India, Oct. 18 -- In India, the world's largest democracy, vigilantism has variously been co-opted by the State for the establishment of order that may or may not have emerged out of consensus. From the cow protection movements in the northern states (first institutionalised by the Arya Samaj in the 19th century), the Khap Panchayats in Haryana, the Salwa Judum militia to counter Naxalite violence in Chhattisgarh (struck down by the Supreme Court in 2011), to the counter-protestors in Delhi allegedly helping the police by attacking protestors seeking the chief election commissioner's resignation, vigilantism has worked as an untrained, unchecked, and unaccountable wing for different governments.

Governments often find themselves in a dif...