TheIndian EXPRESS

www.indianexpress.com
NATIONAL NETWORK NEW DELHI I WEDNESDAY I JANUARY 19 I 2011
9

‘Corruption eroding fabric of our

nation... must be tackled urgently’
tra said. The Lokayukta’s office has been de-
‘SMALL GROUP OF CITIZENS’ HAS WRITTEN TO GOVT ON manding judicial powers and infrastructure to
match those in MP and Karnataka.
WHAT IT NEEDS TO ADDRESS. BELOW IS THEIR LETTER ORISSA
ORISSA IN 1970 became the first state to start
THE SIGNATORIES
‘Empowering Lokayuktas the Lokpal-Lokayukta system but the law was
repealed in 1992 by the Biju Patnaik govern-
ment. The institution was revived in 1995 and

would go a long way in the law amended in 2005. It provides for a

Lokayukta with the same powers as that of a

effecting correction’
Lokpal but Orissa has always had only a Lokpal
discharging the function of both. The Lokpal
AZIM PREMJI hasnoinvestigationwing,andthestatevigilance
Wipro chief department does not report to him, but he can

W 2
E are a small group of
like-minded citizens who
are concerned with the
general deterioration in the overall
value system of the nation, but have
abiding belief and commitment in
B N SRIKRISHNA
Retired judge
India’s potential and prospects as a
successful democracy. We are a frac-
tion of a very large number of Indi-
ans who, we believe, share our hopes
and aspirations but have no means to
channel their views and opinions in
Possibly, the biggest issue cor-
roding the fabric of our nation
is “corruption”. This malaise needs
to be tackled with a sense of u neds
to be tackledrgency, determination
and on a war footing. The institu-
tion of Lokayuktas, vested with ad-
equate powers, would go a long way
in effecting the needed correction,
as is evident from the example of
Karnataka. There is a need for
every state to have effective and
askthegovernmentforvigilanceofficialstohelp
himinaninvestigation;theywouldthenreportto
him. The Lokpal cannot act against anyone on
his own; if his recommendations are not carried
out, he can send a report to the Governor.
PUNJAB
PUNJAB HAS a Lokpal rather than a
Lokayukta;thevigilancebureaudoesnotreport
to him. The bureau works independently under
Karnataka Lokayukta Santosh Hegde: cracking the whip the Chief Secretary. The first Lokpal was ap-
pointedin1995butitwasonlyrecentlythatdraft

India’s public domain.
In the last few months, the coun-
JAMSHYD GODREJ
Godrej Group try has witnessed eruption of a num-
ber of egregious events, thanks to an
WHY KARNATAKA IS
fully empowered Lokayuktas and, rules defining his role were sent to the govern-
indeed, for early introduction of the ment for final approval. The position has fre-
Lok Pal Bill at the national level, for quently been vacant for long periods. The pre-
the purpose of highlighting, pursu- sentLokpal,formerjudgeDSDhaliwal,isshort

