposures only helps them gain more notoriety which is so vital in their profession. This is not a very recent phenomenon either, last few years the local media has been consistently glamorizing the gangsters by publishing/ airing news about them which have later been found to have been exaggerated, inappropriately presented or even false. This sort of journalism manages to create a sense of fear and insecurity among the citizenry making them soft targets for gangsters and extortionists. The local media is having a field day covering the investigation of Biranchi murder case but it is also in the process catapulting the killers to the heights of notoriety and providing them major career boost. This also raises the question, if the media has all along being manipulated by these criminals to achieve more notoriety.

It should be noted that Raja’s accomplice was arrested in Bhopal as he was being interviewed by a news agency. The gangster caused quite a sensation by alleging involvement of certain high profile individuals. These allegations were later found to be false but they had already hogged the headlines and entered the public memory. The main accused Raja Acharya’s video-graphed interview released to the media after Biranchi’s murder points to the fact that not only was the murder pre-planned, the hijacking of the media in its aftermath was a well thought out stratagem and it paid off too.

        If the media lacked in certain areas, the political leadership of the state stepped in to compensate it. By transferring the police commissioner on the basis of an allegation leveled by a hardened criminal, the Naveen Patnaik government has set a new precedence. This knee-jerk reaction is most likely to have been triggered by government’s lack of confidence in the assembly election coming up next year. The top cop’s transfer is likely to have a demoralizing effect on the entire police force. As a typical commoner I don’t have much affection for the police force but in this instance I cannot but sympathize with them.

Marathon Prodigy’s Mentor, Biranchi Das Shot Dead

Marathon prodigy Buddia Singh’s coach and mentor, Biranchi Das was shot dead today in Bhubaneswar.

Lately, Biranchi Das had been in the midst of controversies and even had to go to the jail on charges of exploitation and torture. Buddhia Singh was just one of the millions kids born every day in poverty stricken slums. It is quite likely that like everyone else Buddhia would have grown up without education and training of any sort, by the time he was able to walk he would have been employed in a roadside dhaba, a tea-stall or would have been picking rags. If he were really lucky he would have been hired as a domestic help in contravention of existing laws.

However, none of this happened because Buddhia’s mother tried to sell him for a paltry sum of money and it was judo coach Biranchi Das who paid the money and adopted Buddhia. It was under Biranchi’s tutelage that Buddhia’s talent was discovered and honed. Well, I don’t really know what exactly was the equation between the coach and the pupil but surely Buddhia couldn’t have been a marathon runner without any training.

Anyway, Buddhia did become a star overnight and so did his coach and foster-father, Biranchi Das. The coach created an icon out of his pupil, the pupil in turn made a hero out of his mentor. But fame and success do not come without a price. As Buddhia became a house-hold name, his mother was back to claim parentage of the same kid she had sold for a meagre amount. Not wanting to be denied their share of fame through the media, the Women and Child Welfare ministry threw its lot in accusing Biranchi Das of exploiting the child prodigy for personal gains. Biranchi was still embroiled in legal battle when Buddhia Singh and his mother accused Biranchi of having tortured him. This accusation may have been politically motivated, since before the controversy Buddhia had always maintained that he was being treated well. In fact Buddhia had always shown his fondness of Biranchi on camera.

Anyway, the ministry was determined to separate the coach and the pupil and they eventually managed to citing health reasons. Even if the minister was correct in saying that marathon at this age would have adverse effect on the child’s health, one is tempted to ask what the ministry has been doing for thousands of Buddhia scourging dust bins and dump yards to make a living.

Operation Park: Moral Policing or Violation of Civil Rights

As of now I have not been following news events in my home state of Orissa, a poor, backward, under-developed but relatively peaceful state. But a few recent events have been persistently nudging me to not only follow the developments but also take stands on them. I am talking about the violence in Kandhamal, Maoist raid in Nayagarh and frequent instances of mob violence often resulting in fatalities. However, the latest incidence of moral policing by agencies affiliated to the government compels me to speak out. A few days back State Women Commission chairperson Namita Panda along with some local police personnel launched a raid on a city park to nab young couples allegedly engaging in clandestine activities. In what is strangely reminiscent of the infamous “Operation Majnu” in Uttar Pradesh, Ms. Panda’s operation, code named “Operation Park” was carried out in full media glare so as to send out a message to the youth to abide by the diktats of self-anointed custodians of Indian culture.

