GOOD ASSASSIN

Wihin a week of Dhananjoy Chaterjee's hanging, the Supreme Court commutes a convict's death sentence to life imprisonment. The crime was the same, that of rape and murder, but perhaps more ghastly because the victim here was only four years old.

Now, think about it. This convict's suffering is minimal compared to Dhananjoy. He had not spent fourteen years in the condemned cell. But he seems to come of a rich family, and moved on from one court to other with expert help from his able pleaders.

He was no pariah. The judges heard him, and granted his prayer.

Poor Dhananjoy! Only moments before his hanging he bemoaned that he was denied justice becuase he was poor.

In this judgement, the Supreme court does not only act in a partisan manner, but also gets us to believe that there are two categories of assassins, good and bad, based on their economic background.
MRINAL BOSE