active media eagerly tracking
malfeasance. There are, at present,
several loud and outraged voices, in
the public domain, clamouring on
these issues which have deeply hurt
BIMAL JALAN
Former RBI governor
the nation. We do not wish to add to
the confusion by joining that de-
bate. What we are deeply worried
about is not to allow India’s huge
growth potential and poverty allevi-
ation challenges to be diluted or di-
gressed from, and which would be a
great loss, especially to the poor and
ANU AGA
Former Thermax head
the dispossessed.
Our aim is to try and rise above
the present clamour and seek a
more confident and purposeful na-
tional environment. As concerned
citizens, who have full confidence in
the country’s ability to reach its so-
cial and economic development po-
DEEPAK PAREKH tential, and who have a deep and
HDFC non-exec chairman abiding faith in India’s prospects
for a vibrant, pluralist and success-
ful democracy, we have put down a
few thoughts. This letter is the be-
ginning of our aim to develop spe-
cific actions and recommendations
which shall be placed in the public
domain, from time to time.
NACHIKET MOR
Banker-turned-social worker
ing and dealing with corruption is-
sues and corrupt individuals. Apart
from speedily installing indepen-
dent Lokayuktas, it is essential that
their investigative agencies and law
enforcing bodies should be made
independent of the executive.
Amongst several urgent steps
needed, this is possibly the most
critical one that the nation can im-
mediately initiate in order to reas-
sure its citizens that corruption will
be most severely dealt with, both at
the branch and at the root level.
3 Time is overdue for India’s
elected representatives to dis-
tinguish between dissent and dis-
ruption, while in the era of coali-
tions, tolerance of compromise still
remains a challenge. Elected legis-
lators and leaders must acknowl-
edge and demonstrate their collec-
tive role and responsibility in
restoring a sense of purpose and
confidence in national institutions.
4 It is widely acknowledged that
the benefits of growth are not
reaching the poor and marginalised
sections adequately due to impedi-
CITED AS EXAMPLE
There and in MP, Lokayukta
is vigilance authority with a
dedicated police force.
Here’s how Lokayuktas
work in some of the states
that have appointed one
KARNATAKA
SINCE 1986, when Karnataka replaced its vigi-
lancecommissionwiththeLokayukta,thelatter
has earned a reputation as one of the country’s
most effective institutions in tackling corrup-
tion, thanks largely to the initiative of two re-
tired judges who have held that position in the
last decade — N Venkatachala and current in-
cumbent Santosh Hegde.
A special police unit works under the
Lokayukta. All powers for investigating and
prosecuting corrupt government servants are
vested with the Lokayukta police.
crats, but left politicians out of its purview. The
government has, however, proposed that the
Lokayukta must first tell the government in
writing of “the grievance/allegation on which
they want to start suo motu investigation”.
TheLokayuktahaspowerstoaddresscorrup-
tion issues involving government servants up to
the Chief Minister. It needs government clear-
ancetopunishsuchofficials—somethingrarely
accorded.
MADHYA PRADESH
THE LOKAYUKTA office replaced the state
vigilance commission in 1982. The Lokayukta is
assisted by a deputy and has the authority to in-
vestigate complaints against all public servants
except the Assembly Speaker, the Deputy
Speaker and judicial officers. The deputy
Lokayukta can hear cases involving officers in
corporations,vice-chancellors,registrarsandco-
operative societies. Under the Lokayukta is a
SpecialPoliceEstablishment(SPE)headedbya
director general of police, assisted by two IGs
andanSP.BesidestheBhopalheadquarters,the
Lokayuktahassevendivisions,eachheadedbyan
SP.There are26deputySPs,seven specialpublic
of staff to deal with complaints. “Around 60
complaints are pending as there are no officers.
About 70 complaints have been investigated
and recommendations sent to the Governor,
who forwarded it to the government, but the
government took no action. Complaints mostly
deal with selection and service matters, but
some have been against ministers and other
politicians,”saidamemberofthe Lokpal’sstaff.
HARYANA
THE VIGILANCE bureau does not report to
the Lokayukta. He can look into complaints
against any public servant, including the Chief
Minister, but it is up to the government to act
on his recommendations. The Lokayukta can
ask any public servant to produce records per-
taining to a specific matter within a specified
time. N K Sud, who retired as Lokayukta this
month, calls it a toothless body. He has since
been succeeded by Justice Pritam Pal. Sud too
cited the cases of Karnataka and MP. At a meet-
ing with the Prime Minister and the President,
the Association of Lokayuktas had recom-
mended a Central law to ensure uniformity in
the functioning of such offices.
MAHARASHTRA
IT HAS both a Lokayukta (a retired judge) and
an Upa-Lokayukta (a retired IAS officer) but
their powers are limited. The Lok Ayukta has

