RELIGION AND SOCIETY

Religion and Society ~ 431 ~ The principle of all men being equal is accepted in modern democratic countries, but in practice, all are not equal in terms of their own legal systems. In India, for instance, it is not as easy to initiate legal proceedings against the president, a provincial governor, a minister or a senior officer, as it is against an ordinary citizen. Clause 361 of the Indian Constitution protects the president and provincial governors from prosecution without the permission of parliament, and the government has to give its clearance if cases are to be brought against ministers. Furthermore, Clause 197 of the Indian Ordinances decrees that no judge, magistrate or civil servant may be dismissed from his post without the prior permission of the central or provincial governments. In case of corruption, there can be no hearings in court until the central or provincial government—whichever the employer— grants permission. In other words, if you want to take a prominent politician or administrator to court, you to have his permission first. This is not so much a fault of Indian law as a fault of human law, and it is to be found wherever human beings make their own laws. Only when divine law