Civil society’s fight against corruption - Atasi Das

The annals of the UPA-II regime can be rightfully termed as a scam studded one - take your pick, the biggies include the Common Wealth Games (CWG) scam, the Adarsh controversy and the 2G scam.
The common man’s fight against corruption started with renewed vigour when veteran Gandhian and social activist,  Anna Hazare   began a ‘fast unto death’ on 5th April, 2011 demanding the Central  Government  to pass the Jan Lokpal Bill (People's Ombudsman Bill)-a more stringent and inclusive one, than the Lokpal Bill (Ombudsman), which has been pending since its inception in 1969. Hazare’s movement received spontaneous peoples’ participation; he ended his 97-hour hunger strike on 9th April, 2011 after the Government of India accepted his demand for the formation of a 10 member joint committee the same day.

Carrying forward the crusade against corruption, yoga guru Baba Ramdev began a ‘fast unto death’ on 4th June, 2011. Around 65,000 followers gathered at the Ramlila ground in New Delhi for the event. On the night of 4th June, in an arguably undemocratic manner, the Delhi Police raided the ground, fired tear gas shells and lathicharged, to evict the crowd and break Ramdev’s fast; Ramdev was escorted to Haridwar under police custody.

Ramdev’s prime demand was a Central government move towards shipping back all the black money stashed away in overseas tax havens illegally. He has suggested the withdrawal and demonetization of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 currency notes, acceptance of the U.N. Convention against Corruption, pending since 2006, provision of death penalty for corrupt persons under the Indian Penal Code, etc.
Though Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev are united in their goal of promoting a corruption free India, they differ in their strategies and approaches. Anna’s movement has revolved round the Jan Lokpal Bill. He has repeatedly ruled out the involvement of political and religious leaders in his movement. Anna’s movement has been strongly apolitical in nature. He has by and large successfully captured the pulse of the common Indian; the general notion among the public is that the nexus between the political and religious leaders is an unholy one, and their involvement in the fight against corruption will only be for personal gains.

Baba Ramdev has decided to involve his yogic followers in his battle against corruption. But his movement apparently lacks credibility because of its active political links, namely with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS).  Ramdev himself reportedly owns 1100 crores worth Yoga Empire, with international property holdings.
Ramdev’s movement   lacks a well planned out strategy and appears to have been somewhat hurriedly launched, ostensibly to garner some popularity glitz. Some of his demands are quite impractical; he seems to have bypassed a detailed study of the existent systems in India.

The Central Government had initially adopted a defensive strategy during Anna’s fast. But the recent crackdown on Ramdev and its refusal to accept the Jan Lokpal Bill, as envisaged by the members of the civil society, has made it clear that the Government is set to deal with the civil society’s encroachment in judicial matters with a firm hand. The recent talks between the Ministers and members of the civil society, on the issue of inclusion of the Prime Minister within the realm of the proposed bill, have been inconclusive.

Anna has set a specific deadline of 15th August, 2011 before the Government, to pass the Jan Lokpal Bill in the Parliament, failing which he will reportedly launch a nation wide mass agitation in support of the movement. For Ramdev, till date, any such deadline is nonexistent. While Ramdev’s support is mainly based amongst his followers, Anna’s campaign has the credibility and support of eminent personalities like Kiran Bedi, ex- IPS officer, lawyers Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan, social activist Medha Patkar, and a large section of the general public, making his movement a deep-rooted one.

According to the 2010 Corruption Perceptions Index, India is ranked 87th out of a total of 178 countries. There is indeed a pressing need for a powerful and all inclusive bill like the Jan Lokpal Bill in this country to curb the rampant misuse of power and corruption, prevalent here. The movement by Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev has been successful in awakening the common man from his slumber regarding the misuse of national resources for vested interests. Their movement could catalyze the growth of a more egalitarian and corruption free society and untangle the politician-bureaucrat- industrialist nexus. The lessons of the Jasmine Revolution are still fresh in public memory; hopefully the Central government will take the cue and chart out a path towards greater transparency within an appropriate legal framework. Critiques at the governmental level have however not taken kindly to the civil society’s interference in constitutional matters, in the name of the anti-corruption   movement.