Corruption a Great Leveler

In last few weeks, the UPA government in New Delhi has displayed
dizzying heights of incompetence as well as ignorance. The new telecom
minister Kapil Sibal dismissed CAG report on corruption scam of 2 G
spectrum and called the estimates of losses to exchequer to be baseless and
completely wrong and that there was no loss at all. The Supreme Court came
down heavily and asked the minister to behave responsibly. And now comes
the story of denial of any knowledge about charge sheet against CVC, PJ
Thomas, when he was appointed to the top post. That is ridiculous going by
the processes of short listing and finalizing such important constitutional
appointments. It was claimed that his bio data was given last minute!
Why was leader of the opposition Sushma Swaraj bypassed while making
this crucial appointment when the fact was brought to notice? And as if this
faux pas was no enough, the Attorney General claimed in affidavit in
Supreme Court that impeccable integrity was not an eligibility criterion for
the post of CVC! So a corrupt person even if not yet proved guilty in the
court of law can be appointed as CVC? Did UPA government have no other
person of unquestionable background for the top post? And putting it very
mildly is CVC supposed to be “Chief Cover-up Officer” or Chief Vigilance
Officer?

The government has displayed immense ability to leapfrog the huge gaps
between ethical and politically convenient options. But this one is simply
beyond the limits crossed in the past. The government is looking like an
errant school child and Supreme Court the teacher.

Black Magic & Vanishing Tricks

Pranab Mukherjee, Union Finanace Minister made a statement that US$8

billion vanished from the Swiss account of Hasan Ali. Has the establishment
been more than helpful to let the accused transfer the funds before any action
is taken? He also announced that he can not announce the names of account
holders in Swiss Banks. Isn’t that providing a shield to the corrupt?
One more unprecedented event has been brutal burning and killing of
Yashwant Sonawane, Additional Collector of Nasik, while on duty of
raiding the oil mafia engaged in mixing of kerosene and petrol. While the
action of the accused may have been planned and not spontaneous, it speaks
volumes about the stakes involved in the corrupt practices in this Rs.10,000
crore oil mafia. A clean duty conscience officer had to pay with his life. This
resulted in repulsive mood across the country and 80,000 IAS officers and
totally 1.8 million staff went on a days strike in protest. Is the country being
ruled by the mafia with blessings of the powers that be? Are honest officers
required to sit at homes? Is any one serious about reaching the root cause?

In yet another corner of the country, Governor of Karnataka proved very

transparently who his masters are. While Chief Minister Yeddyurappa may
have been tainted with accusation of corruption charges in land allotment,
the governor seem to be functioning as an executive authority and not as
constitutional authority. BJP would have been a leg up on fight against
corruption if the CM had been asked to go earlier. Now the people are fed up
with no worthwhile administration and only political gamesmanship. The
institution of Governor’s office has been trampled regularly and frequently
in all the states. Very often the governors have played Trojan Horse for the
ruling party at the center.

Military Justice

Among the din of the scams, it was heartening to read that Lt.Gen. P.K.Rath
has been convicted by the Army Court. It was just about one year in which
the process was completed. Why this can not be followed for the civilian
bureaucrats and the politicians? The Lt Gen lost his seniority by two years
among other things.

Ashok Chavan lost Chief Ministership, Lt.Gen Rath got sentenced,

Kalmadi’s aides lost jobs, Information Commissioner Ramanand Tiwari got
suspended….the process has just begun. CVC Thomas, Kalmadi, Raja, and
Yeddyurappa are in line and only hope that the queue gets longer and the
wait shorter. And when the juggernaut of public ire rolls, all of them will
bite the same dust as the fallout of demolition of the Adarsh Building in
Mumbai. Corruption can be a great leveler of sort.

Deficit in Governance
The deficit in governance has been more frequently visible these days both
at the state and centre levels with all pervasive corruption as the root cause.
Unless the punishments are deterrent enough, corruption will be a way of
life. In last few months, one after the other large scams broke out and
common man as well as international community is shattered. These scams
are only a tip of the iceberg. Behind every big scam are larger game plans to
cover up the trails as is hinted by Hasan Ali episode. How long will people
accept and tolerate endless corruption? Governments are spending
disproportionate time on managing corruption cases and court room battles.
There is less time for quality governance. The performance is driven by the
whips of the courts. Perhaps we are sitting on a time bomb of corruption
which could engulf the nation and just waiting for a trigger.

Global Discontent Shaping Up

Far away in Tunisia, the corruption has taken its toll and the President, Ben
Ali, had to fee the country. India is not Tunisia. But it was not just
corruption which forced the change. It was inability of the government to
stop information on WikiLeaks about corruption from reaching the people.
The Leaks fueled the sentiments leading to self immolation and Jasmine
Revolution. Egypt is simmering and heading to be on boils and has clamped
down on internet access. India is leader in information technology and can
not resort to Egyptian kind of responses. Is there anything to learn for our
politicians?

Information Age & Open Societies

Yes, the power of information, accessibility to so far hidden motives and

agendas, and the power of internet to reach the masses are the new tools the
media has got at its disposal. In last few months Indian Media has done
some good job of exposing the corrupt and bringing the scams to the fore.
And they know very well how to use the latest technology. They must be on
lookout for those who may be trying to buy or stall information of
WikiLeaks on India becoming public.

WikiLeaks on India along with black money trails will fuel discontent
among not just the educated but also the masses. People would know who
are looting the nation. Masses would know why onions are so expensive.
May be the governments would know the real cost of onions they traded in!
Internal investigating agencies are at the beck & call of the power centers of
the government and are prevented from doing just job. The media and newly
discovered power of the WikiLeaks can shift the real power centers globally
and bring the corrupt governments, dictators, and economic offenders down
to their knees. What we intend Lok Pal or Lok Ayukta to do as watchdogs in
the Indian context, WikiLeaks is doing globally in its own ways and has
become a game changer. One of the reasons for fall of the Roman Empire
was corruption. And those who profess “Ceaser’s wife must be above
suspicion” should know this better.

Vijay M. Deshpande
Corporate Advisor,
Strategic Management Initiative
Pune 411021

January 28, 2011

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