Anna Hazare’s fast puts into focus the government’s attempts to protect politicians India Against Corruption, a group formed by Anna Hazare and other social activists and former judges, has given 17 reasons why the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by former Supreme Court judge Santosh Hegde, now the Karnataka Lokayukta, is far better than the Bill prepared by the union government. The Jan Lokpal Bill, hailed as a civil society initiative, provides for...
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Jairam appears before Ethics Committee of the Lok Sabha
Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday appeared before the Ethics Committee of the Lok Sabha following his letter to the Speaker about Members of Parliament lobbying for projects in which they have interest or which fall outside their constituencies. Mr. Ramesh was summoned by the Committe headed by Manik Rao Gavit, after the Minister's letter to Speaker Meira Kumar was referred to it. Sources privy to the proceedings at the meeting...
More »Women MPs to push for speedy passage of women-related Bills
Cutting across party lines, women Members of Parliament propose to set up pressure groups in both Houses to push for speedy clearance of a number of women-related Bills that are pending passage. The proposal was mooted at a meeting of women MPs, convened by Girija Vyas, chairperson of the National Commission for Women on Thursday. It was attended by 22 women MPs. Ms. Vyas suggested that women MPs, irrespective of their...
More »Bribery charge must now be investigated by Siddharth Varadarajan
The Embassy cable suggests a serious crime was committed on Indian soil to which U.S. diplomats were privy. The Prime Minister cannot cite lame arguments to justify inaction. Since politics is a distraction, consider the following retelling of the WikiLeaks tale. An activist dies in a traffic accident. CCTV footage from a bank nearby suggests he might have been murdered but the case is never investigated properly. Three years later,...
More »Tackling the blight of misgovernance by Minhaz Merchant
Global business abhors uncertainty. The ministerial-level corruption in UPA-II has slowed FDI and FII inflows. The stock market, despite double-digit corporate profit and 8.6% GDP growth, reflects the anxiety of Indian and foreign investors. To take India's growth story forward in the 20th year of economic reforms, political reforms must catch up. Misgovernance won't do in a globalised, interconnected world. Two kinds of political corruption blight India: episodical and ongoing. Episodical...
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