Lok Satta welcomes SC observation

The Lok Satta Party today welcomed the Supreme Court observation that people could hold political parties accountable for their election manifesto promises. By pointing out that voters could seek compensation from political parties and elected representatives for failure to fulfill their election-eve commitments, the Supreme Court upheld the voter’s importance.

Talking to the media, party spokesmen Katari Srinivasa Rao and Dr. P. Bhaskara Rao said that the Lok Satta, unlike other parties, gave 50 irrevocable guarantees all of which were constitutionally correct and could be fulfilled with the available resources. In contrast, the traditional parties made promises, which they had no intention to fulfill or were beyond the means available or constitutionally not permitted. The Congress Party had promised total prohibition in stages but promoted liquor consumption. The Telugu Desam Party’s color TV sets’ promise amounted to a corrupt electoral practice and its cash transfer scheme in its present form was impracticable given the State’s limited resources. The Praja Rajyam Party promised distribution of land to all the landless poor without recognizing that the land was a limited resource.

The Lok Satta, the two leaders pointed out, was not opposed to the State going to the assistance of the distressed and the disadvantaged. It contended that the limited resources of the State should be utilized to help people stand on their own feet. For this, the State should provide quality education and health care to all free of cost, provide livelihood skills to all the youth and ensure higher incomes in agriculture and traditional occupations.

Commenting on the fire in the Secretariat, the spokesmen said it exposed the Government’s negligence in taking fire prevention measures.