Talking about Dementia, Yeddyurappa and Lokpal Bill

Genius of Kalmadi Till now, it has been very common for any politician or a VIP fearing arrest or behind the bars to get admitted to hospital for chest pain or cardiac problems etc so as to either buy time or get sympathetic consideration for a bail. Now thanks to the genius of Suresh Kalmadi, there is a new way out of not just jail but out of any successful prosecution and that is dementia. Suresh Kalmadi, behind the bars for three months on account of 2 G scam, wanted to be out of jail to attend parliament session. Having failed that attempt, now he has claimed loss of memory and tests are underway to get him declared a victim of dementia. This will enable to him to conveniently delete the memory files not suitable to him and walk past the prosecution to freedom. I am sure A.Raja and Kanimozhi may be secretly admiring Kalmadi. But age is on the side of Kalmadi! Kalmadi was absolutely fit to participate in parliament session if he was permitted. He was fit to participate in Olympics in China just before arrest. As a parliamentarian Kalmadi surely knows the basics of qualifications required to represent people under the Indian Constitution. If he is medically certified to be suffering from dementia for last 4 years as claimed, then he stands to be disqualified for holding any position or public office. This means political suicide. Will Kalmadi gamble for such a heavy price for getting out of the mess he is in? Such attempts look more acceptable in Bollywood movies or a television serial in reel life but very rare in real life. As is generally known it is relatively easy to get medical certificates of choice. But now that his case has been referred to AIIMS, New Delhi, we pray for his well being and hope that he is not suffering from dementia. And as I write this piece, Kalmadi has just denied that he has dementia and told that he was taken to AIIMS for check up of heart problem! This is another lie to cover up the goof up, obviously after being alerted about the suicidal move. So the chance is that if he is let free on any ground, we still will have a member of parliament suffering from dementia publicly declared and best hidden from the nation. That would be a great misery heaped on the

people. Hope the prosecution and judiciary is keeping vigil to ensure good health as well as justice for Mr.Kalmadi. That will be in the larger interest of the nation. Noble Yeddiyurappa On the other hand we have B.S.Yeddyurappa, CM of Karnataka, who has refused to quit even after indictment by Lok Ayukta in mining scam. He has also refused to fall in line with BJP top brass. Ever since he has been in power, he has been at the centre of controversy relating to misuse of authority and corruption. His stance has been he may be morally wrong but was legally right while defending favors to family members. Does this imply that courts have no jurisdiction on elements of morality when it comes to passing a judgment? Yeddyurappa has projected himself to be always on the right side and ignored public rebuke from all quarters. One TV channel has quoted him saying that he should be given Nobel Prize for reducing illegal mining in Karnataka. Such self exaltation to height of morality, ignoring the mud sticking all over, speaks of the poor state of mind while making overall assessment of the public mood as well as ire on issues of corruption. Test of BJP Yeddyurappa may still hold political clout to have his own say in the party, but that will reflect not his strengths but the weaknesses of BJP who can not implement its own decision to make change in leadership in Karnataka State. BJP will prove to be wrong both on moral as well legal grounds if it fails to respond to Lok Ayuktas indictment. It can not fight against corruption and Lok Pal Bill in forthcoming session as it will have no moral right having failed to sack Yeddiyurappa or accepting his conditions for quitting as CM. What happens to the report of the Lok Ayukta on illegal mining indicting Yeddyurappa and Reddy brothers amongst whole lot of politicians and bureaucrats etc? Yeddyurappa wants to ensure that there are no legal proceedings against him on the basis of the report and therefore wants to have legal / constitutional insurance cover. Toothless Lok Pal Bill

UPA is introducing the Lok Pal Bill approved by the cabinet in this monsoon session of the parliament. It has no teeth. It has no provision for state level Lok Ayuktas. Just imagine if Santosh Hegde was not there as Lok Ayukta in Karnataka, the illegal mining scam would have never come out. That is precisely what UPA government wants so that scams can go on under the soft belly of Lok Pal Act when it is passed. All the bureaucrats except Group A officers will be out of ambit of the Lok Pal as if they are the only corrupt lot. It is the politicians and the senior bureaucrats who have shown in last one year what price the nation has to pay for their conspiracies and scam oriented thinking and actions. And they are the ones just being protected by keeping out of Lok Pal Bill and let pliable CBI do the boxing with them with velvet gloves. UPA government has shown scant respect for morality or even the spirit of legality in its conduct on issues of corruption. Next few days will unfold if BJP falls in same category or they have the courage to stand out for their convictions. Morality v/s Legality Kalmadi may be morally wrong to hide behind possible undeclared dementia (technical term used may be different), even though he has denied it publicly. But he may be right legally and walk out of the jail in spite of being the master mind of CWG scam. Yeddyurappa now may be morally right, as he claims, but legally wrong and yet manage to get off the hook by hook or crook. Either way there is no accountability to public. There have been many cases in recent past that accused have been set free for lack of adequate home work by prosecution or thin line dividing legality and morality. Where does legality end and morality begin in politics and public life? Does morality have any place whatsoever in governance of the nation? I dont think so. It is buried by the so called elected representatives of the people. It is time for our constitutional experts to read the fine prints and bring the rightful place for morality. The thin line dividing the two is threatening the moral fabric of the nation. The tragedy is that there is no concern even for legality. But who will bell the cat? If Anna fails this time it will be tragic and may be we lose another 20-30 years for national awakening which is over due.

Vijay M. Deshpande Corporate Advisor, Strategic Management Initiative, Pune 411021 July 29, 2011 Visit my blogs on: www.strami.com