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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Yes, there is an alternative by Anjali Bhardwaj & Aruna Roy

Yes, there is an alternative by Anjali Bhardwaj & Aruna Roy

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published Published on Aug 24, 2011   modified Modified on Aug 24, 2011

There are two broad governance issues that concern every citizen in this country today: corruption at different levels in the government, and grievances arising from the government’s poor functioning. The last few months have seen an outpouring of emotions related to these issues. It is amply clear that the people of India want no one to be above the law; everyone, irrespective of the position they hold, should be accountable.  Equally, citizens want their day-to-day grievances related to the government addressed in an effective, time-bound manner.

Recent events have undoubtedly put these two issues at the centre of public debate, and forced the political class to pay attention. Now, however, is the time for reasoned debate. A rational solution needs to be evolved to address these challenges.

As the Parliament debates the Lokpal bill, we very strongly believe that two principles must inform all discussions on the matter. First, too much power and responsibility must not be concentrated in any one institution — power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The corruption we see today is a result of unaccountable and unchecked power. Therefore, the institution set up to tackle corruption must itself have a proper system of checks and balances, to ensure that it is accountable to the people of the country. Rather than setting up a single “super”-institution which deals with all problems — corruption at high levels, corruption in the middle- and lower-level bureaucracy, judicial corruption and public grievances — multiple institutions, adequately empowered, must be set up to look into each of these issues. Second, existing institutions and laws must be strengthened to enable them to tackle corruption effectively, and to protect those who blow the whistle on corrupt practices. If democratic institutions falter or weaken, there is no alternative to repairing and strengthening them. Failure to address the problems in existing structures will result in transferring the same problems into any new institution that may be set up.

In our view, an Anti-Corruption Lokpal, equipped and empowered to deal with big-ticket corruption at the state and the central level, covering all elected representatives (including the prime minister, but with certain safeguards), senior bureaucrats and all co-accused is critically required. This body would investigate and prosecute everyone involved in large scams like the 2G, CWG, Taj Corridor and Adarsh affairs that rocked the nation in recent times.

For mid-level and lower bureaucracy, the existing institution of the Central Vigilance Commission must be empowered to effectively deal with all cases of corruption. This would entail removing bottlenecks — like the “single directive” and the lack of adequate resources — which have so far impeded its effective functioning. Parallel state vigilance commissions at the state level would also have to be set up.

The judiciary must be made accountable to an independent, autonomous institution. The Constitution provides for the independence of the judiciary. What is needed, in our opinion, is an independent National Judicial Commission to look into all cases of corruption and misconduct related to the judiciary at all levels — from the lower judiciary to judges of the Supreme Court. The Judicial Accountability and Standards Bill, currently with the parliamentary standing committee, needs to be substantially amended and strengthened to ensure its effectiveness.

Whistleblowers must be offered protection under all these institutions through an effective Whistleblowers Protection bill. This can be achieved by suitably amending and strengthening the “public interest disclosure” bill currently before Parliament.

One issue that impacts every citizen of this country is the lack of an effective mechanism to deal with everyday grievances — non-receipt of pensions, poor delivery of rations, broken roads, non-availability of adequate water, poor sanitation and drainage etc. Effective grievance redress requires a decentralised system, equipped to deal with grievances in a time-bound manner. There is an urgent need to draw on successful grievance redress mechanisms where they exist (like in NREGA) and evolve an appropriate legislation to set up an independent institution empowered to effectively redress public grievances.

India is a huge country, and the problems we seek to address are complex. No single quick-fix legislation, no single all-powerful institution is likely to deliver us the clean, vibrant, participatory democracy to which we aspire. A well-thought out, considered and informed solution, in line with the basic structure of our Constitution, will have to be evolved through a process of public consultation and debate.

Parliament too cannot take any shortcuts. It has to provide a genuine platform for discussion in line with its constitutional role. It has to invite comments from across the country before passing the legislation.

India Against Corruption’s lack of faith and belief in the parliamentary process may be an expression of angst against its ineffectiveness. But to bypass it would be self-defeating for the people of India. Our experience with the Right to Information and NREGA legislations shows that the standing committee can be an extremely useful platform, where the legislations can be discussed, debated and strengthened.

The RTI bill which was introduced in Parliament was an extremely watered-down and weak version of what civil society activists had drafted and proposed. However, groups from all over the country, including the NCPRI, petitioned the parliamentary standing committee, and debated the legislation clause by clause.

Eventually, Parliament took on board most of the suggestions of the standing committee — and finally made 153 amendments to the bill, passing one of the most progressive right to information access legislations across the world. The movement which finally led to the passage of the RTI Act, provides an insightful example of how civil society can agitate and work towards a strong pro-people legislation, without compromising or demeaning parliamentary, democratic processes.

Roy and Bhardwaj are members of the National Campaign for Peoples’ Right to Information (NCPRI)


The Indian Express, 24 August, 2011, http://www.indianexpress.com/news/yes-there-is-an-alternative/836152/


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