"The Madras High Court on Friday ordered conditional bail for 40 students arrested in connection with two separate incidents - one incident pertained to the clash at the law college, the other related to an attack on police in May 2007.
In his order, the judge said that petitioners had been in jail for more than 55 days. The relatives had filed an affidavit that they would take care of the petitioners. The students can be released on bail, but he directed that the petitioners should go to any public library every Saturday and Sunday; read good books for two hours for four weeks. They should submit a report to the court about what they had read."Wow, what a judgement. A 'punishment' to the erring students, in the true sense of 'judgement'. I liked to read the line about the relatives standing guarantee for their wards. When the profession of law is falling day by day in my eyes, this small news item kindled some hope. Some technical people may find fault with this judgement; or the higher court may quash it. But, the spirit behind the judgement is worth studying for conflict resolution and to nudge wrong-doers towards reform.
But, how is the judge going to ensure that our boys went to the libraries and read 'good' books? If the students are forced to follow it, probably, they may even feel that being out on bail is more 'punishing' than being in jail itself!!
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