India has a long history of specific, specialised laws designed to counter terrorism. In seventies, our security forces were equipped with MISA or the Maintenance of internal security act and NSA or National security act. Along with these, the COFEPOSA (Conservation of foreign exchange and prevention of smuggling act) was extensively used to bring subversive elements to the book. The harshest of these laws named TADA was enacted in early eighties when Punjab was aflame with the barbaric activities of perverted Sikh terrorists helped by Pakistan. In 1995 however, the mode swung against such laws. Political parties succeeded in striking a nationwide consensus regarding the need to do away with the then prevailing TADA. Therefore, this act was not renewed by the parliament. Public opinion at that juncture was heavily tilted against TADA. It was believed that TADA was misused by State level Governments to eliminate or inactivate their democratic opponents. Rather than being used to combat the real terrorists, it was used extensively to victimise minorities, slam down on genuine public mobilisations for achieving legitimate common goals. The national media was afloat with facts, figures and chilling narrations of incidents where harmless, helpless people were put behind bars, brutally tortured under the cover of TADA. Their often mutilated dead bodies were either put away or handed over to lucky relatives who were told that their kith committed suicide in custody. Such oppression was either carried out on instructions from politicians (instructions from above being the common phrase here for verbal, unaccounted orders from politicians), or the civil bureaucracy did this to settle personal scores. Both the politician and the civil servant being heavily intoxicated by the rather undemocratic power TADA gave them. Thanks to an insecure democracy and revengeful ill tempered politicians. None realised that they were damaging liberal democracy beyond repair.
When the general elections of 1996 were in sight, all political parties realised the need for projecting a liberal, democratic, pro minority image. The Congress was warned of loosing lest it strengthened its Muslim vote bank and brought back to its fold those backward casts that were moving away towards specialised backward parties such as Mulayam Singh’s Samajvadi party. The BJP too was warned against projecting an exceptionally hard Hinduist agenda. Coupled with this is the reality that draconian laws are most extensively used near elections to imprison opponents of the ruling party. If Congress ruled in Maharashtra, then its opponent ruled in Uttar Pradesh. Both could misuse TADA to lock each other’s workers.
When the general elections of 1996 were in sight, all political parties realised the need for projecting a liberal, democratic, pro minority image. The Congress was warned of loosing lest it strengthened its Muslim vote bank and brought back to its fold those backward casts that were moving away towards specialised backward parties such as Mulayam Singh’s Samajvadi party. The BJP too was warned against projecting an exceptionally hard Hinduist agenda. Coupled with this is the reality that draconian laws are most extensively used near elections to imprison opponents of the ruling party. If Congress ruled in Maharashtra, then its opponent ruled in Uttar Pradesh. Both could misuse TADA to lock each other’s workers.
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