If you ask a citizen of India to list down top five highlights of the Indian political scenario for the past year, I am sure four, if not all five, will be dedicated to scams. The very routine political discussions that happen in our living rooms, trains, chat shows and other public places are also frequently dominated by these scams. The fact is that each one of us was, on some level, aware that such scams are prevalent in our system but when such scams were exposed, their multitude, their mass and their facilitative mechanisms were scathing. I would say, these scams are reflective of the way our system has been functioning for the past many decades and how wealth has been bleeding away from the system. Corruption is a multifarious phenomenon and has, in some way or the other, been influencing our lives for years.
Now, with more active media and more conscientious citizens, these scams are facing light . A turnaround role in this is being played by the Right to Information Act, which has effectively empowered the citizens to dig out facts and expose the irregularities in otherwise secretive government agencies. Many highlighted scams this year were exposed with the help of RTI.The important aspect to realize is that - with power comes responsibilities. Each and every citizen of India, being empowered by the RTI, is now also responsible for exercising it wherever he/she doubts the integrity of actions. Consequently, for any unexposed irregularity that runs in our surroundings, we are as much to blame as anyone else. The attitude, now, has to shift from indifference to participation and the paradigm of 'Think Global, Act Local' established.
India is not the only country to be inflicted with corruption. In fact, corruption is a very natural current in any political system, given the dichotomy of human mind-good and evil. The focus should not be on condemning the presence of corruption but on building a credible institution or framework to tackle it.So far, we have unarguably failed to rein in the colossal losses that have incurred to the state owing to corruption, to the extent that probably, we were all habituated to believe that it is an inextricable thread in our societal fabric. However, with present state of empowerment and awakening, we stand capable of challenging corruption. The proposed Jan Lokpal Bill can be a powerful step in support of empowerment of common citizens. The current vigilance system is crippled with manpower shortage, limited jurisdiction, overlapping interests and game of influences.The proposed bill should promise to eliminate these shortcomings and make the institution of ombudsman a more powerful and effective one. The hurdle now is first, to strengthen the proposed framework, get the bill ratified and then, to ensure meticulous implementation of the framework. The ratification of desirable form of the bill is hindered, obviously, by vested interests of politicians and officials and thus, is Mr. Hazare on his hunger strike. It is definitely positive in view of democracy and non-violence. On the other hand, it might create unfruitful drama and provide opportunities for political leaders to leverage the situation to their benefit and for miscreants to create an uproar. It eventually falls down to Mr Hazare to guide the way his strike proceeds.Although given his background of strict social motives, it seems unlikely that any political drama will ensue, the chances of insincere public action, however, linger. The motive of his hunger strike is still very pertinent and India surely needs a directed, unified effort in this direction to regulate the existing system. Time will tell how the story of Mr Hazare proceeds and how competent is India in tacking corruption.
Waiting and hoping(for good)!
Now, with more active media and more conscientious citizens, these scams are facing light . A turnaround role in this is being played by the Right to Information Act, which has effectively empowered the citizens to dig out facts and expose the irregularities in otherwise secretive government agencies. Many highlighted scams this year were exposed with the help of RTI.The important aspect to realize is that - with power comes responsibilities. Each and every citizen of India, being empowered by the RTI, is now also responsible for exercising it wherever he/she doubts the integrity of actions. Consequently, for any unexposed irregularity that runs in our surroundings, we are as much to blame as anyone else. The attitude, now, has to shift from indifference to participation and the paradigm of 'Think Global, Act Local' established.
India is not the only country to be inflicted with corruption. In fact, corruption is a very natural current in any political system, given the dichotomy of human mind-good and evil. The focus should not be on condemning the presence of corruption but on building a credible institution or framework to tackle it.So far, we have unarguably failed to rein in the colossal losses that have incurred to the state owing to corruption, to the extent that probably, we were all habituated to believe that it is an inextricable thread in our societal fabric. However, with present state of empowerment and awakening, we stand capable of challenging corruption. The proposed Jan Lokpal Bill can be a powerful step in support of empowerment of common citizens. The current vigilance system is crippled with manpower shortage, limited jurisdiction, overlapping interests and game of influences.The proposed bill should promise to eliminate these shortcomings and make the institution of ombudsman a more powerful and effective one. The hurdle now is first, to strengthen the proposed framework, get the bill ratified and then, to ensure meticulous implementation of the framework. The ratification of desirable form of the bill is hindered, obviously, by vested interests of politicians and officials and thus, is Mr. Hazare on his hunger strike. It is definitely positive in view of democracy and non-violence. On the other hand, it might create unfruitful drama and provide opportunities for political leaders to leverage the situation to their benefit and for miscreants to create an uproar. It eventually falls down to Mr Hazare to guide the way his strike proceeds.Although given his background of strict social motives, it seems unlikely that any political drama will ensue, the chances of insincere public action, however, linger. The motive of his hunger strike is still very pertinent and India surely needs a directed, unified effort in this direction to regulate the existing system. Time will tell how the story of Mr Hazare proceeds and how competent is India in tacking corruption.
Waiting and hoping(for good)!
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