Hyderabad: Everyone is an expert of varying degree in corrupt politics. Justifying Bharat Ratna Vajpayee’s statement that corruption is inevitable, one must go over with a fine-toothed comb to find honest politicians.
Black money as axle and shaft, political parties are running their carts. Parties are dependent on black money for influencing voters with cash flows during elections and horse-trading ministers.
In Karnataka, which is notorious for cash flow politics, veteran Congress leader DK Shivakumar has been arrested by Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Money Laundering charges.
He is accused of being involved in laundering with four other associates and that he used four flats in Delhi as hideouts for his operations. During the Rajya Sabha elections of 2017, BJP was determined to defeat Sonia Gandhi’s closest aide Ahmad Patel. It is Shivakumar who hosted 44 MLAs in a Bangalore resort and helped Ahmad Patel win. It is evident why ED has targeted him now with Income Tax raids and cases.
If the agenda is to demolish political corruption, cases must be slapped on every corrupt politician irrespective of parties.
To reform politics completely, statesmanship is needed to implement measures that clean up deep-rooted corruption. Any other step in contradiction to these cannot be called a fight against corruption.
Parliamentary democracy is a system of democratic governance of a state. The founding fathers of the constitution have drawn a dividing line prohibiting legislative members from being employed in any lucrative positions. But our leaders have exceptionally made their memberships the most lucrative.
“By the corruption, of the black money and for the criminals” -this is the current motto of our democracy.
Political parties are opposing any light to be thrown on misdeeds of the corrupted. Congress boasted that they passed the RTI bill but twisted the act saying political parties don’t come under RTI radar.
Election Commission (EC) has been appealing since few decades that parties must be transparent in revealing the sources of funds and their utilization.
BJP who proclaims itself as a pioneer in honest politics introduced election bonds and removed any traces of transparency. The Central government has made frivolous arguments in the Supreme Court that the voters need not know the source of election funds. On one hand, they are insisting that corruption must prevail and on the other hand, they’re targeting opposition party members over corruption charges.
On the eve of BJP foundation day, Vajpayee has declared that the aim is to change politics for power to politics for ideals and opportunistic politics to principled politics.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proclaimed that party funds must be made transparent to prevent high election expenditure.
EC guidelines of electoral reforms have been conveniently ignored for 15 years. Modi government has the capability to bring about proposed changes in election conduction. Supreme Court has ordered the parties to submit the details of funds received through election bonds to EC in sealed covers.
It is revealed that donors have bought bonds worth Rs 5,851 crores from March 2018 till May 2019. Three-fourths of these donors are anonymous.
Election expenses in our country have long surpassed those of the United States with thousands of crores flooding the country. If the Modi government decides to end political corruption and the flow of black money, it would be the greatest benefit to the country.
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