Let the Lokpal Bill get through

The Government’s decision to go ahead with the Lokpal Bill and Anna Hazare’s threat to go ahead with his fast has generated much heat in the media. While one section supports Anna Hazare (on the distant hope that this is what people want) another section approves the government decision with the faint hope that at least the Bill will finally go through (any anamolies can be rectified later as amendments).

We need to examine at least the good things of the Government version of the Lokpal Bill before deciding whether we don’t want this version. The most undesired stand by Anna Hazare is the “all or nothing” approach taken by his team. They want the total version of the bill drafted by them or nothing at all. They are not willing to accept any of the suggestions put by the government.

The stand taken by the Hazare team that the Lokpal must be an authority in itself. It wants the Lokpal an all-powerful body. In the governments version, the Judiciary has been left out. The Lokpal needs supervision and only the Judiciary can do it; for this it has to be left out within its own purview. This is one point that the Hazare team will not find any support.

The governments version of the Lokpal Bill does not need anyone’s permission in pursuing corruption against politicians and bureaucrats. In other Acts, the permission of the Speaker in case of politicians and the Government in case of senior bureaucrats, is required, which has been dispensed with.

The governments version of the Lokpal Bill also lays down the procedure for selection of the Institution of the Lokpal fairly well. The Chairman of the Lokpal has to be a serving or retires Judge of the Supreme Court, and of the eight members, four are from the Judiciary. Because of this clause, there will be more faith in the functioning of the Lokpal.

The government’s version of the Lokpal Bill also stresses more on the highest posts of the bureaucracy as well. There is no scope of the higher officers to shift the blame on the juniors. Because of this, we need to support the governments version of the bill.

Finally, the Anna Hazare team is peeved because the serving Prime Minister is not included in the Bill. This problem can be handled differently. In case the Prime Minister is involved in any case of corruption while in office, it may be on account of any portfolio that he handles. In such cases, there is no bar on tackling the same on the Minister of that portfolio.

We must remember that the aim of the Lokpal Bill is to remove corruption at the highest levels. The lower rung of the government officers are corrupt because they get protection from the top; if the top themselves are so vulnerable, there is no scope for corruption at the bottom.