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| Let Lok Pal lay hands on all categories of government servants | | Encourage the honest politicians , government servants | | Daya Sagar | 12/18/2011 12:01:55 AM |
| This day the issue of corruption is being trumpeted in debates not because all the politicians and government servants have gone corrupt, it is being talked because the corrupt elements have in a way taken over the control of the affairs of the society. Or it can be said that the better part of the reins economy of India have come under the influence of the corrupt order. The J&K State Accountability Commission bill was passed by J&K Legislature in 2003. During discussions on the bill the MLAs described even the State Vigilance Organization too to be under the shadows of doubtful integrity. Mr. Muzaffar Hussein Beg the then J&K Planning Minister while addressing a gathering at the Bakshi Stadium Srinagar on the occasion of the Republic Day of India suggested that executive police should not leave every thing to State Vigilance Department .This speaks of the damage that has already been done. Unfortunately now along with the Legislators/ Parliamentarians, the Judiciary is also being questioned. The common's faith has been lost in the investigating agencies. So often it has been inferred that the practice of setting up the enquiry commissions in many cases costs the state exchequer without yielding timely and useful results.
In the recent past also corruption in the public institutions was discussed every where and it appeared that the common Indian had reconciled to live with the corrupt system in place. But the manner in which the Anna movement has been responded by the people after 15th August 2011, it could be hoped that the ORDER OF THE CORRUPT could be surely dismantled , may be it takes a few years. In case the government machinery is honest , the NGOs, the traders and the illegal "entrepreneurs" / under world could be reined without much difficulty. So, those who are trying to divert the attentions by dragging into the names of NGOs / Private sector into LOK PAL must be rejected. The non performing J&K State Accountability Commission is a living example of an institution that could not deliver because (i) it did not have power to punish and (ii ) the State Government did not truthfully and instantly respond to even a few of the recommendations made by the commission against some officers of the J&K government. And above all the J&K State Accountability Commission Act has now been amended to exclude the Government Employees. This has taken away what ever small teeth the SAC had. The proposed J&K State Vigilance Commission that was to take over the functions as regards government servants has not been yet given the go. Why no one knows. May be intentions. It is not only J&K. The position is no different any where in India.
These days the honest government employees are pushed in the dark and are often named as inefficient. Mufti Mohammad Sayeed after taking over CM of J&K has said while addressing (12th November 2002 ) a joint meeting of Cabinet and District Development Boards of Baramulla and Badgam in Srinagar had said ,
" Along with honesty and integrity I would like my officers to perform and show results as honesty alone can not bring efficiency and improvement in the system." And 4 years after that Ghulam Nabi Azad jee too had expressed similar views. These days so often the political master ( Ministers ) and senior bureaucrats so often are heard / quoted as having said that it is not enough to be honest , one has to look honest also , in case honest officers can not give results ( these days results are seen in how fast the state funds are spent and not how efficiently the state funds /. Policies are executed ) they are they are rejected. It has been often observed that officers / employees who are rewarded / honoured by the government for honesty / efficiency do not carry that fair image amongst the common people. The honest government employees are not projected because those who appreciate them do not have that political / administrative and " money" power. Those who are honest are rated inefficient because they have no one to take them to the "BOSS". In the present times the class to whom the honest lot does not suit forms the Crown of the resourceful society close to the seats of governance. Ghulam Nabi Azad after taking over ( 2006) as the Chief Minister of J&K had been talking of taking action against the corrupt government servants for more than 1100 days. But he had not been able to weed out even four corrupt politicians or senior bureaucrats. Now in 2011 Ghulam Nabi Azad is part of Union Cabinet . At national level too Man Mohan Singh is being accused in 2011 for keeping company with corrupt elements simply for the survival of UPA government.It is so often said that when the top brass in government has gone corrupt , how can the lower level employees can be questioned. No doubt this logic holds good to some extent. When the seniors would not check the tax evaders, law breakers ,non performers , may even join hands with the tax evaders / black marketers then the lower level employees too may not see any thing wrong in non performance and corruption.
But in the situation where in Indian economy / governance / law and order has landed today reigning only the top brass will not do. We need to correct /check the politicians , the senior bureaucrats and the lower level functionaries simultaneously. So the demand that all government employees must be brought under the Lok Pal is fairly logical and must be held valid. More particularly it is so because it can not be denied that more than 70 % of Indian People ( nearly over 85 Crore ) are at local levels concerned with low cost tasks and have to more deal with lower level government servants and not with Commissioner Secretaries or Directors. A munshi of police station, a patwari, a clerk in a tehsil office, a village school teacher, a TTE of train, a Medical assistant of government dispensary, municipal inspector, labour inspector, an overseer, and like government functionaries are no less than a ruler for the common man. So, so it is not understandable what problem the UPA-II Government has including such provisions in the Draft Lok Pal Bill to be presented in Lok Sabha on this 20th December. The argument that doing so would over load Lok Pal and more staff will be required does not hold since any other organization for lower employees too would need working hands. Some people argue that India already has some other vigilance organizations that could do the job. Had these organizations been able to deliver the purpose there was no need for law like Lok Pal. More over the what these organizations have delivered so far is well before us.
These days the Voluntary Sector is more known as NGO. Even NGOs are accused of devoting more energies towards securing the finances from the Government for capital intensive schemes of the government. Some truth must be there in the accusations. The truthful social workers are being humiliated due to fault of some bad elements. But the NGOs mishandling government funds too have to be checked by the Government machinery and hence the debate for their inclusion under Lokpal is more to divert the intentions. Rather I would suggest that for the time being NGOs working in voluntary sector should not crave for government sponsored project works involving finances. Once we are able to reconstruct the morals of Society, the roads and bridges will be constructed there after.
It has become rather impossible these days to punish a criminal and corrupt element of the society through normal rules and procedures. Surely the job of applying corrections is too hard. But, surely it is not impossible.
WE must investigate why does the government machinery not perform honestly ? Why the public servant has become the master of the public? What after all is public servant in a democracy ? What is the difference between a government servant and a private employee ? Unless these simple facts are understood by the Voter Citizen , the " servant" will not deliver.
In case one can not dare to condemn a dishonest leader , a criminal and a corrupt government servant , let us atleast not show honour for such individuals in social gatherings. Voluntary organizations and social workers can better carry the message. We must have patience to stand in a queue . Let us encourage the honest politicians and government servants.
(Daya Sagar is a social activist and leading coloumnist on J&K Affairs. [email protected] 9419796096)
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