KESHUB MAHINDRA
Mahindra & Mahindra
1 Wearealarmedatthewide-
spreadgovernancedeficitalmost
ineverysphereofnationalactivity,
coveringgovernment,businessand
N VAGHUL institutions.Widespreaddiscre-
ICICI chairman emeritus
tionarydecisionmakinghavebeen
ASHOK GANGULY
Former Hindustan Lever
chairman
routinelysubjectedtoextraneousin-
fluences.Thetopmostresponsibility
ofthoseatthehelmofthenation’saf-
fairsmustbetourgentlyrestorethe
M NARASIMHAM self-confidenceandself-beliefofIndi-
Former RBI governor ansinthemselvesandintheState,as
wellasinIndianbusinessandpublic
SAM VARIAVA institutionswhichtouchthelivesof
Retired judge everyIndian.Thejudiciaryisasource
ofsomereassurancebutcreationof
YEZDI MALEGAM genuinelyindependentandconstitu-
Architect of key Sebi and RBI
regulations tionallyconstitutedregulatorybodies,
mannedbypersonswhoarejudicially
PROF A VAIDYANATHAN trainedinthefieldconcerned,would
Member of PM's Economic beoneofthefirstandimportantsteps
Advisory Council torestorepublicconfidence.
ments to economic development.
This is because of some critical issues
like environmental concerns and dif-
ferences in perspectives between
central and state governments.
5 It is imperative to establish
ways and means, for every In-
dian, to feel that they have genuine
equal opportunities, access to deci-
sion makers and a stake in India’s
progress. Dealing determinedly
with governance and aggressively
against corruption, while openly
debating these issues by elected
legislators is the only means left to
reassure our citizens.
We believe that through urgent,
concerted action in which we are
ready to lend a hand, positive
change can be achieved.
Venkatachala, appointed by the Congress
governmentof1999-2004,personallyledraidson
officials under provisions of the Prevention of
Corruption Act ,1988. This was despite court
judgments that the Act can be enforced only by
police. Though hundreds of officials were pub-
licly caught taking bribes, few were prosecuted.
In contrast, Hegde, appointed by the JDS-
BJP government in August 2006, appears in
publiconlyafterhispolicehavecompletedraids
and arrests. He has assembled a crack police
teamandgivenhisofficemorecredibilitybytak-
ing the battle to ministers, elected leaders, and
IAS and IPS officials. BJP MLA N Sampangi
was trapped in 2008 accepting Rs 5 lakh to ad-
dress concerns of a resident of his constituency.
Katta Subramanya Naidu, though powerful,
wasforcedtoresignasITMinisterlastyearafter
Lokayukta investigations revealed his involve-
ment in a land scam.
Last September, the BJP government
moved to give the Lokayukta suo motu powers
to prosecute class-I officers including bureau-
prosecutors, 41 inspectors and about 150 of
ranks deputy inspector and below. Not many
posts are vacant. The Lokayukta and the deputy
LokayuktaarevestedwithpowersundertheEv-
idence Act and the CrPC for conducting investi-
gations. All proceedings before them are
deemed to be judicial; both are considered
courts under the Contempt of Court Act.
UTTAR PRADESH
IN A STATE where the Chief Minister recently
dropped a minister (Rajesh Tripathi, homeopa-
thy and religious endowments) after the
Lokayukta had found him guilty of irregulari-
ties, the Lokayukta still wishes he had a dedi-
cated team of investigators. His office has only
threepoliceofficersofDSPrankandthreejudi-
cialofficersofadditionaldistrictjudgeranktoin-
vestigate them, says Lokayukta N K Mehrotra.
Ofthegovernment’ssixanti-corruptionagen-
cies, none reports to the Lokayukta. “If we ever
askanyofthemtoconductaninvestigation,they
say they need a government direction,” Mehro-
no jurisdiction to investigate action by a public
servant in certain cases, such as action taken for
investigating a crime; appointments or salaries;
grantofawards;andifanyalternativetribunalor
court exists to redress a certain grievance. The
Lok Ayukta has no jurisdiction to investigate
commercial relations between a public servant
and contractors, and cannot intervene if any ac-
tionhasbeentakenwiththeapprovalofajudge,
thechairmanoftheMaharashtraPublicService
Commission,theChiefElectionCommissioner
of the state, the Speaker of the Assembly or the
Chairman of the Legislative Council. The office
receives about 12,000 complaints a year. The
Anti-Corruption Bureau of the state police re-
ports not to the Lok Ayukta but to the state po-
lice chief. At times, it co-operates with the Lok
Ayuktaifthetwoareworkingonacasetogether
or the Lok Ayukta asks it for assistance.
(INPUTS: JOHNSON T A, MILIND GHATWAI, VIRENDRA NATH
BHATT, DEBABRATA MOHANTY, HARPREET BAJWA,
RAJENDRA KHATRY, RAKSHIT SONAWANE)

