Rule of mob: On mob lynching in several States (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2:Governance 
Prelims level: Mob lynching
Mains level: Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability

Context: 

• Two disturbing incidents in recent weeks where Bangladeshi nationals were lynchedin Assam paints a disturbing picture.
• They were lynched on the pretext that they were alleged cattle thieves.
• According to reports, the district police are trying to hand over the bodies to the Bangladeshi authorities. 

Lack of faith in the rule of law:

• Irrespective of whether they are thieves or smugglers, such killings point to a lack of faith in the rule of law, leading to a general lawlessness. 
• According to the National Crime Records Bureau’s 2017 data which was released in October 2019 a year behind schedule, Assam has one of the highest crime rates in the country. 
• The State had 143 registered crimes per lakh of population, but such numbers can often be misleading due to the arbitrarinessin the registration of crimes. 
• The varying standards of prosecution of crimes across the country add further challenges to the rule of law. 
• Anecdotaltrends suggest a spikein mob lynchings in recent years.
• Such lynching are often incited by maliciousdisseminationof false accusations of cow slaughter, kidnapping of children and theft, through social media.
• The NCRB did collect data on lynchings in 2017 but did not publish those for reasons best known to it. 
• Wild conspiracy theories spread fast on social media, but one cannot overlook the context of polarisingdiatribes, often initiated by political leaders.
• The victims are invariably from vulnerable groups. 
• Whatever name one calls it by, lynchings are an abominationthat must have no place in a democratic society, which India prides itself to be. 
• Lynchings are a uniquely unsettling derailment of governance — while an act of mob violence is itself a sign of failure of law enforcement, it is committed in an apparent consideration that there can be no legal recourse. 
• In the subversionof principles, the police inaction in cases of mob violence is reciprocated by an apparent public sanction of extrajudicial punishments by the police. 

Conclusion:

• Mob violence indeed defames the country and there must be stringent intervention by the police to bring an end to this. 
• The political leadership also has a role to play in questioning the social consentthat allows mob violence.

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Prelims Questions:

Q.1). With reference to the reservation for disabled, consider the following statements:

1. The Supreme Court, in a significant decision, confirmed that persons with disabilities are also socially backward and entitled to the same benefits of relaxation as Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe candidates in public employment and education.
2. It upheld a 2012 judgment of the Delhi High Court in Anamol Bhandari (minor) through his father/Natural Guardian v. Delhi Technological University. 

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: C

Mains Questions:

Q.1) Mob Lynching goes against the basic tenets of Indian Societal Value. Examine the statement in the light of rising incidents of mob lynching in the country and mention the causes and ways to address them.