New Delhi: Departure from good governance
has led to supremacy of rule of law being "challenged by
corruption and malicious influence of money power," Vice
President Hamid Ansari said on Sunday.
"The supremacy of rule of law has been challenged by
corruption and the malicious influence of money power. Both
are made possible by departure from norms of good governance,"
the Vice President said here addressing the `International
Conference of Jurists on International Terrorism and Rule of
Law`.
Ansari added though India is committed to democratic
governance, transparency and implementation of rule of law,
its practice has been "marred by lapses resulting in a
failure to deliver it in sufficient measure."
Commenting on the ability of the elite to subvert the
rule of law by money or influence, Ansari said "the reality of
the systemic discrimination and exclusion based on community,
gender, class and other limiting and distorting considerations
is compelling."
"A large swathe of society and polity even accept this
situation as a way of life," he added.
Terming corruption as a significant threat to national security, Ansari said, "it shakes the legitimacy of the state, erodes its sovereignty and its capacity to exercise sovereign functions including ensuring law and order for citizens."
"It corrodes the social and political fabric of
society, increases injustice, in its legal implications, and
it results in the disregard to the rule of law," he added.
The Vice President observed that with increasing
levels of violence, legal systems globally are resorting to
incorporate exceptional and extraordinary legislations to deal
with it.
"The challenge for the governments and legal
fraternity across the globe is to deal effectively with
violence within the framework of normal laws and respect for
human rights and fundamental freedoms."
PTI