Some hopes, some fears in homecoming after a decade

30,000 Brus who had fled to Tripura during 1997 violence are now on their way back to Mizoram, but security and effective rehabilitation remain concerns
SAMUDRA GUPTA KASHYAP
DAMDIAI (MIZORAM), JANUARY 18
THIS sleepy village in Mamit district in
western Mizoram that shares borders
with Tripura and Bangladesh is suddenly
getting excited. A batch of Bru refugees,
200 families, is expected here from
Tripura any day, with the authorities hav-
ing asked villagers to be prepared to take
them in within the next few weeks.
Damdiai is not the only village in
Mamit that will help Bru refugees, cur-
rently lodged in camps in Tripura, to settle
down after they are repatriated. Nearly
30,000 Brus, who had fled Mizoram fol-
lowing ethnic violence in 1997, are wait-
ing to return home, with the Centre offer-
ing them an attractive rehabilitation
package.
Several villages in Mamit, Kolasib and
Lunglei districts have been identified by
the state government for rehabilitation,
with the Centre assuring funds to develop
infrastructure in those villages in addition
to the rehabilitation package that would
touch every family.
“There is no doubt that our people
want to return home. We have accepted
the Centre’s rehabilitation. But what we
want at this moment is an assurance from
the Mizoram government about ade-
quate security around the villages where
the people would be rehabilitated,” said
Surjyamani Reang, a leading member of
the Bru community.
Reang was founder and president of
the Bru National Liberation Front
(BNLF), floated in 1997 for creation of a
separate homeland for Bru tribals inside
Mizoram. An MoU with the government
in 2006 had brought his entire group of
200 cadres back, 64 of whom are already
settled here in Damdiai.
With the Centre offering a one-time
Rs 80,000 per family in addition to a year’s
ration, three batches of Brus, comprising
322 families, have returned to Mizoram
Some of the first to return camp in Mizoram
since November. However, even as some
initial hurdles - including refusal of a sec-
tion of the Brus to return - have been re-
moved, the Mamit district administration
finds itself ill-equipped for this formida-
ble task of rehabilitation.
“It is a fact that the district administra-
tion is ill-equipped to handle such a huge
operation,” admitted Zothankhuma,
deputy commissioner of Mamit, a district
that will probably have to settle more than
half the displaced people once they re-
turn. Four out of eight posts of civil officers
in the district have been lying vacant for
ages. There is also a shortage of other
staff in the deputy commissioner’s set-up.
“The Centre’s package includes setting
up of schools, anganwadi centres, health-
care centres, roads and water supply
schemes in villages where the Bru people
will be rehabilitated. The Ministry for De-
velopment of the Northeastern Region
has already earmarked Rs 33 crore,” said
SAMUDRA GUPTA KASHYAP Zothankhuma. Three other adjoining
districts will also have to take a portion of
the returnees, he said.
But community leaders do not appear
happy. “We want clusters of 200 to 300
families so that infrastructure develop-
ment becomes easier. It will also create a
sense of security among the people. And
above all, we also want central paramili-
tary forces to be posted close to every such
settlement,” said Surjyamani Reang.
In Aizawl, Chief Minister Lal
Thanhawlasayshisgovernmentwoulden-
sure “full security” to the Brus on heir re-
turn. “The Brus are integral part of our
population. They have lived peacefully
with the Mizos for ages, and have adopted
Mizonamesandsocialpracticestoo.Over
60 per cent of them have also become
Christians,” he told The Indian Express.
“While the Centre has offered a very
good rehabilitation package, the New
Land Use Policy of the state government
will also immensely help them give up
their nomadic nature,” he added.