SC must put end to daily abuse of law: Chidambaram after court says Imam, 10 others made scapegoats

A court discharged 11 people, including student activists Imam and Asif Iqbal Tanha, who participated in anti-CAA protests, saying they were made 'scapegoats'

Senior Congress MP and former finance minister P Chidambaram on Sunday demanded that the Supreme Court put an end to "daily abuse of law" of the criminal justice system that tolerates pre-trial incarceration, a day after a Delhi court discharged Sharjeel Imam and 10 others in the 2019 Jamia Nagar violence case.

Separately, he also found fault with Finance Secretary T V Somanathan's remarks that the housing loan was not saving and that he should "re-examine his theory".

Referring to the Jamia case in which 11 people who participated in anti-CAA protests in 2019 were arrested, Chidambaram asked whether there was prima facie evidence against the accused.

"The court's conclusion: unequivocal no. Some accused have been lodged in jail for nearly three years. Some got bail after many months. This is pre-trial incarceration. An inept police and overzealous prosecutors are responsible for keeping citizens in jail before trial. What action will be taken against them?" Chidambaram said.

Also read | Jamia Nagar violence: Court discharges 11 accused, says booked as 'scapegoats'

Asking who will give them back the months or years that they spent in jail, he said, "Our criminal justice system that tolerates pre-trial incarceration is an affront to the Constitution of India, especially Articles 19 and 21. The SC must put an end to this daily abuse of the law. The sooner the better. Bless the trial courts that push back against the abuse of the law and uphold liberty."

Discharging the 11, the court had said that they were being made "scapegoats".

On Somanathan's comments, Chidambaram said, "the Finance Secretary asks 'Is the housing loan a saving?' His answer is 'No'. I wonder how many people will agree with the Finance Secretary."

Arguing that the payment of interest and the installments of the loan is "indeed an expenditure, but it is expenditure which is converted into an asset, which is a saving", he said, "suppose you spend the same money on a holiday or at a race course: there will be no asset at the end. The Finance Secretary should re-examine his theory that a Housing Loan is not a saving."

Somanathan had said he would not agree with the perception that the old regime of tax encourages saving.

"For the simple reason, if you look at the structure of the tax deductions, half of them are for savings and half of them are for dis-savings like housing loans or interest on housing loans. Is the housing loan a savings? So overall macro economic impact, it's not a savings push at all but merely a push towards certain things. Government wants you to do housing, insurance or pension. But it's not necessarily a savings push or influence on the savings rate in the country," he was quoted as saying.