Combating Corruption: The intent and the course

“The flood of money that gushes into politics today is a pollution of democracy” – Theodore H. White; Time 19 November 1984.

The political scene in India is, today, going through a phase of an unequivocal unrest. There is a social uprising, an intensified agitation and still the continued belief that the common man can, ‘hear no wrong, see no wrong and thus, speak no wrong’.  The activities of the past few months; the revelations of one scam after the other and the upheaval created by it, has left many scandalized and shocked, whereas, many others are rather amused.

The issue of corruption is looming large and suddenly there is a flurry of activity and a general consciousness about its inherent evil. Mr. Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev, acting as the front runners of the fight against corruption have mobilized the nation for the implementation of the “Jan Lokpal Bill”. Their journey till date saw the hunger strikes and mass movement by the people of India leading to the ultimate inclusion of the people of “The Civil Society” in the drafting committee of the Bill. But is this process constitutional? The method of agitation used against the Government; the fast unto death – is it not a method of pure blackmail? Does it show the failure of the system and democracy? Will it lead to the ultimate collapse of the Government? Are we, as the common people of the country, becoming overly judgmental in pointing the finger towards the abstract ‘them’ for the menace of corruption and forgetting our own role in it?

Such questions emerge from this pool of murk to haunt us. Questions that make us consider the possibility of curbing corruption as a whole and realizing the tedious process that it has to necessarily follow.

So what is corruption actually? While the dictionary commonly defines it as any act being influenced by bribery, we can explain it as the process of give and take of money or monetary consideration which is over and above the worth of the thing to be done. It paints the picture of all possibilities, if you have sufficient money to get it done; no matter whether it is wrong or right. Though the presence of a nexus between the bureaucrats, politicians and criminals is an oft quoted reason of the rampant corruption – the agreeability and capability of the people to pay to get their things done is at the core of the issue as well.

Today, whichever way we look there is a mark of corruption. Whether it be the local road construction deal or the international arms deal. The inflow and outflow of money into illegal hands is so rampant that most have accepted it as a part of life. It has become a part of not only the political scenario but of all private domains as well. The rise of the competitive market has more often than not given teeth to the menace of corruption. The evolving generations have taken it as an art of getting all your things done. Today, it has more to do with the attitude of the people than anything else; because it is only when people allow themselves to be exploited can they be taken advantage of by the people who are in the higher position.

However, we still believe in the aspect of blaming the whole system and denouncing the people in power as the perpetrators of corruption. We conveniently forget that the ‘they’ are there because ‘we’ have chosen ‘them’. And also since it falls easier on our conscience to blame the others and act as the disadvantaged proletariats in the game, we choose to do exactly that.

All this leads us to consider the question the stability and effectiveness of our political system. As one of the world’s greatest democracy have we failed as a nation in the fight against corruption? The democratic system of government that is pronounced as one of the finest systems, being naturally strong – the due process of the democratic system and the rule of law; are they strong enough to defeat corruption?

The point here is that corruption has taken such an elaborate form that we are unable to control it. It is the type of enemy that we think is known to us but it is so well hidden that it stands concealed in the layers of soil around it. Thought that way, it seems that fighting terrorists is easier than fighting the menace of corruption!

The threat of corruption has become an inherent part of the blood line of this country, thus, making it all the more difficult to curb it at one go. It has grown with the gradual process of evolution and it cannot be curbed at one go. Small doses will only make it dormant, waiting to raise its head once the medicine becomes ineffective. Subtle steps will not uproot it completely. The magnitude which it has achieved cannot be eradicated with a single handed approach. To stop the process of corruption we have to reach the root of the matter and channelize a fool proof method to effectively remove it as a whole.

Today, the demand for the ‘Jan Lokpal Bill’, to judicially curb corruption is on the rise. However the question remains, is only a judicial mechanism sufficient to curb corruption – when the other factors affecting it remain the same? Thus, at this point we also need to look into the other factors which include:

· Effective Administrative Reforms;

· An Independent Investigative Mechanism to deal with the issue of corruption;

· Social Reformation that will help to curb corruption from the everyday lives of the people;

These are also required to be considered.

