MAYAWATI'S NSA RAJ

Has Mayawati begun to show signs of panic?

First, it was Varun Gandhi's hate speech and his arrest drama that got her gut. That was somewhat understandable because she feared that he would take away her voters. So, in a huff, she booked him under the draconian National Security Act (NSA) and sent him to jail, much to the relief of his political opponenents. The net result was that those who had decided to desert her, and more, did not go to Varun but walked over to the party of his cousin. That unexpected reaction poured polluted Ganga jal over Mayawati's dreams of becoming the PM or something close to that.

Then Munnabhai Sanjay Dutt rattled her by offering to give her a "jaadu ki jhappi"! One does not know what she might have felt inside as a person, but as the untouchable - out of fear and awe, not caste - CM-dying-to-become-PM, she was appalled at this unacceptable offer made in full public view, and threatened to send him to jail too. Munnabhai quickly apologised and the matter ended. Or so we thought.

News has now come in that Mayawati's police in Kanpur has slapped the NSA on three young men who, after a few drinks, teased a girl. They were caught and beaten by bystanders before being handed over to the police. You and I may think that these guys should have been dealt with under normal laws, particularly after the corporal punishment that was given to them on the spot by 'vigilant' citizens without any trial. But no, they too seem to have become a grave threat to national security, and may languish in jail without trial for a year.

Amazing isn't it? Just a few months back, Mayawati had deliberately handpicked goondas and criminals, some with multiple murder charges against them, to fight the Lok Sabha elections as her party's candidates, and become India's law makers. And now, she is putting petty eve-teasers behind bars under the NSA!

Is Mayawati's misuse of the NSA a reflection of her anger and frustration at being cut to size in the elections? Are her pangs of insecurity becoming irrational? Are they also an indication of what she is going to do across the nation if and when she does become the PM?

Imagine what might happen if she starts using the NSA so liberally as PM too.

Political opponents will find themselves heading straight from Parliament House to Tihar jail under the NSA for saying something to TV reporters that she finds unpalatable. Auto drivers tampering with their meters will also join them, as will speeding bus drivers and petty thieves. Use your imagination to add to the list which can become very long indeed.

Even as across the country, petty criminals and offenders get booked in their thousands under the NSA for posing grave danger to the security of India, inside Parliament law makers will still be stoutly opposed to having and invoking any special laws to deal with terrorists who blow up and pump bullets into innocent Indians. Mayawati, like most other secular politicians, will know that it is impossible to come to power without "minority" votes; the majority can be kicked around without worry. So, every conceivable reason will continue be found to apply old toothless laws to terrorists. Since it is virtually impossible to get a conviction under these laws, the only guys roaming fearlessly in the country will be terrorists. And we will be told by Mayawati that we should try to understand with compassion these poor, misguided souls whose human rights we must never violate, failing which we will land up in jail under the NSA.

Prepare yourself for Maya raj. And till she becomes the PM, avoid going to UP; you just might find yourself in exalted company there for one full year! Unless of course you are rich enough to hire lawyers who can get you out via the Supreme Court.