The Supreme Court has done the country proud by pulling up the government for not releasing 16 Pakistani nationals who have completed their prison terms and for arguing that these prisoners are being held to negotiate a swap with Indian nationals in Pakistan prisons.
Judges Markandey Katju and RM Lodha asserted that no one should remain in prison for a second after they have completed their sentence.
This was a resounding declaration of the basic tenet of rule of law that individual liberty is of paramount value and that it cannot be used as a bargain chip in diplomatic or other negotiation processes. This need not be used to score brownie points against Pakistan where the rule of law has had a troubled existence.
On the contrary it should be both a gentle and firm reminder to the country that what distinguishes India more than its economic power and military might is its commitment to the rule of law and liberty.
Many people, both from the right and left ends of the political spectrum ardently believe that individual liberty is a bourgeois fetish and that it can be dispensed with for reasons of state.
The courts have always come to the rescue of the individual and asserted time and again and tirelessly that individual liberty is inviolable and that it can be curbed, and in rare circumstances deprived, only through the due process of law. This fundamental principle is established with greater conviction and authority when it is extended to individuals who are not Indian nationals.
This is sure to raise the hackles of those who believe that India should take a hard line against Pakistan in the face of the many provocations, direct and indirect, from the other side of the border.
The court has proved that the law's credibility and the commitment of the nation to liberty faces its real rest when it is not bound to extend to those who are not citizens of the country.
Due credit also needs to be given to petitioners Panther Party leader Bhim Singh and advocate BS Billowriya for taking up the cause of these 16 Pakistani prisoners, risking the taunts of the right-wing hotheads that they are pleading for the enemy.
Human rights activists can be irritating and a nuisance as well but we need such gadflies to keep Indian democracy on an even keel. The roots of democracy can be strengthened only through the defense of individual freedoms, even if those individuals happen to be Pakistan nationals.
