European countries are witnessing elections, with Netherlands having recently concluded its polls while France and Germany prepare for theirs. Meanwhile in India, state elections were held in five states including the key state of Uttar Pradesh. The elections across Europe are characterised by the rise of right-wing populism amidst global uncertainty and increasing nationalism.
Post the referendum to leave the EU, Britain has invoked Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon. The negotiations are expected to be fairly disputative given as they rally around potentially contentious domestic issues.
Back home the state election results in India, particularly that of UP which came to many as a surprise, not only indicate the popularity of the Prime Minister but also the hope and aspiration of the youth who believe that he can deliver. It could also be a result of the anti incumbency and a positive rating for demonetisation. The BJP appears to have broken social barriers as it was able to build on an unprecedented coalition of social groups including the upper castes and OBCs comprising of Dalits and tribals.
The big win in the assembly poll also paved the way for passing of the 122nd Constitutional Amendment Bill, the Good and Service Tax (GST), considered to be the biggest reform in India’s indirect tax structure. Given the mandate and the strength of the current government, it is also time for the Prime Minister to refocus his attention on foreign policy. With four key visits from the heads of States of Bangladesh, Australia, Nepal and Singapore, India should be looking at outlining a road map for cooperation in the Bay of Bengal and also in the Indian Ocean.
Although women make up for just 10 per cent of the current strength of judges, with the appointment of Ms Indira Banerjee as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, women have created history by heading the four major high courts of India. These High Courts - Madras, Bombay, Calcutta and Delhi were the first few created in colonial India. The appointment of women judges is a new milestone for the Indian Judiciary; the glass ceiling in the Indian judiciary has been cracked if not broken.
Although, women have been able to make it to the Judiciary, the rise of populist politicians across the world also signals a worrying trend of complacency and conformism. Professor Ramin Jahanbegloo points out that what we call ‘Trumpisation of politics’ is a symptom that is push- ing the zombified population into bubbles of protectionism, nativism and exclusion.
The Indian Express, in a recent report, imputed that the Gujarat Chief Minister wanted to make Gujarat shakahari (vegetarian) while describing Gujarat as a unique state that follows the principle of non-violence and truth as advocated by Mahatma Gandhi. However, while all parties attempt to usurp the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi for their vested interests, there is hardly any attempt to practice the true religion adopted by Gandhi which was founded on morality, humanity and peaceful co-existence. Instead political parties have encouraged violent display of religious sentiments.
Recently the Communist Party of India celebrated six decades since it first came to power as the largest opposition group in Parliament. The government of E.M.S. Namboodiripad focussed on building a welfare state while addressing the rights and needs of peasants and industrial workers. It also laid the foundation for the famous Kerala Model of development. The UP government waived the loans of 94 lakhs small and marginal farmers. The decision may provide temporary relief, nonetheless, it fails to address the fundamental cause of agrarian distress. New fault lines have developed. Issues of landlessness among tribal and Dalits, collapse of the agrarian economy, poor and instable public services and the unravelling communal relations call for reimagining politics and governance.
Furthermore, imposed conformism coupled with complacency or apathy defeats the foundation of democracy. Questioning and dissenting are the soul of democracy, while allegiance to democracy should not turn imperatively into allegiance to political party or personality. The President very timely reiterated the need for free speech and embracing liberal ideas in order to create a “sensitive and alive citizenry”. He also said Indians may be argumentative but can never be called intolerant.
The current issue presents a diverse selection of stimulating articles covering subject matters dealing with WTO and India, armed conflict, cyber crime and law, to name a few.
We take pride in celebrating the Seventh year of the journal with the publication of the 7th volume of the journal. The journal has strived to con- tribute to the existing academic discourse by bringing together contribu- tion from students and scholars from both India and abroad. The credit for its growing reputation and visibility goes entirely to the Chief Editor, Prof. Bimal N. Patel, while the editorial board of faculty and students strove to ensure that the editorial process was efficient and satisfactory.
The Editors takes this opportunity to thank the outgoing student edi- tors; Aesha Dey, Akarshita Dhawan, Esha Meher, Priyanka Divakar, Tarika Jain and Udita Bhatt, and also the present student editors who had dedi- cated and committed themselves to ensure the that the quality of GJLDP is maintained and that it meets the requirements of academic excellence. We hope that the incoming board of student editors will strive to honour the efforts of the past ten years and continue the tradition of academic scholar- ship and excellence.
- EDITORS
April 2016
GJLDP
Ashok Sajjanhar (HE Ashok Sajjanhar, Former Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan, Sweden and Latvia)
An earlier version of the paper was presented at Ambassador Lecture Series, organized by the Center for Foreign Policy and Security Studies, Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar in Collaboration with the Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India,On 3 October 2016.
I would like to thank Prof Bimal Patel, VC of GNLU and his team for the kind invita- tion. I would also like to thank XP Division of MEA and Sq Ldr Priya Joshi for making arrangements for my visit.
