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Justice M.M. Ismail Commission found charges against jail officials during Emergency substantially correct
The Justice M.M. Ismail Commission, which investigated allegations of harassment and beating of some Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) detenus at the Madras Central Jail between February 1976 and February 1977, found the charges substantially correct and indicted certain jail officials. The Commission submitted its report to the first AIADMK government, headed by M.G. Ramachandran, on September 26, 1977.
In April 1978, Law Minister K. Narayanaswami Mudaliar told the Legislative Assembly, the government would neither whitewash any crimes committed by officers nor engage in witch-hunting. 'We will avoid both extremes,' he said while responding to the debate on the Commission's report.
According to a report in The Hindu, the Minister mentioned that the government had 'broadly' accepted the Commission's findings. He emphasised that there was no difficulty in taking action on the findings related to the ill-treatment of MISA detenus. However, regarding other findings, Narayanaswami noted that some members felt the Commission had 'fallen short of the expected standard' due to a lack of or insufficient evidence. 'The government will have the opportunity to examine some of this evidence further,' he said.
Upholding rule of law
Any disciplinary action or punishment, he added, would be in line with service rules. 'We are not an authoritarian government but a democratic polity where the rule of law must be upheld,' he said.
The Minister further clarified there would be no unilateral action without consulting legislators, some of whom were themselves former MISA detenus. He quoted the Chief Minister's statement in the Legislative Council (which existed at the time) that after gathering the views of both Houses, consulting legal experts, and meeting with the Cabinet, the government would take appropriate action.