To raise our voice against corruption is our constitutional right. But the scene that unfolds in front of us today seems like a process of blackmailing the government. What we should be doing is adopting a constructive process in keeping with the democratic process rather than taking such actions which threaten the integrity of the country.

What we need today is the holistic evolution of a system to fight the menace of corruption. The government should step forward to propose and formulate a National Policy to Eradicate Corruption. The Indian government became a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Corruption in May 2011. The formulation of a national policy shall act as a step for the ratification of the Convention.

The participation of people in governance is an important part of democracy. At a higher level this participation of people should include the suggestions of eminent persons working in various fields. A body like the at present existing National Advisory Council(NAC), to give constructive suggestions to the government, may be proposed for this process. To initiate the process of formation of the National Policy to Eradicate Corruption (NPEC), the government should form a people’s committee on NPEC.  This committee should have nominated members from all sections and strata of the society, including representatives of internal tribal areas, areas affected by naxalism, representation considering natural demographics as well as members representing the private sector, journalist and the youth.

The agenda of this committee should be to evolve an overall mechanism that includes:

· The Judicial Mechanism: To evolve a judicial mechanism to curb corruption from the grass root level. Taking a bottom to top approach where the common man can approach the judicial bodies to help bring justice in such cases.

· Administrative Reforms: To bring about stringent laws which are transparent and evolve more efficient procedural laws that will help in taking immediate action.

· Independent Investigation Mechanism: Creating an independent body other than the CBI to investigate matters relating to corruption.

· Social Reformation: Creating an all over awareness regarding the issue and creating even Taluka level helplines. Creating a protection force which shall ensure that no complainants are unnecessarily harassed (whistle blower protection), with the help of Government Agencies as well as NGO’s.

The People’s Committee, consisting of the eminent persons as afore mentioned, should submit a report to the Prime Minister under a stipulated time period containing the following:

·  The current scenario of corruption in the country.

· Evident problems in the whole system of governance which give rise to corrupt practices.

· Effective recommendations to curb the problems.

· Propose a phase wise holistic evolution of a system to curb corruption.

Upholding the democratic system and the constitutional procedure through which the Parliament has been given the responsibility to enact laws and to uphold the dignity of the electorate of India. The report of the People’s Committee, should thus, be then tabled before an Implementation Committee which may otherwise be also known as the Prime Minister’s Implementation Committee for the National Policy To Eradicate Corruption. This Committee shall be chaired by the Prime Minister himself and its members shall include:

· Leader  of House; Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha

· Leader of opposition; Lok Sabha & Rajya Rabha

· Minster of Law

· Empowered group of ministers

· Senior most members of the House; Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha

· Youngest Members of the House; Lok sabha & Rajya Sabha

· Representatives of Political Parties

The agenda of this Committee should be to first and foremost make an overall assessment on the report submitted by the People’s Committee and then to finalize and formulate the policy document. An independent ministry should be created to devise the plan of action to realize the phase wise holistic process to implement the policy.

At all stages of the implementation process the PM’s Implementation Committee should be consulted and their recommendations should be taken into consideration. The process of implementation should also be briefed to the People’s Committee every fortnight and their suggestions should be welcomed.

The creation of the National Policy for eradication of corruption and the process of implementation, if realized would truly be an effective way of combating the menace of corruption.

Corruption has spread in our country like an enigmatic amoeba, which has become so gigantic that it has become an epidemic of sorts. Mere doses of medicines in the form of very limited actions have made it dormant at certain time. Raising its ugly head from time to time it reminds us of its omnipresence. Eradicating it completely is no child play. It has to be undertaken with a meticulous hand and unyielding political intent. But what is also required is an inherent awareness and initiation by the people of this nation to put a stop to corruption, because this is such a disease which can be cured only if each and every citizen of this nation pledges to help stop it. It has to be removed from the very route, as even a minute particle of it will breed and in no time the little particle will be converted into the veritable tree that it is today.

Written By : Ms. Pallavi Nanda & Adv. Prasoon Kanmadikar