Who will guard the guard(s)?
This is in reference to the Jan Lokpal bill, proposed as an extreme measure to combat the rampant corruption in India, and which a large number of people see as the only solution. The bill suggests the appointment of an independent officer who oversees the overlords of the country whilst being out of reach of the law himself/herself. And hence the question.
This is not the first time that such an anti-corruption officer, outside of the law has been appointed. The previous such officer, the Central Vigilance Commissioner, was himself thrown out of office by India's Supreme Court earlier this year on corruption charges. If this was the solution then India would have been corruption-free decades ago. When a person is given that kind of power, he/she is likely to end up corrupt. Who is to say that this new Jan Lokpal that Mr. Hazare is demanding won't go the same way? Who decides who the Jan Lokpal will be? The same voters who routinely elect crooks to parliament? Or Mr Hazare and his board of directors?
In a representative democracy the parliament should be supreme. Any person or group that is designed to circumvent parliament may feel good in the short-term (an incorruptible stately elder looking over the faulty choices of the unwashed masses), but is a recipe for disaster in a democracy.
Let's say for arguments sake that such a bill did get passed. Would that mean the corruption level would face decline? Corruption is far by the most consistent principle in all governments, whether democratic or communist. If the headliners detailing Indian governmental corruption cease, it will NOT demonstrate that corruption has ceased, only that the corrupt have become smarter and more careful.
Instead of working to appoint such an overlord, who ultimately will possess the power to control political leaders, the appropriate campaign would be to call for resignation of the criminals sitting in parliament, and to strengthen the judiciary so that justice can be swift. Ironically, Anna is fighting to achieve something, which his role model (Gandhi) was opposed to.
Hopefully the government would someday finally come to acknowledge that corruption does exist in the country, and in vast proportions. The situation should be further analyzed in time and by more capable people, without trying to meet deadlines set by Anna and his team.
[Sources: An article from The Economist titled 'The Fast and the Curious', 22nd August, 2011]
