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| Extinction of political propriety | | | Shiban Khaibri | 11/8/2010 10:35:29 PM |
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A country has rich monuments, memorials and memorabilia to show off to people, indigenous as well as foreign. We too have many but they are threatened to get eclipsed by the ones which are a self explanatory account of corruption, nepotism, political impropriety and merciless loot ----all done by and at the behest of few rulers in collusion with different agencies.
We have the infrastructure of recently hosted Common Wealth Games - stadia, overhead bridges, swimming pools and many associated structures at Delhi. We have now a 31 storey sky scraper at Colaba, Mumbai meant for and in the name of Kargil martyrs whose martyrdom is outraged due to acts of impropriety and the suspected perpetrators and facilitators are seen smiling, sharing dais with top leaders in Party sessions and meetings, where not a word is spoken by any one on the infamous scam. Whatever the names given to them, the same should be rechristened as Shame spots and Symbols of corruption. People should be lured to visit these infamous spots as living, vivid and brazen facedly standing testimonials of our stinking system afflicted by corruption and loot.
Corruption has infected our whole system and having graduated as an institution is established as one with low risk and high paying activity. The rot has spread every where and nearly in every sphere.. A lot many of our rulers have failed us and shamed India. We have reasons to smell a rat , going by the experience gained especially in post Indira Gandhi era that hardly any deal , any project , any activity in the name of development can be clean and genuine. It is one thing some scams get surfaced, quite another most of them rather going unnoticed or brushed under the carpet, employing all chicanery means.
Machiavelli, a political philosopher defined a ruler as one who leaves the impression that he is all mercy, faith, integrity, humanity and religion.” Have all these or even one of these been found present in those who are belying the trust of people , who are not tired of setting forth on a looting spree , whose greed has menacingly inflated their bellies that the very words of “neta” , “mantri” ,et al are bete-noire to the ruled. It seems our netas are busy only in indulging in and finding newer avenues to replenishing their own coffers, good governance and caring for the public is optional and quite casual for them. That explains why, even after 63 years of our independence, there are still 55% of our people poor. Factors like quite high level of corruption and poor investment norms and high level of inflation are chasing one another in a vicious circle resulting in India being one of the least economically free countries in the world. China is emerging as a force to reckon with and her economy is growing and development taking place much faster than that of ours. That explains why our markets, household kitchens, drawing rooms etc; are flooded with Chinese goods.
In case CWG , hypothetically speaking , would have been held there, Rs.9.75 lacs would never and never have been paid to hire each tread mill for a month and a half while each very modern new one could be purchased and owned just for Rs.1.50 lacs . As probe into the CWG bungling is progressing, new phenomenon is surfacing that of slush fund scam vide which through tax haven routes like Mauritius, Cyprus etc; hundreds of crores of rupees are feared to have come from US hedge funds. Shady contracts are alleged to have been handed over to sleazy builders. Were the Delhi government and the Manmohan Singh government not in know of what was going on in the name of Common Wealth games If they plead innocence, that exhibits and means not their under performance but sheer incompetence and incompetent must quit their jobs.
The Adarsh Housing Scam is a telling story of open and blatant collusion of the political leaders , ex army brass and bureaucrats . Several top Maharashtra leaders are involved in the scam. Vilas Rao Deshmukh, blaming Ashok Chauhan, (the CM, continuing in office despite the exposé) and vice versa. Shindey and Raney finding tactical ways to shift focus. Congress deflecting the issue by hurling choicest invectives and accusations on the main opposition party on TV exposé debates and people helplessly watching the tamasha.
The army is held in great esteem in our country but if a few ex- high ranking officers are alleged to have asked for and got favours by getting flats allotted in their favour in Adarash Housing Society, they must come clean. That is all the more necessary as Sukhna Land scam is still fresh in people’s mind.
The total inaction to fix accountability and to buy time has been the policy of UPA government which speaks about not only in case of Adarash scam but in the matter of the 2G Spectrum scam as well, where a key ally of UPA, the DMK has burnt its fingers - albeit the Union Communication Minister, A. Raje, who is alleged to have made spectrum allocations in a sheer arbitrary manner causing a loss to the national exchequer to the tune of Rs.70, 000 crores and a gain to a few private companies and persons. The PM has neither dismissed nor has DMK disowned, A. Raje despite Supreme Court questioning the centre on the slow pace of the investigations by the CBI . Not to speak of the Minister being prosecuted, he is not even interrogated in the matter and the PM and the Congress choose to remain silent. Justice A.K.Ganguly of the Supreme Court asked the Additional Solicitor General , Mr. Raval, “The same Minister is still continuing . Is that the way , the government is functioning ?Is this the rule of law? Do you follow the same standard in respect of every one?”
Likewise, time in Kargilgate is bought and a transparent probe is not ordered excepting two senior Union cabinet Ministers asked to submit report who “need more time “. The questions that need reply are:-
Why is Maharashtra Chief Minister not removed if he did not quit on his own to facilitate an impartial probe? Instead he was given the privilege to receive President Obama at Mumbai on his maiden visit to India.
How was 40% of membership managed for non army members from the exclusive earmarking for Kargil martyrs. It is alleged that as a consideration for according clearances and sanctioning of papers, bye laws of the Housing Society were got amended by Ashok Chauhan .
What role did each of ex-CMs, Narayan Raney, Shindey and Vilas Rao play in building the structure of this scam?
The fact that Vilas Rao Deshmukh was removed as CM of Maharashtra in connection with 26/11 fiasco, and only a few months later, promoted as a Union Minister, sent the massage that incompetent and non performers were rewarded by the Congress which emboldens prospective scammers and facilitators who enjoy immunity even when widely exposed across the country.
Where from the recipients of flats arranged money for payments thereof and whether declarations and disclosures were made to the IT authorities?
Why and at whose behest are the investigating agencies inactive and why FIRs are not registered and arrests made against the suspects? Leaving them free could jeopardize the investigations and trials in the courts as files, papers etc; could go missing and vital documents feared to get tampered with. Two investigating Ministers “wanting more time” and the suspected wrong doers using “more time “ to fudge records and glaring proofs is all suspect of the truth coming out and the guilty getting punished.
Why should not the properties of the suspected perpetrators of the scam be held in escrow pending their attachment by the courts and other specified authorities?
It is high time a full fledged war is declared against the cancer of corruption without reckoning any electoral gains and losses. Inquiries should not appear as slipshod and diversionary routes with intent to subject the findings to weak and a prolonged process of prosecution to instil the fast losing confidence of the people in the sincerity of the government to eradicate corruption and sternly punish the corrupt.
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