(An Open Letter to Team Anna)
(This letter was submitted to Team Anna when it started inviting suggestions from the public regarding the future course of the movement, after the fall of the bill in Parliament in December 2011)
Dear Shri Anna Hazare & Comrades,
Where is now the Lokpal or the Jan Lokpal that you were so keen to bring in to root out corruption? Now that the hypocrisy of our Parliamentarians, the complexities involved in legislating a Bill such as this and the limitations of the Movement, have all been much revealed and realized, I urge Team Anna to do some serious and real introspection, rethinking and restructuring.
Please don’t commit the folly of making this anti-corruption movement an anti-congress movement ever again. Keep yourselves as free as possible from party-politics and kindly correct your perspectives with regard to politics and politicians, in general. They deserve to be treated with respect & faith, irrespective of the differences in political parties/ideologies, and need to be considered as our duly, democratically and lawfully appointed law-makers, protectors and nation-builders. True, a lot of our politicians and bureaucrats are or maybe corrupt. But it is equally true that a lot of them are or maybe honest, efficient and dedicated too. Our democracy sure needs some reformations, but that doesn’t mean that it needs to be totally toppled. A spectrum of slow and steady reforms engendered with wisdom and foresight and implemented within well-defined time-frames is required in almost all spheres of our social and political life to ensure economic advancement and social justice, for the larger good of all. The Lokpal Bill is not going to be a panacea for all our socio-political ills.
Considering the nature and scale of corruption prevalent now in a pluralistic and democratic nation as India, any massive measure undertaken to contain it should also necessarily be democratically debated, wisely chosen, of long term benefit and invariably be guided and headed by really selfless, well-meaning, publicly and widely acknowledged social activists as you. So, all the good-intentioned, selfless, generous-hearted and apolitical social workers/activists of our nation should be able to rein in their egos, come on a single platform, make some compromises, iron out their differences, strike a consensus amongst themselves, join hands and work together to combat this monstrous and mammoth corruption. When there is considerable unity and solidarity among the forces of good, a lot of corruption, inefficiency, maladministration and social injustices can be done away with easily and effectively.
An apolitical-people’s Movement is as much necessary as a very responsible and honest Media for the success of any democratic form of governance. Passing of laws such as the Public Grievances Redress Act & Whistleblowers Act and establishment of Institutions as the Lokpal & Lokayuktas should necessarily be supplemented with a slew of other measures (especially non-governmental and people-powered) if corruption needs to be checked effectively and considerably. So a Movement such as the one you have now begun, sure, has a far greater responsibility and role to play. And I hope Team Anna will gear itself up for the same. Although a Movement is commonly defined as a largely informal and unorganized group, a Social Movement can and should, metamorphose itself into a well-organized group, in order to be more democratic and efficient, especially when the task at hand is not an easier one. If the present day anti-corruption crusaders at the national level (including those working outside your Team) are able to direct the energy and enthusiasm of the masses (especially of our awakening youth) towards a concerted and concrete action, corruption can be reduced considerably and peace and prosperity ensured to a large extent in our nation. Hence I most humbly propose the formation and implementation of a “Well-Organized, Comprehensive, Constructive, Multi-Level, Nationwide NGO to Combat Corruption”.
So, overall, there is a need for rethinking on issues, for prioritization of goals, for sanitization of means and for re-mobilization of the masses with a view to achieve the desired ends the most democratically, peacefully and effectively. We want a civilized Movement/NGO, not civil unrest. We want to cleanse our democratic system, not have it overthrown completely. We want to root out corruption, not root out our parliamentarians. We want to safeguard, not imperil, the unity, security and stability of our country.
Kannan G
(An Ordinary Citizen of India & A Humble Member of IAC)