Ranjit Singh (Ranjit Singh is Assistant Professor (Part time) Guru Nanak Dev University Campus, Gurdaspur Punjab)
Abstract
Through rapid development of technology and internet over the years, the problem of cyber-crime has emerged as a global issue. The major issue is that the internet as a worldwide media can be accessed throughout the world and can be viewed in any part of the world, so it is an unsolved problem
that which particular law will be applicable for such a disputed transaction because of the different cyber laws of different countries. So the need of the hour is to tackle and combat the problem of cyber crime by enacting global law regulating cyberspace transactions. It would become much easier to regulate a particular online activity while assigning particular application of law upon such activity. It becomes mandate for all the concerned organizations, governments and peoples to take coordinated action to prevent cyber space crimes. Cyber crime has become an international problem so it is need of the hour to tackle the problem of cyber-crime through a common legal strategy which has universal sanction. It gave birth to serious problems and threats for law enforcement agencies all over the world. In this research article I present a worldwide problem of cyber-crime and efforts to tackle cyber terrorism at international level. Generally this article analyses the general framework of the international law for curbing cyber-crime.
Ozan Mert Imrek (Ozan Mert Imrek is presently pursuing LL.M in Constitutional and Administrative Law from Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar. He is also pursuing Bilingual Master’s Degree in International and European Law (Paris Nanterre/Potsdam)
Abstract
The use of armed forces for internal affairs is a practise which can be regulated, organized and performed by each and every state in the exercise of its own sovereignty. In spite of the fact that in modern, well-working democratic states the powers and functions of armed forces are, in principle, separated from the powers and functions of police and regulatory forces – the former in charge of defending the state from external threats, the latter in charge of opposing internal threats and maintaining law and order – most of the states have laid down legal provisions under which, in exceptional cases, the armed forces can be deployed within the national borders in order to oppose internal threats to the “national security”. Such is the case in India, Germany as well as France. In this respect, the present article aims to explain the problems and challenges related to the concerned practise, stressing that an abusive and extensive deployment of armed forces within the national borders not only infringes the key democratic principle of civilian authority over the military forces, but also provokes draconian violations of basis fundamental rights and civil liberties.
Anant Deogaonkar is a Ph.D student at School of Law, Gujarat University, Ahmedabad; and Assistant Professor of Law, Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar; Email: deogaonkaranant@gmail.com; danant@gnlu.ac.in, Harsha is an Advocate in Delhi High Court)
Abstract
The article basically focuses on the prominence and status of Death Penalty in our county by analysing the 262nd Law Commission Report which apparently suggests the abolition of death penalty for all the crime in eternity except for the offences related to the terrorist activity and waging war against the State. Further the authors tried to understand the different rationale of death penalty as deterrence theory of punishment. Moving further the article discusses various aspects or results of abolition of death penalty in a wide and vast country like India which is so diversified. Focusing on the Nirbhaya Case and the Criminal Amendment of 2013, the article scrutinizes the position of our nation in abolishing the death penalty in cases of sexual offences or rape cases. In the concerned segment, the article also focuses on the public’s sentiments over the offences related to sexual harassment and rape. The various aspects of the abolition of death penalty in offences against the State is discussed and analysed keeping the Report at the Centre. Examples of different countries like, Nepal, Bhutan are discussed and the after-effects are taken into consideration. At the end, the author concluded the article with few recommendations.
Vedant Dikshit (Vedant Dikshit, is a Student of B.A. LL.B. (Hons.), NALSAR University of Law)
Abstract
Since Mughal times it has been tradition in India to govern the personal matter of various communities with their personal customs and usages. When the British arrived in India they tried to continue the similar tradition but along with their own variation. This intervention of the British destroyed the established Hindu legal system and rigidified the Hindu Law. The British in their intervention into the personal law of Hindus committed various mistake (either due to ignorance or carelessness). (i) The first mistake or ignorance of the British was their presumption that if not single figure head, there exist a single “universal” and “authoritative” text which contains in it principles to govern law of Hindus. (ii) The Second mistake by the British was creation of a law on the basis of the limited text they got from pundits of Banaras and Bengal and applying principles of those limited texts and interpretation of these 11 priests of that text to whole of India.
Thus, in a way the British completely ignored the local concerns, identities and customs, which at a later point of time would be simply termed by the British as superstitions. The British calling certain practices as superstitions, would eventually form the ground for calling India as backward and thus forming a claim justifying the British rule on India. This article aims to understand the attempt of the British to codify the un-codified Hindu Law and in this process to codify the Hindu law how the British misunderstood the Hindu law and thus created a stagnant and rigid Anglo Saxon Hindu law. Also, along with the description of the British misunderstanding of Hindu Law, the nature of Ancient Hindu law would be presented.
Debasis Poddar
(Debasis Poddar, Assistant Professor of Law, National University of Study and Research in Law, Ranchi, Jharkhand)
Case: Hans Raj Jain v. Delhi University, 2016 SCC OnLine CIC 4129
Dr K. Parameswaran (Dr K. Parameswaran is Associate Professor of Law, Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar)
Book Review: Edited by Sumit Ganguly, Engaging the World: Indian Foreign Policy Since 1947 (India: Oxford University Press, 2016), Hardbound, 522 pages, Indian Rupees 995.
