A Battle We Must Not
Lose
Forget Anna
Hazare. The Jan Lokpal movement can go to hell for all I care. Let us just look
at the issues over which the battle between the Government and us citizens is
being fought. And then let’s decide where we want to stand, each one of us, on
the issue of corruption.
The first
question is: Do corruption and bribery hurt you? If they do, do you want a
solution? If your answer is yes to both, do you think such a solution lies with
an independent authority? Or do you think a corrupt Government can fight
corruption on its own, and within its own ranks? If your answer is no to that,
then we need to create an independent institution to fight corruption. Right?
Well, that’s precisely what Anna is asking for. He is asking for a Lokpal that
the Government cannot influence nor manipulate. This is the first battle.
The second
battle is over four things. One: Should the Prime Minister come under the
purview of the Lokpal? Almost everyone I know thinks he should. A honest Prime
Minister wouldn’t care. A dishonest one must be supervised. Or else, we will
have cases like Bofors that will never ever be resolved. Two: Should Members of
Parliament come under the Lokpal? I have not met a single person till date who
thinks that our MPs are so honest that they need not be supervised. My guess is
if a referendum is ever taken, Anna will get a 100% yes to this question, given
what people think of our politicians and the standards of probity in public
life. The third question is even more obvious: Do all public servants need to
come under the Lokpal? My guess is India’s answer will be yes, yes, yes. Every
day, in every area of our life and work, we are constantly harassed, intimidated
and extorted by corrupt Government officers. The poorer you are, the worse is
the torture. So yes, every public servant, every Government officer must come
under the Lokpal. Question four: Who should give permission to file an FIR
against a corrupt judge? If the Lokpal can look into corruption charges against
the PM, the MPs and Government servants, isn’t it only logical to expect it to
do the same against judges?
The third
and final battle is over an even simpler thing: The Citizen’s Charter. Should
every Government office have such a Charter which will clearly state which
officer will do what work and in how much time? And should an officer who
refuses to do his work in time or asks for a bribe to move a file be punished?
The Government says a charter is fine but Government servants must not be
penalised if they don’t do their work! Anna believes that officers not doing
their work in time amounts to corruption and must face the same treatment. Isn’t
it rather obvious what India thinks about this?
Do we really
need a referendum on these simple, basic issues? I seriously doubt it. Every
Indian will endorse the idea of a Lokpal as Anna and his team have envisioned
it, with the help of thousands of Indians who have contributed online to the
process of drafting the bill.
Yes, there
are genuine fears that we should not create yet another monster out there, who
will make life more difficult for us than it already is. But even that has been
addressed rather adroitly by Anna’s team. It is a complex process, true but it
also ensures that the choice is wisely made. And what if there are charges
against the Lokpal? Well, there’s a provision there too. You can go straight to
the Supreme Court and seek justice out there.
So why are
we arguing so much over this Bill? Why is the Government digging its heels in
and refusing to listen to us citizens? Why must Anna go on a hunger strike all
over again to press home the point that corruption must be fought back? I guess
it’s a question of both ego and fear. No one likes to give up the power they
have, and certainly not the Government. In fact, it’s always trying to interfere
more and more in our lives, grab more and more authority, more and more space.
And fear? Well, I guess we all know the answer to that. This is possibly the
most corrupt Government we have ever had. It has good reason to be
scared.
Pritish
Nandy
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