Tackling corruption requires economic reforms and a popular re-engagement with electoral politics. We should shun the politics of hunger strikes. The idea of a ‘Jan Lok Pal’ is flawed and profoundly misunderstands the causes and solutions of corruption in India. It seeks to create another chunk of Government, more processes and rules, to solve a problem that, in part, exists because of too many chunks of Government, too many processes and...

Anna Hazare and his supporters appear to have come to an agreement with the central government over forming a joint committee to draft the Lokpal bill.  We can all agree that corruption in India is a cancer eating away at the very core of the nation. Amidst the frenzied coverage of the hunger strike, and the exclamations of support for Hazare on social networks, there has been scant discussion of...

As I have watched mass hysteria build up over Anna Hazare’s fast, there have been moments when I felt that his supporters had forgotten that India is a democratic country. I have long believed that the most apolitical Indians are those who belong to the English speaking, tweeting, texting middle classes but I had no idea just how apolitical they were till last week. Without reading the Jan Lokpal bill...

A day after he ended his 97-hour fast demanding a stronger anti-graft Lokpal Bill, social activist Anna Hazare Sunday said the process of formulating the act will be videographed and the procedures will be made public. 'The committee will start its work on the draft from April 16, the procedures will be videographed and made public,' Hazare told reporters. 'The procedure will be totally transparent, from formulation to the time after it...

Election Commission committed to far-reaching reforms: Quraishi Civil society should take responsibility of cleansing the system: Vinod Rai Political parties not interested in reforms: CEC Both Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi and Comptroller and Auditor-General Vinod Rai on Friday called upon the people to stand up against corruption and underlined their optimism about the future of India. Addressing the CII national conference here, both focussed on governance, ethics and social responsibility. Mr. Quraishi called upon...