Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan today demanded that the State Government constitute an independent and impartial authority to go into allegations of corruption leveled against each other by Chief Minister K. Rosaiah, and Leader of the Opposition and TDP President N. Chandrababu Naidu.
In a media statement, Dr. JP welcomed the willingness of the two leaders to face an inquiry and said that a former judge could head the authority. The Anti Corruption Bureau should function under the jurisdiction of the authority and an independent prosecutor drawn from the judiciary should assist it.
Dr. JP said people were losing faith in political parties, leaders and institutions as unbridled corruption involving thousands of crores of rupees had reached monumental proportions. At the national level, corruption charges relating to the 2-G Spectrum allocation, organization of Commonwealth Games, and the Adarsh Housing Society in Mumbai in the recent past had tarnished the nation’s reputation. At the State level, corruption charges relating to land allotment for SEZs, mining leases and Jalayagnam, to name a few instances, have become the order of the day.
Dr. JP said that using corruption as a political weapon against rivals served no purpose. People would not regain their faith in institutions unless the corrupt are swiftly jailed and their properties promptly confiscated through powerful, independent, and effective mechanisms.
The Union Government, he said, should take steps to constitute a powerful Lok Pal at the national level to go into allegations of corruption against members of Parliament, Chief Ministers, and civil servants whether in office or out of it. A similar institution should come up at the State level.
He called upon the youth especially to rebel against the corrupt system, which undermined their future.
