Civil society groups and organisations on Tuesday condemned attempts to malign co-chairman of the Lokpal Bill joint drafting committee Shanti Bhushan and its member Prashant Bhushan. Expressing “full solidarity,” the organisations said they would oppose all efforts to sideline the central issue of establishing a strong and effective mechanism to tackle endemic corruption in the country. Describing Mr. Shanti Bhushan as “a tireless defender of civil liberties and the rule of law,”...

Given the scale of corruption in India, the constitution of a Jan Lokpal will be a welcome initiative. But the proposed Lokpal has the makings of a super-monster. After 42 years of hesitation and uncertainty, an institutional mechanism to deal with the all-pervasive incidence of corruption in India is in sight. What apparently moved the state machinery was the agitation spearheaded by Anna Hazare, which drew spontaneous support primarily in the...

As young middle-class Indians gathered to express their anger at corrupt governance, it was a significant moment for Indian democracy. The country has witnessed many protests for wages and land, self-determination and human rights. But this campaign was different. It's decades since educated and privileged young people felt stirred enough to take to the streets, seeking hope of a better India. But this is not a one-time eruption and the...

Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh has questioned the “huge” funding for social activist Anna Hazare's hunger strike in New Delhi to demand a Lokpal Bill, and asked whether politicians were uncivilised and could not be members of civil society. Speaking at the Press Club here on Saturday, he claimed that Rs.50 lakh was spent on Mr. Hazare's four-day agitation at Jantar Mantar. “When we demanded that it should be brought out...

Union Law and Justice Minister M. Veerappa Moily said on Friday that an overarching law premised on the “right to justice” could soon be a reality. He said the first draft of the Bill was ready though it was still to be circulated for feedback. Mr. Moily's promise of a new law on justice came at a seminar, “Towards knowledge, development and peace,” organised by the Institute of Objective Studies (IOS)...