"Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are," quoth Benjamin Franklin of note, unaware that I would use it today! The BJP, not the Parliament, mind you, since several MPs were missing (God alone knows why!), has swimmingly passed three criminal laws without a hurdle. Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) have already replaced the Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Evidence Act. Legal pundits and activist brethren have designated them as "draconian" for lack of a better adjective, or should it be worse? The government is set to fully implement the new law books nationwide by the end of this year.

The laws hitherto in action were not written in a single day. It was a living organism whose growth was fueled by decades of successive accumulation as it muddled past events, some exceptional and remarkable, across the course of its pilgrimage seeking the highest truths. Veritably, it is a murder of sorts, the heinousness of which is unspeakable. The eventualities which the amputation of sections of this canon will inspire cannot be accurately described unembellishedly. Nevertheless, the savvy sophophiles will surmise that the intent that begot this manoeuvre is pure, unadulterated evil, the memories of the likes of which are yet to fade into oblivion.

As a teen, I used to play a video game titled Injustice: Gods Among Us. You can look it up on the Internet. The depth of meaning encased within that moniker has always fascinated me. Today's regime hungers to concentrate dominance into the hands of a few, that is, to create gods. It is not only injustice in itself, but as the game's storyline goes, that which will follow will also be injustice.

A cursory glance at the "freshly-minted" edicts would impugn its novelty. However, it is the emendated segments that beg scrutiny. Why would anyone seek to put the kibosh on wisdom accrued over years of pragmatic endeavours? Only a piddling quarter of the populace that abounds our country alludes to these shenanigans. A vast majority are shrouded blind by the garb of religion.

The powers that modulate the regime use the religiosity of the citizenry to weave narratives that avouch the impending doom of their faith unless they step up to the plate by using their enfranchisement to bolster them. There could be nothing further from the truth. The laws brought into force result from the confederation of avarice and greed for boundless power aided, abetted by ignorance, apathy, and downright hostility propelled by invectives manufactured in the factories of hatred.

It is yet unknown how the product of this irreverent union will be implemented comprehensively, considering the multifarious nature of the Indian union. But, one can be assured that it will be used indiscriminately by those who enforce it.

The Sabke of the "sabke saath" rhetoric must appreciate that even the rights they hold dear will evade them. Those who prostitute themselves to power, feeling securely distant from the atrocities bound to creep up, must realise that they are already in its lap. Those wielding puissance will grow potent, and those without will be relegated to roam the valleys of despair.

Which brings me to the quote by dear Ben. Until everyone comes out of the umbrella of religion that is shielding their eyes from the overcast and threatening skies and is outraged at how those they have elected to maintain the laws are ravaging it, there will be no Justice.