Raju Z Moray is a lawyer and a poet with a funny bone. One of Leaflet's pillar of support, he has contributed innumerable poems on diverse topics. His book "The Locked Down Lawyer", published by Vishwapress, is a collection of his poems- first published by The Leaflet, chronicling the lockdown.
To avail a free copy of this e-book, please email us at theleaflet.in@gmail.com
The following is the introduction to his book written by Indira Jaising, Founder of The Leaflet.
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BETWEEN 15th April and 15th June, the most intense phase of the lockdown declared on 24th March 2020, Raju Z Moray kept us entertained with his Locked-down Lawyer series of poems published in The Leaflet.
Humour, we thought, was one way to deal with the deprivation we were then experiencing in not being able to meet each other physically in court or in our social circles. Those were grim days, and many lawyers have since confessed that they were on the verge of destitution with no work coming in.
“Humour, we thought, was one way to deal with the deprivation we were then experiencing in not being able to meet each other physically in court or in our social circles.
But of course, lawyers were not the only ones on the brink of destitution.
Even worse was the condition of migrant workers, whose plight we became aware of suddenly and dramatically when we saw them trekking home across railway lines, sometimes resulting in their death on the tracks.
Raju, believing in the power of the pen and satire, wrote on all these issues reflecting what he saw around him. He became a chronicler of his times and of the legal profession.
Raju tells it as it is, sparing no one – Judges or their spouses, those who turned positive and those who did not. His poems, presented here as a collection, mirror the life of lawyers and the judiciary during the lockdown, but with satire and humour, the two antidotes to depression in dark times.
First published on theleaflet.in, they provided us with the much-needed release from the isolation we were all experiencing. We laughed together with his poems, we cried together and felt a little less lonely.
“We laughed together with his poems, we cried together and felt a little less lonely.
From trivial issues like the need for a haircut, or the shedding of the gown, to the yearning for justice, Raju Z Moray had something to say, and he said it. History may yet recognize him as a poet rather than a lawyer or perhaps as a man of several talents.
He records the dilemmas of lockdown times, the transition from physical hearings to virtual hearings. But what is the legal profession without the theatrical performances in court? In this virtual world, the cards were clearly held by the "control-room" of the court with the power to exclude us or to cut us out in mid-sentence, muting the mic.
Sometimes we heard judges clearly communicating with each other, and at other times they switched off their microphones to keep us out of their deliberation. The rising demand for physical hearings led to the court experimenting with physical hearings, but not surprisingly, few lawyers consented for such hearings under the shadow of the pandemic. Some people began to say that lawyers preferred virtual hearings since they could have multiple screens in their homes and make more money. On the other hand, some lawyers felt so down and out that they demanded a stipend from the Bar Council of India to keep body and soul together.
“Raju, believing in the power of the pen and satire, wrote on all these issues reflecting what he saw around him. He became a chronicler of his times and of the legal profession.
Meanwhile, you could be anywhere in the world and "appear" in the Supreme Court of India, like magic!
Speaking for myself, I found virtual hearings more orderly and time-saving, making it possible for speedy disposal of cases. I myself became COVID-19 positive during the lockdown, and did not want others to unnecessarily expose themselves to infection when justice could be served by virtual hearings in the Supreme Court.
It is however undeniable that the courts where such virtual access was most needed were the trial courts where we do not have physical or virtual hearings on a regular basis till date.
As the Lockdown came to be partially lifted, Raju Z Moray wound down his treasure of verse. Our readers missed his poems, but perhaps the time has come to move on to Unlocking. Some of our readers have compared Raju's work to that of the American poet Ogden Nash. This is a huge compliment and Raju admits being fond of his verse and being influenced by him.
“He records the dilemmas of lockdown times, the transition from physical hearings to virtual hearings. But what is the legal profession without the theatrical performances in court?
It is now acknowledged that the virus is airborne and we may all breathe it in, there is, after all, no choice but to breathe. It is equally well known that it is our existing comorbidities that are the real problems and those of us who have them are more vulnerable to the virus. The rest of us may recover even if we have the virus circulating in our systems.
A sensible public health policy would be to educate people on focusing on their comorbidities and curing themselves.
We also know that it is the human displacement of wildlife habitat that causes diseases which cross the species barriers and migrate to the human organism for which we are ill-prepared. This calls for an obvious change in our lifestyles which are over consumptionist and rapacious when it comes to exploitation of the natural resources of the planet.
But such scientific considerations seemed to have taken a back seat.
“Some of our readers have compared Raju's work to that of the American poet Ogden Nash. This is a huge compliment and Raju admits being fond of his verse and being influenced by him.
What we saw instead was banging of thalis and ringing of bells, lighting of lamps in darkness from our balconies by obedient citizens. We faced isolation leading to mental breakdowns, loss of income, and unemployment and death all around us.
There is no knowing if the number of deaths would have been any more than what we have seen if the lockdown was not as draconian as it was.
We saw policemen succumb to the coronavirus in the line of duty and we also saw front line corona workers described as warriors, but not having been paid their daily wages, forcing them to be on strike. Doctors had to go to court to get PPE gear to be able to perform their duty in a relatively safe environment.
Lawyers big and small continued to work on line, children who were digitally-enabled continued to study online, and I continued to speak into a blank screen not knowing if there was anyone listening to me. Webinars conducted by law firms and individuals proliferated never letting us take our eyes off ourselves and our judges with our knowledge suitably enhanced.
“His poems, presented here as a collection, mirror the life of lawyers and the judiciary during the lockdown, but with satire and humour, the two antidotes to depression in dark times.
All of these may have been avoidable scenarios. But then if there was no lockdown, Raju Z Moray's poems would never have got written.
As we at theleaflet.in said when the series ended,
The irreverent Raju Z Moray has provided us with much-needed humour in an hour of crisis. We, and our readers, have thoroughly enjoyed his wit that sharply critiqued the times we lived through. His lockdown series has gained widespread appreciation amongst our readers. He has addressed the transformation of legal practice in corona times for the men in black. We witnessed his powerful words draw out a legal critique of the apathetic wheels of justice. His inquisitive satire made us ponder on questions of democracy and economic difficulties. His skilled weaving of words articulated our collective thoughts and enriched our lockdown lives. We saw ourselves reflected in his poems. It gave our cynicism some optimism. It gave us comfort in times of despair.
Our readers, we know, are awaiting the return of Raju Moray in a new avatar.
Until then, happy reading!
(Indira Jaising is a Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court of India and Founder of The Leaflet.)