Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao
Today-with Anna Hazare’s indefinite fast entering twelfth day-name any party, any organization and any individual notwithstanding the fact that whether they had a corrupt background or a clean reputation, all with one voice talk of fighting against corruption. In media both print and electronic we see the views of all those for and against Hazare Team or for and against Government or for and against Aruna Roy and so on. Those political leaders who swear by fighting corruption tooth and nail but failed to initiate any legislative measure while they were part of Governments earlier indulge in fierce criticism of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh though he stood by what he committed.
Almost all the political parties at one time or other did get a chance to enact laws to fight against corruption but seldom had they utilised. On the name of fighting corruption how can there be a super-super institution above all constitutional bodies? Systems should have been developed over a period to bring in all that what Hazare and his team today are talking in to place and should have been woven and interwoven. Yes there were several initiatives in the past but did not take off.
Nearly a decade and half ago on the threshold of fifty years of Indian Independence a conference of Chief Ministers presided over by the then Prime Minister IK Gujral was held on May 24, 1997 to discuss an Action Plan for providing Effective and Responsive Government at Central and State levels. The conference recognizing the fact that during the 50 years of independence, people were assailed by growing doubts about the accountability, effectiveness and moral standards of administration, unanimously resolved that Central and State Governments should move together to justify the trust of faith of the people in the Government by taking up implementation of a Nine Point Action Plan in a time bound manner. Earlier, his predecessor H. D. Deve Gowda initiated Chief Secretaries’ meet in November 1996 and generated a national debate. Responses were received from retreats organized in Mussoorie, Hyderabad and a number of leading academic institutions in Delhi and other places. Written communications were received from officials, experts, voluntary agencies, citizen groups, and media.
The CM’s conference was also attended by prominent Union Ministers, Cabinet Secretary, Chief Secretaries and senior officials in the Government of India. The Chief Ministers and Central Ministers attending the conference strongly endorsed the need for ensuring Responsive, Accountable, Transparent and Citizen Friendly Administration at all levels. This was considered to be a major step towards Reform Initiative in Administration in the country. Every political party was a party to that decision. Fighting against corruption was a major item in that.
The Action Plan comprised of Citizens’ Charter and Accountable Administration; Effective and speedy public grievance redress system; Empowering Elected Local Bodies in rural and urban areas and decentralized delivery of services; Review of laws, regulations and procedures; Transparency and Right to Information; Access of the public to information from public offices and creation of Facilitation Counters; Code of Ethics for public services; Tackling corruption and cleansing the administration and Stability of tenure and a scheme for Civil Services Board.
Many of the Chief Ministers who attended the meeting then are still in active politics either in power or in opposition. To name few of them are Shankersinh Vaghela the then CM of Gujarat and later Union Minister, Chandrababu Naidu the then CM of AP and now Leader of Opposition, Mayavathi then and now UP CM, Parkash Singh Badal the then CM of Punjab and now serving his fourth term as the Chief Minister of Punjab, Rabri Devi the then Bihar CM and now in the opposition, Manohar Joshi of Shiva Sena. IK Gujral, Deve Gowda and their successor Vajpayee who was supposed to take forward the Action Plan are still active in politics.
The specific areas to be addressed were also agreed. Central and State Governments would formulate citizens’ charter for Departments and Offices. All Central and State government departments would publicize widely, facilities at various levels for the prompt and effective redress of public grievances from the secretariat downwards to the village. Central and State Governments would work together for the simplification of existing laws, regulations and procedures as well as repeal of obsolete laws and reform of laws. Immediate steps would be initiated by different state governments, with the involvement of the Central Government to strengthen peoples’ participation in government. Steps would be taken to ensure easy access of the people to information relating to Government activities and decisions.
The Central and State Governments would open computerized information and facilitation counters in all their offices with large public interface. People-friendly and effective administration depends on cleansing of civil services at all levels, adherence to ethical standards and commitment to basic principles of the Constitution. The then existing rules and legal provisions in central and state governments would be amended. The then existing procedures for departmental enquiries and vigilance proceedings of government employees would be revamped. Areas of discretion available to various levels of administration would be reduced to the minimum, along with steps to prevent their arbitrary use.
It was agreed that each state government would work for the implementation of an Action Plan, making appropriate allowance for variation on local circumstances. Necessary political will to implement these, which is essential, would be sought. They agreed to review the progress from time to time. Even Prime Minister promised for another conference by the end of that year. The action plan was to be initiated within six months as per the resolution passed by the CMs. Except few states like AP where there was some progress on formulation of Citizens’ Charters nothing worthwhile happened! A “Core Group” constituted by Government of India in March 2002 to review the progress felt that little progress was achieved.
