Just consider this scenario. A 23-year-old man is being shifted from court to court and incarcerated for a crime which has not even been proved. He has been treated like a hard-core criminal, a history sheeter, confined to custody and denied bail for 25 days. Yes, I am talking about the young lad Aryan Khan whose only crime (not proved conclusively) was that he had consumed a miniscule quantity of a particular drug.

If this logic was applied then probably scores of youngsters residing in our campuses and children of businessmen, politicians and other celebrities shouldalso be put behind bars.

In Aryan’s defense the following unassailable arguments emerge:

1. No drugs were recovered from him

2.Alleged WhatsApp chats unconnected to the current case are being used as evidence. This logic is absurd and a clear case of subversion of facts.

3. Even if true, allegations pertain to ‘small quantity’ and ‘consumption’ only. And these ‘offences’ no way calls for this kind of harsh punishment.
4. Aryan has no criminal antecedents – his record is absolutely clean.
5. There is no likelihood of Aryan fleeing.

As per the above logic there is absolutely no valid reason to deny the youngster bail. Can the dispensers of justice pause to think what kind of an impact this torture will have on the young man’s psyche. It will leave him scarred for life and make people doubt the efficacy and neutrality of the judicial system in our country.

Indian law believes in the dictum that a person is innocent till proven guilty.  In Aryan’s case he is being treated as guilty till proven innocent. Why this gross travesty of justice?

Contrast Aryan’s case with that of Ashish Sharma. Ashish, the Minister of State for Home Ajay Sharma’s son mowed down 8 innocent farmers who were protesting peacefully in broad daylight and bolted. He has not been brought to justice despite a nationwide furor and clinching evidence.

In our country it is always a case of different strokes for different folks!

I would also like to point out the reaction of Aryan’s family. They have behaved with such dignity. Shah Rukh Khan could have created a media frenzy using his super star status. But he has set an example of grace even in the face of the toughest crisis impacting his family. Aryan himself has behaved in an impeccable manner.

Often, as per our judicial system, people in custody are ‘given’ some kind of a benefit for good behavior. Shouldn’t Aryan at least be given bail on the condition he will report regularly to the authorities? Shouldn’t a youngster be united with his family after undergoing torture for so long. Or should he be punished because his father is a superstar with a mind of his own?

Our country has always believed in the dictum ‘Satyamev Jayate’. Should this glorious ethos be allowed to be further sullied by the powers that be whose hands are tainted by the blood of the innocents in their quest for votes and their lust for power?

I am amazed at the circus that this issue has created diverting the nation’s attention from more pressing issues that need to be addressed.  The economy is in doldrums, the unemployment rate is the highest since data has been collected. There are serious issues of National Security due to the confrontation with China but the media and this circus has diverted the nation away from serious issues that need to be discussed and addressed immediately. This has been the modus operandi of the Government/ Modi Media for last couple of years. Whenever there is a serious issue facing the nation, the issue is diverted to other news that is given high media visibility and main issues sidetracked and diverted. This is very sorry state of affairs and people should realize that they are being taken for a ride by the Government and the media that is supporting this government in this endeavor.

(The author is National General Secretary​-​IndianOverseas Congress USA. He can be reached at dichpally@aol.com)