The Condemned is presently lodged in a mental asylum. When he recovers, he will be hanged to death for high treason!

These, having not the law, are a law unto themselves. — The Bible

THERE is nothing in his name. Innumerable condemned persons before him have given up their ghost at the gallows. Innumerable condemned persons, after his execution, shall legally die a violent death. This is an ongoing process, and is preordained to sustain till eternity. Humans shall never cease to eliminate each other lawfully. Therefore, let us call him the Condemned.

The Condemned is presently lodged in a mental asylum. When he recovers from his malady, he will be hanged to death. The Condemned was apprehended for high treason. He was incarcerated for time beyond estimation, during which he was interrogated. While undergoing unbearable ordeal in the torture cells, he nurtured faith in the limitlessness of time when it came to suffering. After subjecting him to primitive and modern methods of interrogation, the Condemned was charged with revolt against the State.

“But, this is my State.” The Condemned raised his voice in the court when charges were read out to him. He said, “How can I revolt against my own State!”

On his outburst, the learned attorneys of the State looked at each other, and smiled. They turned towards the judge and said, “Your Honour, the statement of the mutineer be kept on record. It amounts to his indirect admittance to guilt.”

The judge spoke one word, “Elaborate.”

The senior attorney said, “Your Honour, one hundred and forty million people live in this country. If each person claims owning the State, it will create chaos and confusion in the country.” As the senior attorney took his seat, a junior attorney rose to his feet, and submitted, “Your Honour, a person who seizes power and rules the country, legally and lawfully, owns the State.”

“Define seizure.” The judge commanded.

The senior attorney replied, “Seizure denotes taking over of a country by a person, or by a group of persons.”

“Can seizure be legal or illegal?” The judge asked.

“It is relative, your Honour.” The senior attorney submitted, “If a person fails in his schemes to seize power, he is tried for treason. In case he succeeds, he automatically becomes the legitimate ruler of the country.”

“Can you quote an example in support of your statement?” The judge asked.

“Your Honour, the British took over India and became the country’s legal rulers.” The senior attorney submitted, “They gave India legal framework, administrative rules and regulations that we, too, after independence have acquired for running the affairs of our country. Thus, revolt against ruler legally and constitutionally amounts to revolt against the State.”

“A ruler can’t be synonymous with the country.” The Condemned resented, and said, “When a person revolts against a ruler, he doesn’t necessarily revolt against the State!”

The State attorney countered the Condemned, and said, “When some of the Indian subjects revolted against the British, they were charged with high treason and were executed.”

The learned judge looked at the team of the State attorneys, and asked, “What happens to the country when the ruler dies? Does it die with the ruler?”

“Your Honour, without formally adopting it, we in Pakistan have adopted British tradition in this regard.” The senior attorney replied, “The tradition is, ‘The king is dead, long live the king’.”

The learned judge remarked, “Your answer implies that the ruler and the State are two separate entities. The rulers die, whereas the country doesn’t. Am I right?”

The senior attorney replied, “Your Honour, you are absolutely right.”

“What is permanent can’t be tagged to anything impermanent.” The learned judge said, “In my opinion, revolt against the ruler can’t be construed as revolt against the State.”

Thereafter, the judge adjourned the day’s proceedings to resume the hearing the next day. A mysterious night separates today from tomorrow. During the impeding night, long and entwined like a serpent, the judge was transferred. Next day, when the hearing resumed, the independent observers saw an unfamiliar figure occupying the judge’s seat.

The judge looked at the Condemned, and remarked, “So you have revolted against the State!”

“No Sir. I have not revolted against the State.” The Condemned replied, “For the sake of the State, I have revolted against the illegitimate ruler who has imposed his coercive rule upon my country.”

The senior attorney rose to his feet. He sought permission to speak. It was granted. He said, “Your Honour, the accused is wasting precious time of the honourable court. While dealing with a previous petition recently, the honourable judges had granted legitimacy to the regime of the incumbent ruler.”

“It is my country. I, too, sit in judgment upon the intruder’s acts.” The Condemned said, “In my opinion, the intruder has thrust himself upon us. He is a self-appointed monarch. His is an illegitimate rule.”

“Who is defending you?” The judge asked, “Where is your lawyer?”

“I am a judge.” The condemned replied, “And a judge doesn’t need a lawyer to defend him.” It was established beyond any shadow of doubt that the Condemned had revolted against the State. Since the Condemned was found insane, he was not sent to the gallows. Instead, he was sent to the mental asylum. Till he regains his sanity, he will not be hanged to death.