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That Bogey Again

The Ruchika case has attracted a lot of media attention.

There's talk of giving death sentence to the perpetrator. That's a question which might seem an easy one on the face of it but when you delve into it, there are complexities involved.

The obvious danger of course is misuse. Same goes for how stringent punishment for dowry related torture should be. One can think of the maximum punishment to deter people from committing these heinous crimes.

But in today's society, there's scope for people using these laws to blackmail innocent people.

When there's not a shred of doubt about the fact that such a crime has taken place, then there is really no problem with the death sentence.

India really needs some strict laws and some people to be punished in an exemplary fashion.

The desire to take short cuts in life needs to be curbed among the people of India. In a country that is beset with so many intractable problems and so much economic disparity, this desire is particularly rife.

But whatever problems bedevil India, they are all entirely the creation of the people of India. So, Indians might as well learn to live with them and poor people have to learn to live in poverty and not be tempted to commit burglary to get rich quick.

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