Senior CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury listed two songs — Ankhon Hi Ankhon Mein Ishara Ho Gaya and Kahin Pe Nigahein Kahin Pe Nishana — to illustrate how the BJP and Congress worked together for a lokpal Bill that toed their lines while JD(U)’s Shivanand Tiwari gave the Rajya Sabha a crash course on the history of India failing to provide a anti-corruption ombudsman for over years.
Yechury said that the lokpal Bill did not tackle the fact that the “supply” money that was used to fund corruption came from the private sector and this wasn’t tackled by this legislation and demanded that the government also consider bringing private players such as corporates under its purview besides charitable organizations along with foreign NGOs.
“These charitable trusts are in fact charity for corruption, thus it should be very well under the lokpal,” Yechury said, also reminding the House the lessons imparted to him by the incumbent Prime Minister at a premier economic institute on the theory of “supply” and “demand”. By this he meant why only the “demand” should be probed and the “supply” ignored completely when both are guilty. The CPI(M) leader also demanded a protection for whistleblowers. He further said corporates entering into partnership for execution of projects under PPP mode cannot be left out if found involved in irregularities to secure the contract. His amendment was, however, defeated overwhelmingly by 151 against 19 votes.
Shivanand Tiwari said corruption has influenced all aspects of society and more needed to be done to tackle it. Tiwari said lokpal Bill alone cannot eradicate corruption as the gap between the rich and the poor has to be finished to completely remove corruption. However, he said that his party supports the lokpal Bill. He said that there can be improvements and more steps to reduce the rich-poor gap in the society. He recalled how Mahatma Gandhi used to receive hundreds of letters against corruption and how a Jeep Scandal was reported just after Independence.
He said the anti-graft lokpal should have been formed after Independence to curb corruption levels prevalent on Tuesday. “I had requested the prime minister to take action when reports of corruption in CWG 2010 were coming out. The Congress suffered because of it in Delhi polls. Why could not action be taken in time,” asked Tewari.
He also took a potshot at Justice AK Ganguly saying that people like him could become a part of the lokpal thanks to the spread of corruption. “We should look at what society wants when we clear laws,” Tiwari said.