My Arguments Against the Jan Lok Pal Movement

To say that the Jan Lok Pal movement is just an anti-corruption movement is an insult to our intelligence. It is an Anti-Congress movement propped by right-wing and left-wing fundamentalists attempting to topple the UPA government before the next elections or to further damage their credibility to enable the BJP to form the next government. Yes, the UPA government has failed miserably in curbing corruption and inflation but I still will not support this movement because of the following reasons:

1) It is a Political Movement and not a movement by civil society.

With Shanti Bhushan (ex-law minister of Indian, a former BJP politician and RSS man), Swami Agnivesh (a Maoist representative), and Anupam Kher (Husband of high-level BJP functionary) promoting and participating in this movement, the Jan Lok Pal Movement is definitely a political movement. The high level of support of RSS activists and Maoists outside parliament and the BJP politicians inside parliament justify this truth. Other promoters of this movement have other axe to grind such as Kiran Bedi who didn’t get the promotion she wanted.

The other arguments I have against this movement are as follows:

2) A Malicious Slander Campaign Against the PM

The Jan Lok Pal activists have resorted to a malicious, slander campaign against Dr Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minister. They call him corrupt without an iota of proof. Yes, Manmohan Singh made an awful mistake by trusting Kalmadi and Raja to do their job. The mechanics of coalition politics hampered him with respect to the 2G issue and Kalmadi had been virtually appointed by the earlier NDA Government. Let us not forget the incredible rescue act Manmohan Singh pulled off in the early 1990s to save the Indian economy and enable it to reach this high level of growth.

3) The Movement is not backed by Minorities:

The knowledge of RSS involvement in this campaign has made Muslims, Christians, Dalits and other minorities highly skeptical of this campaign as they perceive ulterior motives are at play.

4) Anna Hazare is No Gandhi:

The truth is that Anna has not denied some of the serious charges against him. He spent Rupees Two Lakhs for his birthday bash out of his funds in a charitable trust. Gandhiji would never do this. The average Indian spends much less for his wedding than the sum of Rupees Two Lakhs. Besides, Gandhiji never hurled abuses and falsehoods at the British administration in the manner Anna is criticizing the PM as being corrupt (without any proof). Anna has even mocked the PMs age although he is not that much younger than him. The most damning thing against Anna is his intolerance as he has reportedly asked for a blanket ban on the consumption of all non-vegetarian foodstuff in Maharashtra. This is not a Gandhian attitude at all.

5) The Double Standards of the Lok Pal Movement

The Bhushans, the right hand men of Team Anna, face strong corruption allegations themselves. They reportedly told senior politician that they could fix a judge in one case. The other serious charge is Shanti Bhushan’s son has withdrawn a litigation against Mayawati in exchange for a deal on land acquisition in UP. The question is if there were serious charges against the Bhushans why did Anna insist they remain on the draft panel? Then how can we have different yardsticks for politicians and bureaucrats facing corruption charges. Also, Baba Ramdev who is part of this movement made a loud noise about black money outside India when it has been found out that he himself indulges in money laundering and even owns islands abroad. Yeddyurappa, the Emperor of Corruption, and Modi, the Genocide man, have also backed this movement when they are incorrigibly corrupt. Booze is still freely available in Gujarat although it is a dry state.

6) Potentiality of Violence

With RSS and BJP participation in the Lok Pal movement there is always a possibility of violence to instigate a strong response from the authorities which could make the government hated even more. This is the same tactic they use in Kashmir vis-à-vis the stone pelting and all.

7) BJP’s Double Game

The game of the BJP is to criticize the UPA Government inside and outside parliament so as to erode their support base. However, they have no intentions of getting the Jan Lok Pal bill passed entirely. They will ensure that it gets passed by the Lok Sabha but their members will vote against it in the Rajya Sabha. Remember the same thing happened way back in 1968. By the way, the BJPs position is condemnable as it allowed Yedyurappa to continue in Karnataka for nearly a year after the corruption charges were made as they feared erosion of the Lingayat base there.

Well, my advice would be to give more powers to the existing anti-corruption agencies currently instituted like the CVC, the anti-corruption bureaus, the CBI anti-corruption wing and the Lokayuktas. Make them more accessible to the common man facing the brunt of corruption. Change existing laws so that corrupt people like the Rajas, Kalmadis and the Yeddyurappas get heavy punishment including life imprisonment. Yes, the end is noble but the end does not justify the means. Jai Hind!!!