In Peace With Corruption: Intelligent Pieces of Advice to Non-violent Revolutionaries

The virus of corruption has spread like cancer in the last sixty years. Indians have tolerated this with peace but some of them have difficulty in tolerating high value corruption of some of those in high offices. They recently joined a non-violent but highly emotionally charged agitation that could be the first phase of an anti-corruption revolution. Their leader Anna Hazare and his close aides have suggested a Jan Lokpal Bill be passed by the Parliament as a first step towards weeding out the vitality-debilitating virus of cancerous corruption.  Some of the Parliamentarians not sure if the suggested mechanism was indeed a practicable, harmless solution. They insisted that the suggestion was never tested earlier. So, considered it necessary to study the details and then come out with the most appropriate solution. Meanwhile, the virus spread to affect more than 99% of the denizens and undermined the vitality of the society.

       Fed up and disgusted with the inaction on introducing effective and comprehensive anti-corruption law for such a long period as 43 years, 75 year old Gandhian, Anna, gave an ultimatum that either the Jan Lokpal Bill on the lines suggested by him be passed before 15 August or he goes on indefinite hunger strike. Anna was put into jail and then released following public outcry. He went on with his fast at Ramlila grounds in Delhi. A larger number of emotionally highly charged citizens stood by Anna at the Ramlila. The Prime Minister and the leaders of other political parties became worried and entered into negotiations with Anna and his team to sort out the problem quickly. A deal was struck within 12 days: the Parliamentarians passed a resolution that Anna’s suggestions would be taken into account and the new effective Lokpal Bill would be formulated to meet three important Anna demands, viz, covering lower bureaucracy, specification of citizens charter specifying standards of services to be delivered to the citizens by government offices, and providing for suitable anti-corruption laws to be enacted at the state level.  With that resolution reflecting Parliamentarians promise, Anna broke his fast.

Troubles started thereafter. Some Parliamentarians accused some Anna team members of indecent remarks against the Parliamentarians during the period of negotiations and demanded appropriate action. But before the issue of the Privilege of the Parliament could be addressed, the media took a survey of the opinion of the various groups of the Intelligentsia. The Survey revealed that the great intellectuals of the country were:

(a)  Supportive of the Anna-team’s protest on a valid ground as the corruption virus had crippled the entire society,

(b)  disgusted with the unlawful form of the protest threatening with indefinite fast,

(c)  Dismayed with the Ann-team trying to undermine the superiority of Parliament by trying to force it into a particular action under duress,

(d)  Convinced that Anna’s Jan Lokpal Bill was impractical, costly and of limited effectiveness,

(e)  Amazed that that media gave so much importance to a protest organized by less     than 1% of the kingdom’s population,

(f)   Apprehensive of high probability of the Anna -type protest agitation being hijacked and captured by unidentified evil vested interests,

The survey also revealed that the learned wise men and women suggested

(g) the members of Anna-led anti-corruption agitation should better get elected as MPs first to get into the business of formulating and passing Anti-Corruption Laws,

(h) the banning of agitations calling for specific actions by the Parliament.

The intelligentsia also concluded that the virus of corruption exists every wherein the Universe, that weeding the virus out from any is a foolish dream and that the extent of spread of the virus depends on the inherent, non-violent tolerance of the citizens. Some viruses are better enjoyed rather than killing them.

Thereafter, the population of cancerous corruption virus felt happy that as the population of Indians increases, they would get scope for spreading further merrily.