Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Power of courts

Sir, — The speedy trial of the Best Bakery case deserves to be noted. In normal courts we cannot expect the judgment within the short span of one year. It does not matter what the judgment is because the trial is within the parameters required by our criminal justice system. What if all the 21 accused are acquitted. The reason is that the prosecution could not produce enough evidence against them.

The court is helpless because in the absence of evidence and witnesses, it cannot do anything. None of our statutes specifies the power of courts in these circumstances. Our legal system requires change.

There are instances where judges know that they are not delivering justice to the victims but are helpless because they cannot go beyond the words on the statute book. The judge should be given the power to enquire why witnesses are turning hostile.

After all, the trial of a case is not simply a legal formality. The purpose is to maintain and protect "just civil society."

Seema Durrany,

New Delhi.

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