The decision of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) to ask its minister in the government of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), A Raja, to step down should be welcomed. The UPA and the DMK may not have come to this pass if in May 2009 they had respected the opinion of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and kept Mr Raja out of the Union Council of Ministers. The very fact that the prime minister did not want T R Baalu and Mr Raja in his reconstituted Council of ministers in May 2009 should have been warning enough both to the DMK and the UPA that the PM knew a thing or two about their record in office in the first UPA government. By blackmailing the UPA with the threat of remaining outside the government, the DMK managed to exert enough pressure on the prime minister, directly and indirectly, to get him to soften his stance and admit Mr Raja in. By refusing to use its political levers in Tamil Nadu, where a minority DMK government rules at the sufferance of the Congress party, the latter either weakened itself or may well have enriched itself. To imagine that Mr Raja’s ignominious exit would be the end of high-level corruption in government would be more than naïve. But his exit should help chasten the other “Rajas” in office, not just at the Centre but also in states across the country.
Political parties must recognise that middle class anger against high-level corruption is on the rise. It is easy to be cynical about the pervasiveness of corruption in public life, but it is important to recognise that there are, in fact, some very honourable exceptions to the rule and these exceptions must be celebrated and empowered, so that the reign of those who represent the “rule” ends. For every Raja in public life, there is a counterpoise. Indeed, within the Union council of ministers, there are honest ministers who do an honest day’s job. Among India’s chief ministers too, there are some honourable men, though sadly not too many honourable women! A coalition of the honourable must come together and alter the country’s political language. Institutions that deal with corruption in public life must be strengthened. Regulatory institutions must be properly manned and allowed to function professionally. There is no short cut in the fight against organised corruption. It is such initiatives that will ring truer rather than the meaningless demand for a joint parliamentary committee (JPC). While the principal opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, does have a marginally better record in dealing with political corruption than the Congress, and many of its chief ministers have a better track record, the fact is that all political parties have been tarred with the same brush. A JPC cannot inspire public confidence. Rather, strengthening institutions like the central vigilance commission, the comptroller and auditor general of India, the central bureau of investigation and such like would go a longer way in restoring people’s faith in government. Hopefully, the country will see more of such initiatives from the prime minister.
