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Created on Thursday, 02 February 2017 08:20
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(Edited Image courtesy: Financial Action Task Force)
The Supreme Court has put the Establishment on the mat for its laxity in accounting for thousands of crores of public money it doles out to Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) every year.
Now that the Apex Court is turning the heat on the Centre to audit grants, it is apt to pitch for probity into the larger domain of spoils system operated under the garb of societal change.
The domain comprises 1) governmental dole-outs including tax exemptions to NGOs; 2) corporate donations that go under high-sounding label of corporate social responsibility (CSR); 3) donations collected (at times extorted) from citizens by diverse entities as disaster relief and as aid to conferences, cultural and sports events. Superficial or non-auditing of these funds often facilitates defalcation.
This diffused form of corruption has flourished due to policy paralysis that is handed over seamlessly from one regime to another. Yes, right from first Government under leadership of Mr. J.L. Nehru to the present one led by Mr. Modi.
An instance of policy paralysis is the failure to enact a law as recommended by Law Commission in its report titled 'Regulation of Funds Collected for Calamity Relief' submitted in December 2004. More of this later.
The robust spoils systems nurtured by Neta-Babu combine has transformed India into fertile ground for NGOs, trusts, charities, civil societies, non-profit organizations (NPOs) and voluntary organizations (VOs).
Read more: Transform NGOs-linked Spoils System into Credible Public Welfare
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Created on Thursday, 19 January 2017 08:58
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(Image Courtesy: narendramodi.in)
'GIVE me time till December 30, I will give you a clean country: PM Modi'. 'Won't stop even if burnt alive: PM Modi on fight against corruption'. 'Demonetisation move to create corruption-free India, PM Narendra Modi says'. 'Narendra Modi signals step up in anticorruption agenda'.
Such steely resolve by our bhavuk (emotional) Prime Minister has made billions of Indian hearts turn bhavuk with his crusade against graft.
Modiji's quote, as reported by news agency, promised the dawn of new India: "This suffering is only for 50 days. Once there is cleanliness (swachhata), not even a mosquito can fly..... This is a 70years old disease and I have to remove it in 17 months. I will expose corruption going on since Independence; even if I have to employ one lakh youths for this, I will do it."
The daunting target of 17 months is more ambitious than 2-year target that was set by late Gulzarilal Nanda, Home Minister in Congress Government during November 1963. It is needless to say that corruption increased by leaps and bounds even after Mr. Nanda's initiatives.
Aam Aadmi (the common man, not the political party) expects more fireworks from our beloved PM while day-dreaming about Acche Din in cash queues. Many like this columnist are willing to join Modi Bhakts in fight against corruption, provided PM agrees to walk the talk on anti-corruption.
From Ist Prime Minister (Nehru) to the present one, the political will to take on corruption has been missing. And the best proof of this is non-implementation of recommendations of Santhanam Committee regarding formation of Lokpal and provision of protection to informants (whistleblower).
Read more: Modiji, Please walk the talk on Corruption
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Created on Thursday, 04 June 2015 16:27
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(Edited Image Courtesy: Transparency International)
‘All parties together in corruption: Arvind Kejriwal’. So ran the headline for the PTI story datelined 17th August 2012 published in Economic Times and certain other publications.
At that time, Mr. Kejriwal had not formed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). He loved playing the role of anti-graft crusader. He is now struggling to retain this carefully-crafted image in the eyes of Aam Aadmi.
After regaining power in Delhi in February, he, as Chief Minister, has failed to act in suspected/alleged cases of major corruption. And to deflect the public attention from his flop-show, Mr. Kejriwal is now resorting to gimmicks. A case in point is the outsourcing of manpower for Delhi Government’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) from Bihar Government.
He is also dragging his feet over his hobbyhorse, Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill, which has not even been introduced in the State Assembly till today. He has thus not kept his word to introduce the Bill in the in the first session of re-constituted assembly.
He has also not exercised the existing option for the interregnum, i.e., facilitating appointment of Delhi Lokayukta. This post is lying vacant since October 2013, leading to massive pile-up of cases requiring investigation. It has already triggered a public interest litigation that has led Delhi High Court to admonish his Government to act fast on this subject.
Lokpal or Lokayukta, Kejriwal is caught is a situation similar to one faced by a novice riding the tiger. The ombudsman, whatever be its legal basis, is likely to unmask him by taking up potential cases involving his party and MLAs. A notable case that no anti-corruption watchdog can over is the dubious Rs 2-crores donation that his party received from four shell companies.
Mr. Kejriwal is thus haunted with the risk of the public throwing back at him, the same charge that swept him to power - All parties (AAP included) are together in corruption.
Read more: Kejriwal amasses monumental deficit in battling corruption
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Created on Friday, 29 May 2015 08:27
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Image Courtesy-United Nations' anti-graft website: track.unodc.org
Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has put global anti-corruption watchdog, Transparency International (TI), in a tight spot.
With Mr. Jaitley declaring Union Government as totally corruption-free, TI might have to now alter the global Corruption Perception Index (CPI). This is notwithstanding the unpleasant ground realty in the country that would be elaborated later.
TI would be under perceived ‘moral pressure’ from the world’s largest political party, BJP, to create a new category of national governments that have declared themselves as corruption-free! It is a different issue that the self-certification and self-attestation has been crafted by maiming diverse anti-corruption channels.
Under CPI, the countries are ranked on a scale extending from ‘highly corrupt’ to ‘very clean’. TI has so far never declared any country or national government as a totally clean entity or as a zero-corruption entity.
TI’s approach towards gauging corruption can be sensed from the very first sentence of TI’s brochure on CPI 2014. It reads as: “Poorly equipped schools, counterfeit medicine and elections decided by money are just some of the consequences of public sector corruption.”
Read more: Don’t Degrade Corruption Prevention & Detection to a butt of Jokes
