corruption

Taking on corruptionOnus on Congress to implement its agenda

IF Congress president Sonia Gandhi is really serious about her five tips to root out corruption, she should ensure their implementation at the Centre and in the Congress-ruled states. This may shame other ruling parties to follow suit. Simply offering “advice” to the Congress chief ministers and ministers to give up discretionary powers is not going to help. Experience shows no one surrenders power voluntarily. At least, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, whom she described as “the embodiment of sobriety, dignity and integrity”, has declared that “like Caesar’s wife, (the) PM should be above suspicion” and that his government will “pay careful attention to” her five-point agenda.
Each of the five points — fast-tracking corruption cases involving politicians and public servants; transparency in procurements and contracts, and protection to whistleblowers; an open, competitive way of selling natural resources; shedding discretionary powers by Congress chief ministers and ministers; and the state funding of elections — makes eminent sense and deserves a wider debate. Land acquisitions have raised a lot of dust in the recent past. Why should governments get involved in private or corporate land deals unless there is a breach of law or justice demands so? Besides, a law can be enacted to confiscate the property of a public servant convicted for corruption as has been done in Bihar. Even the Local Area Development Fund has been abolished in Bihar because of its misuse.
There is no dearth of noble intentions or ideas to banish corruption. How to do it is the key issue. If the steps proposed by Ms Sonia Gandhi are implemented in the right spirit – and these can be – corruption can be minimised, at least in some areas. It is urgent for the nation as well as the party to remove the stink left behind by the 2G scam, the misappropriation of large amounts of government money during the recent Commonwealth Games and the grabbing of Adarsh flats by influential politicians and top Army officers meant for the families of war heroes. A fast-track disposal of these three cases with exemplary punishment to the accused will largely help in restoring public faith in the system.Tribune