IK Gujral was in office hardly for a year including the term as Caretaker from April 1997 to March 1998. Atal Bihari Vajpayee succeeded him. The National Agenda for Governance announced by Vajpayee on March 18, 1998 among others included a paragraph exclusively on corruption and committed to enact “the Lok Pal bill with adequate powers to deal with corruption charges against anyone, including the Prime Minister”.
On 31 August, 2005 the President of India set up the “Second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC)” to prepare a detailed blueprint for revamping the public administration system under the Chairmanship of Veerappa Moily. The Commission was asked to suggest measures to achieve a proactive, responsive, accountable, sustainable and efficient administration for the country at all levels of the government. After four years study the Commission submitted fifteen reports beginning with Right to Information in June 2006. The consideration and implementation of the recommendations are awaited. The central theme in all of these initiatives is fight against corruption.
Against this background in April 2011, Anna Hazare initiated a Satyagraha movement for passing a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal bill in the Parliament. Initially it was for a demand to form a joint committee of the representatives of the Government and the civil society to draft a stronger anti-corruption bill which the Government of India accepted. Hazare ended his hunger strike but set a deadline of 15 August 2011 to pass the Lokpal Bill in the Parliament.
Government members opposed the inclusion of the prime minister, higher judiciary and the acts of the Parliament Members under the purview of the Lokpal in the draft bill. Civil society members boycotted the meeting of the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee and Hazare threatened to go on indefinite fast from 16 August 2011. On 28 July 2011 the Union Cabinet approved a draft of the Lokpal Bill and was introduced in the Parliament. Hazare was arrested four hours before the planned indefinite hunger strike and was sent to Tihar Jail. After release on 20 August 2011 Hazare left the Tihar Jail for the Ramlila Grounds and began his fast there.
All sorts of demands started coming from Team Hazare. No one less than PM or Rahul Gandhi is acceptable to the team for negotiations. Nothing short of Jan Lok Pal bill is acceptable to the team. Several self-styled mediators surfaced with their own solutions. For all of them it is not the Government or the Executive of the Government that is important. For them the Parliament is not at all important. Judiciary in their eyes has to come under their Jan Lok Pal purview. For them, whatever they say and demand has to be agreed to by Parliament and should become an Act.
While this is so, after the Planning Commission meeting on 20th August 2011, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said to the media that, “It is our hope that we should generate a broad climate in which all political parties can unite to push forward an agenda, which is in broad national interest. That will be our priority number one, to push the reform process forward.” Dr Manmohan Singh also said that, “If you look at the reforms programme, when we launched it in 1991, there was lot of opposition both from the Right and the Left. But subsequently we have had the governments of the Right and the Left at the Centre. I think in the last 20 years broadly, they have all kept to the path that was outlined by us in 1991-95.”
In fact Planning Commission’s Approach Paper to the 12th Plan, said: “Corruption at various levels of administration is weakening the confidence of citizens in the quality of governance and is also imposing enormous costs since a system vulnerable to corruption is more easily manipulated by the rich and the powerful.” Planning Commission advocated setting up of institutions such as Lokpal and Lokayuktas.
On the other hand The National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) has openly come out against the methods adopted by the Team Hazare and their civil society group. It also disagreed with the provisions of their Jan Lokpal Bill. NCPRI also objected to the demand of Hazare supporters that the government should introduce the Jan Lokpal Bill by 22nd August and get it passed immediately. Aruna Roy and her colleagues expressed the view that “Nobody has the right to say we alone are right. Democracy means recognizing and allowing multiple and diverse views”. NCPRI finds fault with Team Hazare that Hazare to be consulted before finalizing the draft and for amendments.
Aruna Roy says that Jan Lokpal Bill concentrated too much power in the hands of a single institution, running the risk of becoming authoritarian and over bureaucratized. Hence NCPRI wants not one single Lokpal but a principal Lokpal to tackle political corruption and corruption among the senior bureaucracy; a strengthened Central Vigilance Commission to investigate and prosecute the remaining categories of civil servants; a Judicial Accountability Commission brought into force by a fortified Judicial Accountability and Standards Bill; an independent Grievance Redress Commission to address everyday corruption and complaints and a Whistleblower Protection Law.
Anna Hazare launched the People's Movement against Corruption in 1991; protested against alleged malpractices in the purchase of power looms by the Maharashtra Government in May 1997; undertook fast unto death on 9 August 2003 to fight against the corruption charges on NCP Ministers; led a movement in Maharashtra state which forced the state government to pass a stronger Maharashtra Right to Information Act and fought against Maharashtra Government’s policy to promote making liquor from food grains in 2007. Why did he not either actively or even passively supported or opposed Union Governments from Deve Gouda to Manmohan Singh as and when they initiated measures to fight corruption?
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