The judiciary

IN earlier times, the legislature, the executive, and the bureaucracy were scared of the judiciary and of being punished for their wrongdoings, and all the three arms of the state were in turn afraid of the media in case they were investigated, and exposed to the public (“Shaky verdicts”, September 9).

Now judges appear to be yielding to the executive and the government in power and working to favour the rich and the powerful. There are umpteen cases where it has failed innocent litigants. Also, many important cases that have been filed before the apex court are gathering dust, with the court not taking them up. The surrender of the judiciary to the government will be the last nail in the coffin of democracy.

M.Y. SHARIFF

CHENNAI THE problem in India is its huge population (“Justice for the poor”, September 9). The justice system is unable to cater to an ever-growing volume of litigants. Only those who have money will have access to justice. The eminent jurist Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer said that while justice barked at all, it bit only the illiterate, the poor, and the ignorant.

B.R. Ambedkar believed that the courts should be for common people and should be easily available to redress their grievances. But the prohibitive cost of litigation means that “equality before the law” is a distant dream for most people.

KANGAYAM R. NARASIMHAN

CHENNAI