WILL LOK PAL ASSURE US BETTER DAYS AHEAD? by Jose Maria Miranda

Better late than never, the people of India seem to have woken up to the reality that the country is being swindled by a few dishonest and unscrupulous politicians and bureaucrats. But how much of these noises will eventually translate into votes and how much we can really achieve when the choice is between the devil and the deep blue sea, is what needs to be seen.

The scams that have rocked the country in the last few months have severely dented the image of India and its prestige suffered tremendously. The print and electronic media abroad have given wide publicity to them. Referring to the corruption in the administration and even in the judiciary and the punchless efforts in retrieving the illegal money stashed in tax havens abroad, questions are being asked whether our nation is in a coma. UK’s “The Telegraph” says that ‘India’s elephantine legal system will ensure that culpability is delayed”

A German daily laments that India is becoming a “Banana Republic instead of a economic superpower” while others predict that the ‘have-nots will hit the streets in India because the Indian leaders in business and politics are so blissfully blinded by their new ill-gotten wealth and deceit that they are living in defiance, insolence and denial”. Yet, we are too conceited and thick-skinned to realize the truth of these statements and that the recent happenings have made us objects of ridicule and a laughing stock for the whole world.

The PM’s justification of his inaction in 2G scam by citing constraints of coalition is certainly unacceptable but we cannot help acknowledging its truth. No other party or PM would have acted differently, risking their survival in power. And here lies the root of the problem. No political party in India is clean or can afford to remain clean.

The greed for money and power is too tempting. It compels politicians and political parties to stoop to any levels to retain their chairs. Our own Chief Minister is one such example. But why fault only the politicians? Aren’t we ourselves in one way or the other corrupt? Many of us get paid for our vote, either in cash or kind. Most of us run to politicians for donations or personal favours to sanction or protect our illegalities, even though they are against the interests of our neighbours or our people or the State. Can we, in such a situation, refuse to canvass and vote for these individuals, even though we may know of their abominable antecedents?

If we need to change the system, we need to change ourselves – is what we often say, but rarely practice. Anna Hazare has rightly asserted that if he has to contest elections, he would lose his deposit. It is neither easy to end corruption nor any easier to get the right people elected – not alone because the right people are reluctant to join politics but principally because the right people cannot afford the type of money that is needed to win an election.

The country is facing a dearth not so much of upright people but of fearless, efficient and dauntless people who will take on the corrupt and the unscrupulous. In the present administration, they would run the risk of their lives, as many already have experienced.

The pressure that has been built may see the early passage of the Jan Lok Pal Bill by a reluctant Parliament comprising a sizeable number of individuals with criminal and dishonest background. The Bill, being drafted by renowned legal luminaries, may not have many loopholes that the politicians would wish to see to escape prosecution.

With the Lok Pal in place, hopefully, there will be some 4sanity in administration, particularly because corrupt politicians and bureaucrats may have to go home for good, if found guilty. However, let us not be overconfident that things will change drastically. Having seen the worst of the corruption with hardly any checks or punishment, we can’t help being cynical. Yet, it is certainly a step in the right direction