Freedom of Expression
Purpose of Law and Law
In a law book we often see various laws given but nowhere the purpose of that law is mentioned. What is the difference in the two? I asked my most trusted friend who was a judge during his time. “The purpose of law is to achieve certain results to make living reasonably comfortable and law is the method by which that purpose is fulfilled.” He explained to me.
I questioned my friend, “what is more important, Law or purpose of law?
“Of course purpose of law is always more important.” My friend
“Then why in law books purpose of law is not mentioned?” Me
To that he could not give any specific reply and the way he spoke I could surmise that he does not know why purpose of law is not mentioned and only law is given.
Well, you are confused. Yes even I was confused at this discussion when we commenced it. Let me explain the difference between the two by citing an example.
Better I tell an incidence to see the example. It so happened some months back that, one Gujarati fellow approached me for a medicine to treat herpes. I know a few very effective medicines from the Aurved and as a social service always oblige my friends and those who come through them by treating with my medicines. I am not a doctor by qualification and so do not have any license to do this but since people around me know of my knowledge and insist that I treat them; I do it. My medicine for Herpes is very effective, the person treated with it is cured like magic and the pain is completely removed. That Gujarati fellow was talking to me on phone. I told him that I do not treat strangers since I am not a licensed doctor. He requested and told me the pain is very unbearable and I should be kind enough to help him. I felt that the person should be treated and showed my readiness. On that he came to me and got the oil I give for applying on the affected part of the body. I charged him for the oil. I told him I have to make it and for that I have to purchase the raw material for making the oil and so he shall have to pay for the oils. I do not make any profit out of it. It is a no loss no profit activity. He paid me. I applied the oil right there and asked him to sit for a while in my house. Within a few minutes he realized that the pain is gone. He went with the remaining oil and after about four days he phoned me and told me that he is completely cured. After that he changed tone of his voice and warned me that I am doing a crime by treating people when not having proper qualification and license and so I must return the money I have taken from him for the oil otherwise he will sue me. This really shocked me but I told him my intentions are clear and so I don’t mind if he has to go to court for a paltry sum of one hundred and sixty rupees. He hanged the phone. Some days passed, a telephone came, and this time a person calling himself a lawyer requested me that I help him in treating his young daughter who was suffering from Herpes. I told him sorry I can not oblige and narrated the incidence that had just occurred a few days back. On that the person told me that he knows of the incidence and he actually came to know about my medicine from that very same Gujarati fellow. He further told me that the man had approached him for the legal advice and there the advocate had rejected his idea of suing me for this reason. He then came to my house and we had a good discussion about what is law and what is purpose of law.
Law says medical treatment should be given by only a trained person who is also licensed to do it and this is applied if the person is doing that for making profits. Now we shall see the purpose of law behind this law. Obviously the purpose of law is that knowledgeable person should treat so that there is no damage to the patient. Here law “presumes” that a qualified doctor is knowledgeable and so treatment from him is safe treatment and so the provision of the law. But here we see some discrepancy; in presuming that a qualified doctor is always knowledgeable for treating any disease. Anther corollary of this presumption is that a not qualified person is definitely not knowledgeable of the treatment. This shows the limitation of the law in coming to the right guidance and the law can be proven futile by showing that a particular doctor is not knowledgeable enough and so the law is instead of helping the cause is damaging it.
I asked him why make a law that is more misguiding and less helpful to people. He did not have an answer but told me the laws are made always under some presumption or the other and that is the limit of any law. I asked him, then why not declare the purpose of law as law it self. He told me that primarily laws are made to guide people and the interpretation of law is generally left to the justice or whatever the authority. In lower courts the decisions are mostly guided by the law but at higher courts the purpose of law is considered to make the decisions. Is it not shear waste of time and making people spend their hard earned money? He laughed and said law is also a business and by bringing such undue complications judiciary makes the business of law more lucrative.
“Is it the purpose of the law makers that this complication is kept so that lawyers can make money and judiciary can make more money through stamp duties?” Me
“Most probably, yes!” the advocate replied with a guffaw.
“Law makers are themselves at some level lawyers and so this is possible.” I added.
What do you feel about this arrangement? Should we not insist that the law book by compulsion should mention the purpose of that law along with the law?
If a law is only one interpretation of the purpose of law then other possible methods or interpretations for that purpose should also be enlisted to make following of law more reasonable. If this practice is made mandatory then observation of law will become more easy and many unnecessary cases those crop up can be avoided. One measure advantage will be that most of the cases can be settled at the lower courts and that can help reduce the ever sprawling number of pending cases in the court of law.
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