So far as corruption at higher levels is concerned, a casual glance at the fate the corruption cases against some of the Punjab and Haryana’s top politicians have met will show that without undertaking other systemic reforms no version of Lok Pal would be able to contain corruption indulged in particularly by members of the ruling class.

Though the judiciary whose prestige has been hit by the questionable actions of some of its black sheep still enjoys the common man’s trust, it sometimes is rendered helpless when those in power using their manipulative skills are able to save themselves from conviction. This is what has happened in some cases in Punjab and Haryana. What is needed to check this trend is that besides a strong Lok Pal, the loopholes in the justice delivery processes like curtailing the long delays in deciding the cases are plugged. An important step in this direction can be preventing the prosecution witnesses from turning hostile, especially in corruption cases against those holding high positions in government and the society.

Public memory is not too short as to forget how some of Punjab’s top ruling leaders got exoneration in corruption cases because almost all prosecution witnesses who were government officials, turned hostile. The reference is to the disproportionate assets cases registered against the members of the Badal family after the Capt. Amarinder Singh-led Congress government came to power in 2002. The proceedings continued for nine years. But after the Parkash Singh Badal-led Akali-BJP coalition assumed power in 2007 almost all prosecution witnesses, most of whom were government officials, turned hostile and the Vigilance Bureau which had launched the cases against the Badals virtually abandoned playing the role of prosecutors. Similarly, the Assembly Speaker Nirmal Singh Kahlon got exonerated in a corruption case though another case against him for allegedly taking bribe in appointments when he was a Minister in the 1997-2002 Akali-BJP is still pending in the court.

After the Badal government took over in 2002, the same Vigilance Bureau registered disproportionate assets cases against the former Congress Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh and his family members. The cases are still pending in the court. Only an astrologer can tell what fate the cases will meet if the Congress returns to power in the February 2012 elections.

Like Akali Dal’s top brass who faced corruption cases but got acquittal after assuming power in 2007, Haryana’s former Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala and his two sons Ajay and Abhay Chautala are now also facing disproportionate assets cases. To avoid being charged with resorting to vendetta politics, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had, after assuming office in 2005, referred charges of corruption and disproportionate assets against the Chautalas to the CBI. On orders of the Supreme Court, the CBI probed the cases and the court has now framed charges against the Chautalas. On August 3, Delhi’s Special CBI Judge P.S. Teji also ordered the trial of Om Parkash Chautala for possessing assets disproportionate to his legal income and framed charges against him under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The court commented that despite having been given the “last opportunity” to complete his arguments, Chautala’s counsel did not finish these.

As there are still three years to go for Haryana Assembly elections, nobody can predict whether the Congress or Chautalas Indian National Lok Dal will come to power. The political future of the Chautalas, therefore, is largely linked with whether the court announces its decision in the disproportionate assets cases before or after the elections.

Interestingly, Anna’s anti-corruption drive highlights two significant aspects of India’s public life. One is the people’s deep anger against rampant corruption at all levels. Second is the exposure of the hypocritical role some self-styled anti-corruption groups are playing. Unlike Anna who refused to come out of the jail unless his demands are met, Baba Ram Dev who has used his anti-corruption campaign to promote his business interests and to join politics fled from the Ramlila ground in women’s attire to avoid arrest when his followers were facing police lathis.

The Akalis hypocritical attitude is more blatant. The party says Anna’s case reminded people of the Emergency days. But they do not mind their own government’s police arresting and raining lathis on the farmers agitating against acquisition of land in Gobindpura village of Mansa district for a private firm. Secondly, Akali Dal’s district units did not seek permission from the authorities as stipulated in the law passed by Assembly in October 2010 for organizing their peaceful “demonstrations” against corruption on August 19.

Although the details of the Lok Pal’s structure and powers are yet to become fully known, it is impossible to visualize the fate the country’s judicial system will meet if Lok Pal is vested with powers to go into the cases as exemplified above. And then what will be the mechanism to remove the grievances of the Aam Aadmi who has to shell out bribe to get even his petty jobs done? Such are the issues which the framers of the Lok Pal, irrespective of its final version, need elucidation before enacting the otherwise welcome law. The supporters of a strong Lok Pal will also have to ensure that small unrepresentative groups having no accountability are not allowed to undermine the role of the Constitutional bodies like Parliament and Judiciary. (IPA Service)