How Not to Be a Lawmaker

Lawmakers in India are very fortute people. Whether they are members of Parliament or of legislative assemblies they do not have to worry about having the requisite qualifications to become lawmakers, since there are none. While it is true that the number of fairly educated lawmakers has increased both in Parliament and in the State legislative assemblies, the fact remains that there are still some lawmakers who are almost illiterate. This fact has not prevented them from representing their electorates in legislative bodies or from making laws for others. As such, the only qualification that people can think of insisting on for lawmakers is that they should at least not be breaking the laws that they make for others or associating with lawbreakers at any time. But with the passing of time, even this desirable qualification for lawmakers has got thrown out of the window. We now have an increasing number of lawmakers who maintain close links with lawbreakers and also a number of lawmakers who are themselves lawbreakers.

The case of Congress MLA Rumi th’s association with Anil Chauhan, the kingpin of the countrywide automobile theft racket is getting murkier by the hour considering her disappearance for a couple of days and the statements that she made to television channels, but had to retract later under rigorous cross-examition by the police. It will be recalled that Rumi th had told jourlists that she did not even know Anil Chauhan but only knew his present wife who was a Congress worker. She also said that the car passes for entrance to the Assembly complex that she had secured were not in the me of Anil Chauhan but in his wife’s me. The rigorous grilling by the police has revealed that Rumi th not only knew Anil Chauhan but had also stayed in his house. There is also the mystery of the expensive cars that she has been using to be explained satisfactorily. All said and done, the court has done well to keep her in jail and to reject her bail petitions on the ground that she could use her influence to hamper the investigations. As a result, Rumi th constitutes another addition to our ignoble list of lawbreaking lawmakers.