Protecting the SC

Politically sensitive matters require care

The Supreme Court of India has found itself repeatedly in the news in the past weeks, and not necessarily for the best of reasons. First, in its dismissal of a case related to the 2002 violence in the state of Gujarat, the court expressed itself with some strength regarding some of those involved in it — particularly the activist Teesta Setalvad, who was subsequently arrested by the anti-terrorist squad. Whether or not the court intended to use its judgment as an instruction for Ms Setalvad’s arrest, that was apparently the consequence of its remarks on the subject. Then, in the