The high level drama
surrounding the hanging of Yakub Memon has made a martyr out of a terrorist.
While the ethical grounds of capital punishment is debatable, it is equally
unfortunate that Memon's hanging has turned into a sensationalised case for a
misplaced sense of sympathy. The tragedy of his family and friends is
inconsolable but so is the trauma of hundreds of others who lost their loved
ones in the Mumbai blasts. Punishing criminals is not simply about delivering
"justice" to the victims, it is a message that such dastardly acts
will not be tolerated. Shifting focus from his crime to the post-hanging
sentimentalities (so much so that more media space has been devoted to him than
to the demise of Dr. Kalam) is sad and undesirable.
