“Justice is blind.” We all want so much to believe that. It should be a foundational belief of every citizen, that in the eyes of the law everyone is equal. The laws are written and a belief that “the law will take its own course” in case of any deviation is the core tenet that keeps society on the straight and narrow. But why do people lose faith in the law?

For one, people trust what they can understand. The more arcane, convoluted, and esoteric the law and its nuanced interpretation becomes, the greater the doubt that sets in. The fear is that complexity brings loopholes that can be exploited by those with the means to do so.

Then there is the specter of selective application of the law. Those that have the resources seem to get the very best of justice system while the rest of the citizenry seems to be left with the remains. Hundreds of thousands of prisoners languish in prison waiting for their bail pleas to be heard while celebrities get bail in hours. The rights are the same for everyone -but not everyone gets treated right!

It’s said that justice delayed is justice denied. If this is the case what is the common man to make of cases taking decades to make their way through an overloaded justice system?

Even the word justice conjures up images of appropriateness, of finality, of objectivity, and of equality. This sense has to be transparently visible as the core, the beating heart of the justice system. Only then will justice be served.