As IAC's(India against corruption) public campaign led by Kejriwal's continues, it is causing angst among a multitude of aggrieved subjects. Some of them are lashing out. Nobody needs convincing that all sides of the political spectrum are deeply entrenched in corruption.
At the moment, news coverage of IAC's campaign against corruption has a reality TV vibe to it. It makes for entertaining television for viewers at home.In the short run, these exposes will resonate well with the aam janta. However, this approach may not work in achieving the ultimate objective, that of ridding graft from public life. That is not because IAC risks running out of crooked public figures to expose. It is just that a sense of fatigue sets in after a point.
If future exposes are coupled with advocacy for reform, IAC's movement can appeal to a broader swathe of people.They are a political party now anyway.
Reforms in the judicial system are urgently needed in order to tackle the backlog of pending cases. There seems to be tentative support from BJP as well as UPA for these reforms. For whatever reason, the judicial reforms bill that seemed to have some momentum earlier in UPA-2 has now lost ground. The much delayed police reforms at state level need a fresh impetus. Much like the earlier crusade that brought Lokpal bill to the forefront of debate , IAC could support these initiatives.
Allocation of natural resources has been a fertile ground for shady deals. How about pushing for the enactment of a land acquisition bill? Sure, this bill is going to be contentious. It would not hurt to get behind a set of ideas that can handle allocation of land for industry. Same goes for the sale of telecom spectrum and fossil fuel(oil , gas and coal) extraction permits. How about demanding a more transparent auction mechanism in allocating these resources?
To be sure , a disruptive movement against public graft is very much essential. But, even the most gripping TV shows lose their edge after a period of time. Without substantive policy proposals, IAC's series of revelations could get relegated to the pantheon of flashy movements that fade with no meaningful impact.
At the moment, news coverage of IAC's campaign against corruption has a reality TV vibe to it. It makes for entertaining television for viewers at home.In the short run, these exposes will resonate well with the aam janta. However, this approach may not work in achieving the ultimate objective, that of ridding graft from public life. That is not because IAC risks running out of crooked public figures to expose. It is just that a sense of fatigue sets in after a point.
If future exposes are coupled with advocacy for reform, IAC's movement can appeal to a broader swathe of people.They are a political party now anyway.
Reforms in the judicial system are urgently needed in order to tackle the backlog of pending cases. There seems to be tentative support from BJP as well as UPA for these reforms. For whatever reason, the judicial reforms bill that seemed to have some momentum earlier in UPA-2 has now lost ground. The much delayed police reforms at state level need a fresh impetus. Much like the earlier crusade that brought Lokpal bill to the forefront of debate , IAC could support these initiatives.
Allocation of natural resources has been a fertile ground for shady deals. How about pushing for the enactment of a land acquisition bill? Sure, this bill is going to be contentious. It would not hurt to get behind a set of ideas that can handle allocation of land for industry. Same goes for the sale of telecom spectrum and fossil fuel(oil , gas and coal) extraction permits. How about demanding a more transparent auction mechanism in allocating these resources?
To be sure , a disruptive movement against public graft is very much essential. But, even the most gripping TV shows lose their edge after a period of time. Without substantive policy proposals, IAC's series of revelations could get relegated to the pantheon of flashy movements that fade with no meaningful impact.
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