Bold but fuzzy

Burning false beliefs by applying chemistry to camphor on the palm. - P.V. SIVAKUMAR

A Bill in Maharashtra drafted to help eradicate exploitation using superstition comes under fire.

"UNDER the pretext of expelling the ghost, assaulting by tying a person with rope or chain, beating by stick or whip, to make the person drink footwear soaked water, giving chilli smoke, hanging a person to roof, fixing him with rope or by hair or plucking his hair, causing pain by way of touching heated object to organs or body of a person, forcing a person to perform a sexual act in the open, practising aghori [cannibalistic] acts by chanting mantras, putting urine or human excretion forcibly in the mouth of a person or practising any such acts." This is the first schedule of the Maharashtra Eradication of Black Magic and Evil and Aghori Practices Bill, 2005.

Created to address the problem of andha shraddha or blind faith, the Bill was meant "to bring social awakening and awareness... to create a safe social environment... to protect people against evil and sinister practices and customs thriving on ignorance and aghori practices born out of beliefs propagated in the name of divine, supernatural or magical powers.... "

The Bill, put up by the Department of Social Justice of the Maharashtra government, was passed by the Legislative Assembly during the winter session in Nagpur last year. It was due to come up before the Legislative Council in the recently concluded monsoon session of the legislature but did not because the serial blasts in Mumbai and the agrarian crisis in Vidarbha took up most of the time.

The Bill has evoked loud criticism ever since the process of drafting it began in 2003, initially for being too general it would seem and later for being too specific. In fact, the criticism has at times been as fuzzy as some of the Bill's own definitions. However, it is clear that the Bill has grey areas.

The proposed law will allow the State to arrest those who believe in the power of the divine to cure sickness or any other problem. Such practice would be considered a criminal, non-bailable offence punishable with up to seven years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.50,000. While the Bill is essentially meant to target so-called tantriks, the fear is that prevalent religious beliefs could come under its scope.

One of the main criticisms has been the poor definition of key words such as superstition, spells, sorcery and jaran maran (black magic techniques) in the Bill. For instance, the "display of so-called miracles by a person and thereby earning money and to deceive, defraud and terrorise people by propagation and circulation of so-called miracles" constitutes a crime under the Bill. But what is a miracle? Would a simple trick by a magician also come under this category? Such questions are left unanswered.

Shyam Manav of the Andha Shraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (ASNS), an organisation of rationalists that is behind the Bill, said that earlier the Bill did have wide scope and alternative healing practices such as reiki and pranic healing came under its ambit. However, subsequently changes were made and the Bill is now restricted to acts that are grouped under 12 schedules. Said Manav: "The Bill has been criticised for vague definitions. First of all, it is limited to 12 schedules. Second, all the words used, like miracle, black magic and superstition, are all commonly understood words and are available in any dictionary."

Manav says the Bill will help eradicate all non-scientific and illegal healing practices carried out in the guise of using supernatural powers. His critics - mainly the Hindu Janajagruti Samiti (HJS) - say there is no need for a separate Bill for the purpose since these practices are punishable under various Sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). "Would I bother with a separate law if the IPC was adequate?" asks Manav. "These offences are non-cognisable under the IPC. The Bill makes them cognisable offences."

Despite the criticism, there may be merit in Manav's crusade. For over two decades ASNS volunteers have done notable work in rural Maharashtra, travelling to villages, educating people and exposing the techniques and tricks of charlatans. The organisation's efforts are reflected in the Statement of Objects and Reason in the Bill. It warns of "an alarming number of incidences of causing mental, physical and financial harm... [which] are threatening to seriously damage the social fibre and faith of the common people in authentic and scientific medical remedies and driving them to take recourse to such quacks, conmen and black magicians."

While the intentions of the Bill cannot be questioned, the fear is that the solutions it offers can end up being the problem. While the Bill does say that it will not apply to acts involving religious rites and rituals that do not affect a person mentally or physically, its language lacks clarity.

Its critics say the Bill is so vaguely worded that anything could be construed as black magic. Will it, for instance, result in a ban on mythological stories or religious texts? Would a person like Saibaba, who is accepted as a saint by sections of society, also come under its purview?

Fears such as these have led to the Bill being called anti-Hindu. Manav dismisses the accusation saying he is not interested in the religious aspect nor in miracles per se. "If it is just a miracle it does not come under this Bill. But if the miracle-maker profits financially or fools people then it is an offence."

However, the Bill does need some fine-tuning. Ambiguity has led to the Bill being hijacked by politics. In a sense the Bill is tackling religion per se, possibly without meaning to.

To some extent the authors of the Bill seem to have rethought their own project. The present Bill, drafted by Manav, has many changes from the Bill of 2003 drafted by Narendra Dabholkar of the ASNS.

For instance, a clause relating to fraud in the name of God by having illicit sexual relations with or without consent has been left out of the new Bill since this crime is already punishable under the IPC.

The field experiences of the ASNS have been such that they believe fiercely in the need for the Bill. But the challenge perhaps lies in ensuring that it is not politicised by sections that see it as targeting Hindu religious beliefs.