Both these operations are not isolated incidences but manifestations of a deep-rooted confusion regarding Indian culture, globalization and women empowerment. I will not question on what authority Ms. Panda took the step or why the police accompanied her, almost everyone knows that the SCW is a purely advisory body with no real executive power to take action even for securing justice. So it is really confounding why SCW presumed it had the authority to enforce its will on private individuals. Anyway, questions on authority and jurisdiction are best left to the administration and the Courts, what we should be concerned about is the mindset behind this alarming behavior. This particular incidence is by no means an isolated one, for years police in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack have been conducting raids on cyber cafes, hotels and other joints where couples retreat for more privacy. Ms. Panda justified her action as a measure to prevent the rising number of unwed pregnancy and rape in the state. The implication is that younger people of opposite sex indulging in immoral activities like holding hands, sitting side by side or females wearing unconventional clothing, actually encourage and abet crimes against themselves. This outrageous assumption only proves that the SCW is not only out of touch with reality but is also working to defeat the very purpose for which it was created. If the law enforcement agencies are unable to control the rising rate of crimes against women, they should introspect instead of imposing restrictions on free society. India’s penal law does include provisions to punish individuals for creating nuisance or acting obscenely (Section 294 IPC ), but the definition of “obscenity” should be interpreted by the Courts, not private individuals and law enforcement agencies, especially when the involved individuals are consenting adults. SCW and police are not the only agencies assuming the role of custodians of morality; this chauvinistic mindset can be found in some individuals in every strata of society.

Lets not talk on the identical mindset and behavior of fundamentalists and rightists; at least they don’t live on tax-payer’s money. But nonetheless the underlying sentiment is the same; to protect women and society in general some people find it necessary to impose their own beliefs on everyone else. We conservative Indians still nurture the medieval mindset according to which a woman is supposed to stay within certain limits for her own safety. Actually there is nothing wrong with this assumption except that law enforcement agencies and bodies established to emancipate and empower women, should go after those committing crimes against women. By preaching morality in this context, the agencies in a manner end up justifying the crime.

This trend bears an uncanny semblance to the one practiced by the Taliban in Afghanistan. The Taliban too believed, or at least argued that women needed to be draped from head to toe and confined to their houses to safeguard their honor and safety. It actually seems more logical than what the self-declared custodians of Indian culture and morality would have us believe. If the best way to protect women from male predators is by segregating women and imposing restrictions on them then the Taliban being predators themselves did a nice job by locking them up. However, we do not want Talibanization because we do not wish to miss the globalization bus either. We want our women to take active part in every sphere but at the same time we don’t want her to abandon her traditional role as a symbol of honor of the family/clan/tribe. In this era of globalization as co-educational institutions mushroom and members of the fairer sex take up professions which had been till now male-dominated, it is impossible to prevent interaction between members of both the genders. It also follows that with chauvinistic mindset that a lot of us possess sexual crimes will increase with time. The answer to this problem is not stricter vigil or gender-based segregation but sex education and gender-sensitization. If SCW is serious about taking steps to tackle the rising number of unwed pregnancies and sexual abuse it should press for sex education in institutions and take the help of the media to create gender sensitization. If certain individuals indulge in obscene activities or create public nuisance or one of them is a minor the police (not SCW) is well within its rights to take action but the agencies clearly exceed their jurisdiction while raiding public parks and cyber-cafes, especially when no case of obscenity or public nuisance can be made out against the involved individuals. In case of minors, instilling moral values is a prerogative of the parents, the state or its agencies have no business meddling in their personal affairs but when it involves consenting adults it is a clear violation of the individual’s civil right.